Chromebook Care and Use Guide

Secondary students will be assigned a Chromebook and charger in 7th grade. Students will be expected to use and care for the device until they graduate or become unenrolled in OCSD. Please be sure to return the Chromebook and charger when your child’s enrollment status changes.

b. Transfer/New Student Distribution

All transfers, new students or students that miss the distribution should reach out to the building administration for information to obtain a Chromebook.

2. Returning Your Chromebook

a. End of Year

Seniors are required to return their Chromebook as part of senior obligations. All other students will be given additional information each June about summer procedures.

b. Transferring/Withdrawing Students

Students that transfer out of or withdraw from the Oswego City School District must turn in their Chromebooks, cases, power supplies, and any other equipment issued with the Chromebook, to their school on their last day of attendance.

3. Taking Care of Your Chromebook

Students are responsible for the general care of the Chromebook they have been issued by the school. Secondary students may bring broken Chromebooks to the school library as soon as possible so that they can be taken care of properly. Elementary students should notify their classroom teachers as soon as possible. District-owned Chromebooks should never be taken to an outside computer service for any type of repairs or maintenance.

a. General Precautions

No food or drink should be next to Chromebooks.
Cords, cables, and removable storage devices must be inserted carefully into Chromebooks.
Carry the Chromebooks with the lid closed to prevent damage.
Chromebooks should not be used or stored near pets.
Chromebooks should not be exposed to extreme temperatures, such as leaving them in a car overnight during the winter.
Chromebooks should not be used with the power cord plugged in when the cord may be a tripping hazard.
Chromebooks must remain free of any writing, drawing, or non-removable stickers.
Heavy objects should never be placed on top of Chromebooks.

b. Carrying Chromebooks

Always transport Chromebooks with care and two hands.
Never lift Chromebooks by the screen or pinch the screen.
Never carry Chromebooks with the screen open.

c. Screen Care

The Chromebook screen can be damaged if subjected to heavy objects, rough treatment, some cleaning solvents, and other liquids. The screens are particularly sensitive to damage from excessive pressure.

Do not put pressure on the cover of a Chromebook when it is closed.
Do not store a Chromebook with the screen open.
Do not place anything in the protective case that will press against the cover.
Make sure there is nothing on the keyboard before closing the lid (e.g. pens, pencils, or disks).
Only clean the screen with a soft, dry microfiber cloth or anti-static cloth.

e. Asset Tags

All Chromebooks will be labeled with an OCSD asset tag. The asset tag indicates the Chromebook is property of the Oswego City School District and provides information that allows us to determine the name of the student to which the specific Chromebook has been assigned.
Asset tags may not be modified, removed, or tampered with in any way.
We recommend that all secondary students record the 6 digit barcode number in their planner to identify their assigned device.

4. Using Your Chromebook At School

Students are expected to bring a fully charged Chromebook to school every day and bring their Chromebooks to all classes unless specifically advised not to do so by their teacher.

a. If a student does not bring his/her Chromebook to school

There are Chromebooks available in the school library if a student should forget to bring their Chromebook to school. However, this privilege may be revoked if this becomes an issue and interferes with the educational schedule.

b. Chromebooks being repaired

Loaner Chromebooks will be available in the library to students that require a repair to their Chromebooks.

c. Charging Chromebooks

Chromebooks must be brought to school each day with a full charge.
Students should charge their Chromebooks at home every evening.
There will be a limited number of charging stations located in the school, available to students on a first-come-first-served basis.

d. Backgrounds and Themes

Inappropriate media may not be used as Chromebook backgrounds or themes. The presence of such media will result in disciplinary action, in accordance with the district acceptable use policy and district code of conduct.

e. Sound

Sound should be muted at all times unless permission is obtained from a teacher.
Headphones may be used at the discretion of the teachers.
Students should have their own personal set of headphones for sanitary reasons, please see your child’s teacher if you need to request a pair.

f. Logging into a Chromebook

Students will log into their Chromebooks using their school-issued Google Workspace account.
Students should never share their account passwords with others, including faculty and staff.

g. Managing and Saving Your Digital Work With a Chromebook

The majority of student work will be stored in Internet/cloud based applications and can be accessed from any computer with an Internet connection and most mobile Internet devices.
Some files may be stored on the Chromebook’s hard drive.
Students should always remember to save frequently when working on digital media.
The district will not be responsible for the loss of any student work.
Students are encouraged to maintain backups of their important work on a portable storage device or by having multiple copies stored in different Internet storage solutions.

5. Using Your Chromebook Outside of School

A WiFi Internet connection will be required for the majority of Chromebook use. However, some applications can be used while not connected to the Internet. Students are bound by the Oswego City School District Acceptable Use Policy, Administrative Procedures, and all other guidelines in this document wherever they use their Chromebooks.

6. Operating System and Security

Students may not use or install any operating system on their Chromebook other than the current version of ChromeOS that is supported and managed by the district.

a. Updates

The Chromebook operating system, ChromeOS, updates itself automatically. Students do not need to manually update their Chromebooks.

b. Virus Protection

Chromebooks use the principle of “defense in depth” to provide multiple layers of protection against viruses and malware, including data encryption and verified boot.
There is no need for additional virus protection.

7. Content Filter

The district utilizes an Internet content filter that is in compliance with the federally mandated Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA). All Chromebooks, regardless of physical location (in or out of school), will have all Internet activity protected and monitored by the district.

8. Software

a. Google Workspace for Education

Chromebooks seamlessly integrate with the Google Workspace for Education suite of productivity and collaboration tools. This suite includes Google Docs (word processing), Spreadsheets, Presentations, Drawings, and Forms.
All work should be stored on Google Drive, or other district approved platforms their teacher is utilizing.

9. Privacy Expectations

School-issued Chromebooks have been configured to optimize the educational experience for students and staff as well as protect students from harmful content. Chromebooks and student accounts remain the property of Oswego City School District and users should expect limited privacy via their Chromebook and account use.

a. On Campus Chromebook Use

As mentioned in Section 7 (Content Filter), all devices on the school network go through a content filter that prevents students from accessing harmful content.
This filter also logs user activity, including those websites accessed by the end user. The filtering policies are a requirement of the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA).

b. Off Campus Chromebook Use

When Chromebooks are being used off school grounds (i.e. home use), the Go Guardian application will be in place.
Chromebooks will be filtered for the purpose of preventing students from accessing harmful content in a similar way they are filtered on school grounds.

11. Appropriate Uses and Digital Citizenship

School-issued Chromebooks should be used for educational purposes and students are to adhere to the OCSD Acceptable Use Policy and all of its corresponding administrative procedures at all times.

Students may be held accountable for any inappropriate damage or behavior in accordance with the school district code of conduct.

12. Additional Support

For additional information, support and questions regarding your Chromebook, please visit the Instructional Technology Website: http://www.oswego.org/districtpage.cfm?pageid=725

For questions related to classroom work or assignments, please reach out to your child’s teacher.