Student Device Acceptable Use Policy: The Apps Section, With a Template
Most acceptable use policies were written for websites and email. Apps, AI tools and take-home devices need their own section, and every rule in it should match a setting on the device.
What the apps section of an acceptable use policy should cover
Twelve topics come up in every district's app questions. If the policy is silent on one, staff end up making the rule case by case.
Scope
Which devices: district iPads, Chromebooks, Android tablets, and whether personal devices are included.
Approved apps
Where the list lives and who decides what is on it.
Requests
How a student or teacher asks for a new app.
Blocked categories
The categories that are off-limits, named in plain words.
Accounts
School accounts only, no personal accounts on district devices.
AI tools
Which AI tools are allowed, for which grades, and how to disclose AI help.
Communication
Messaging, social media and video calls on district devices.
Recording
Photos, audio and video of other people.
At home
Which rules apply after school hours and off the school network.
Getting around controls
VPN apps, other browsers, resets and similar attempts.
Privacy
What the district can see on the device, in plain words.
Consequences and review
What happens after a breach of the rules, and when the section is reviewed.
Template: the apps section of a student device acceptable use policy
Copy it, replace the highlighted placeholders and cut what does not apply. It is written as a section to slot into your existing policy. Have your board or counsel review the final text.
5.1Purpose and scope
- This section applies to every device owned or managed by [District Name] and issued to a student, including iPads, Chromebooks and Android tablets, at school, at home and anywhere else.
- It covers apps, browser extensions and web apps used on those devices.
- Personal devices are covered by [the personal device policy / Section X].
5.2Approved apps
- The district keeps a list of approved apps by grade level, published at [web address of the approved apps list].
- Approved apps are installed by the district. Students may only use apps that the district has installed or made available on their device.
- Some apps are approved only with conditions, such as a school account or teacher supervision. Those conditions are part of this policy.
5.3Requesting a new app
- Students who need an app for schoolwork ask their teacher, who submits a request through [request form or process].
- The district reviews each request for learning value, privacy, safety, accessibility and age suitability before deciding.
- Until a decision is made, the app may not be used on district devices.
5.4Blocked apps and categories
- The district blocks categories of apps that do not support learning or that put students at risk, including [social networking, chat and messaging apps not provided by the district, games, gambling, dating, adult content, VPN and proxy apps, remote access apps, AI companion apps and apps rated for adults].
- The blocked categories may change during the year as new apps appear. The current categories are listed at [web address].
- A blocked app is blocked at all times and on all networks unless this policy says otherwise.
5.5Accounts and sign-in
- Students sign in to apps with their district account wherever the app supports it.
- Students may not add personal accounts, including personal Apple Accounts or Google accounts, to district devices.
- Students may not create accounts on apps or websites with their district email unless a teacher directs it for an approved app.
5.6Artificial intelligence tools
- Students in [grades] may use only the AI tools approved by the district, signed in with their district account. All other AI chat, companion and homework answer apps are blocked.
- Students follow their teacher's instructions on when AI help is allowed, and note any AI help in their work as their teacher directs.
- Students do not enter personal information about themselves or others into AI tools.
5.7Messaging, social media and communication
- Students communicate on district devices only through the tools the district provides, such as [learning platform, school email, approved video tool].
- Social media apps, including short video apps such as TikTok, are blocked on district devices.
- Students treat others with respect in every app, in line with [the code of conduct].
5.8Camera, microphone and recording
- Students use the camera and microphone for schoolwork only.
- Students do not photograph, record or share images or recordings of other people without their permission and, at school, a teacher's permission.
- Recording apps, including AI note takers, need teacher approval before use in class.
5.9Use at home and outside school hours
- This policy applies whenever and wherever a district device is used.
- [If applicable:] After school hours, the district applies different app rules, described at [web address]. Families may be able to set additional limits through [parent app, if enabled].
- The device is for the assigned student's use.
5.10Getting around device controls
- Students may not try to bypass, disable or remove device management, filters or app restrictions.
- This includes installing or using VPN or proxy apps, using browsers other than the one provided, resetting or erasing the device, and adding personal accounts.
- Students who find a gap in the controls report it to [contact] instead of using it.
5.11Privacy and what the district can see
- The district manages devices to keep them working and safe. It can see [for example: the device's installed apps, settings, operating system version and, when a device is reported lost, its location].
- The district reviews apps for how they handle student data before approving them.
- Questions about data held by an app go to [privacy contact].
5.12Accommodations
- Apps listed in a student's IEP, 504 plan or other support plan are made available on that student's device.
- Requests for accommodation apps follow [process] and are reviewed with priority.
5.13Consequences
- Breaking the rules in this section may lead to [the steps in the code of conduct, which may include loss of take-home use or restricted device access].
- Consequences are applied consistently with the district's discipline policy.
