Summer Happenings June 2024

Greetings Barrington Families,

It’s hard to believe we are at the end of the year! This time of year is always busy, we are wrapping up while also stepping into planning for next year. We still have Extended School Year to look forward to:

July 8-August 1

PK and Kindergarten will attend at the ECLC from 8:30-11:00

Grades 1-7 will attend BES from 8:30-11:30

Every Summer is an opportunity to review policies, procedures, attend law conferences and fine tune our practices for the upcoming school year. I intend on updating the student services section of the District website.

Congratulations to all of our graduates, Barrington is proud of you!

Enjoy your Summer,

Hello Barrington Families!

I hope you are having a wonderful summer!

I wanted to update you about an important decision to transition CORE academic grade level teacher computers from Macbooks to Chromebooks. (This does not apply to teachers with specialized software needs such as Music, Art and Tech Ed teachers)

Choosing Chromebooks for our school district has been a strategic decision that has provided numerous benefits to our students. To support the BSD longer term goals and current 5 year plan, we want to extend these benefits to Teachers as well. Beginning this year we will begin to transition from Apple MacBooks to Chromebooks for teachers. This evolution will allow our learning technology platform to become easier to use/manage, more integrated to the curriculum, and more secure. Some of the benefits are listed below:

Easy to Use

• Quick Boot-Up: Chromebooks start up quickly, minimizing downtime and maximizing learning time.

• Simplicity: Chromebooks are designed to be simple and straightforward, this has been a great benefit to our students as well as for staff who may not be as tech-savvy.

Seamless Integration with the Google Ecosystem

• G Suite for Education: Chromebooks integrate seamlessly with Google’s Workspaces (formally G Suite for Education), providing access to tools like Google Classroom, Docs, Sheets, and Slides.

• Collaboration: These tools promote collaboration among students and teachers, making it easier to share documents and work on projects together in real-time.

Cloud-Based Learning

• Cloud Storage: Chromebooks rely heavily on cloud storage, which means students and staff can access their work from any device with an internet connection.

• Data Security: Storing data in the cloud helps protect against data loss due to device damage or loss.

Maintenance and Management

• Compliance with NH Data Privacy Law: - With the passage of the NH Data Privacy RSA we need to be more proactive with Data Governance. Protection from Data Breaches must take a high priority in the Maintenance and Management of District technology resources.

• Cloud-Based Storage: Chromebooks are designed to use cloud storage, reducing the need for large internal storage and making it easier to manage and protect data.

• Automatic Updates: Chromebooks update automatically, ensuring that the software is always up to date with the latest security patches and features saving hours of technician time installing software updates making our data infrastructure more secure.

• Ease of Management: Google Admin Console allows for easy management of devices across the school district, including setting policies, distributing apps, and managing user access. Since there is no software to load, or data to transfer on the device, when a computer malfunctions, a replacement can be immediately available without any downtime for the teacher.

Enhanced Security

• Built-In Virus Protection: Chromebooks come with built-in security features and virus protection, reducing the risk of malware and security breaches.

• Sandboxing: Each web page and application runs in its own isolated environment, which prevents malware from spreading and affecting the entire system.

Long Battery Life

• Multi-Day Use: Chromebooks typically have long battery life, often lasting multiple school days on a single charge, reducing the need to carry chargers and look for power outlets.

Flexibility and Accessibility

• Guest Mode: Chromebooks support a guest mode, allowing students and teachers to share devices easily without compromising personal data.

• Accessibility Features: Chromebooks come with a range of built-in accessibility features to support diverse learning needs, an important aspect particularly when it comes to standardized testing and meeting the needs of all students.

Support for Educational Apps and Resources

• Wide Range of Apps: Chromebooks support a vast array of vetted educational apps and resources, both online and offline, that cater to various subjects and learning styles.

• Web-Based Tools: As education increasingly moves towards digital and web-based resources, Chromebooks provide an ideal platform for accessing these tools.

This multi-year transition will happen in phases. Beginning with Macbooks that are on the schedule to be replaced. If a current teacher Macbook is able to be updated, it will become a classroom “projector” computer. So all of the functionality that teachers may have relied on using the Macbook will continue to be available, until they can fully transition to their new Chromebook.

To help with training, the district will provide Professional Learning opportunities as well as Technology Integration support to help teachers utilize the Chromebook most efficiently into lesson planning.