5.14Review of this section
- The district reviews this section at least once a year and when laws or district policy change.
- Changes are shared with students and families before they take effect.
Keep the blocked categories in clause 5.4 in step with your blocklists. If a category appears here, it should be in the device policy too, and the other way round.
Student versions by grade
Students sign what they understand. Pair the full section with a short version written for their age. These are examples to adapt.
- I use the apps my teacher shows me.
- I ask a grown-up before I try something new.
- I only take pictures for schoolwork.
- I tell a grown-up if something makes me feel bad.
- The iPad is for me, not for my brothers or sisters.
- I use the apps the school put on my device.
- If I need a new app, I ask my teacher.
- I sign in with my school account only.
- I do not record people without asking.
- The same rules apply at home.
- I do not try to get around the blocks.
- I use approved apps and request others through my teacher.
- I use only the AI tools the district approved, and I note AI help in my work.
- I do not add personal accounts, VPN apps or other browsers.
- I keep personal information out of AI tools.
- I report gaps in the controls instead of using them.
The family summary: one page to send home
Families rarely read the full policy. A one-page summary with the same rules, in plain words and in the languages your families use, answers most questions before they are asked.
What to put on the page
- Which device your child has and that it belongs to the district
- The blocked app categories, in one short list
- Where to find the approved apps for your child's grade
- How AI tools are handled for your child's grade
- Whether rules change after school, and how
- What the district can see on the device
- One contact for questions about apps
Example opening lines
"Your child's [iPad / Chromebook] is set up for schoolwork in grade [X]. Some kinds of apps are blocked on it at school and at home."
"If your child needs an app for schoolwork that is not on the device, their teacher can request it. We review every request before an app is added."
"The full rules are in Section 5 of the Student Device Acceptable Use Policy at [web address]."
Map every clause to a device control
A rule the device does not enforce becomes an argument. For each clause, know which setting backs it up, and where it lives in your MDM.
| Clause | Device control | Where to read more |
|---|---|---|
| 5.2 Approved apps | Apps assigned through the MDM; App Store turned off on supervised iPads; allowlist on Chromebooks | Approved apps list |
| 5.4 Blocked categories | Category blocklists for iOS bundle IDs and Android packages, imported into the MDM; profiles with a restrictions payload | Blocking apps with a .mobileconfig |
| 5.5 Accounts | Restrict account changes on supervised iPads; allow sign-in only to the school domain on Chromebooks | Apps to block on school iPads |
| 5.6 AI tools | AI apps blocklist by grade group; managed AI tool assigned to approved grades | AI apps on student devices |
| 5.7 Social media | Social Networking and messaging categories blocked; web versions blocked in the filter | Social media apps list |
| 5.9 At home | Device-level restrictions; time-based profiles or parent app where supported | Take-home device restrictions |
| 5.10 Getting around controls | VPN category blocked; other browsers blocked; re-enrollment after erase; unknown sources blocked on Android | How students get around restrictions |
Acceptable use policy examples for common app rules
Short example wordings for the rules people search for most. Each one names a category, gives an example, and says what the device does.
"Short video and social apps, such as TikTok (com.zhiliaoapp.musically), are blocked on district devices at all times. Teachers share approved videos through the learning platform."
"The YouTube app is not installed on student devices. Videos assigned by teachers play inside approved apps or the learning platform."
"Games are blocked during the school day. Learning games on the approved apps list may be used when a teacher assigns them."
"Installing or using any VPN, proxy or anonymizer app or service on a district device is not allowed. These apps are blocked."
"Only the district's approved AI tool may be used, with a district account. Other AI chat apps, such as ChatGPT (com.openai.chat), are blocked on student devices in grades [X to Y]."
"Students message classmates and teachers only through district tools. Other chat apps, such as Discord (com.hammerandchisel.discord), are blocked."
For the device side of the TikTok rule, see how to block TikTok.
Mistakes that weaken the apps section
Most problems with acceptable use policies are not missing rules. They are rules that cannot be enforced, or rules nobody can understand.
Listing every blocked app
A list of names is out of date in weeks and gives students a menu.
Instead: name categories and two or three examples.Promising total protection
No blocklist catches every app on the day it launches.
Instead: say the district blocks categories and updates them regularly.Rules with no control
"Students may not use games at lunch" with no schedule on the device.
Instead: write only rules the device or staff can enforce.Legal language for children
A ten-page policy that a fourth grader signs without reading.
Instead: a short student version for each grade band.No review date
Policies written before AI apps and take-home programs still in force.
Instead: a yearly review written into the section itself.Silence on monitoring
Families find out what the district can see only after an incident.
Instead: a plain clause on what is visible to the district.Staff devices and personal devices
The student section should not try to cover everyone. Staff and personal devices need their own short rules that point back to it.
Staff on district devices
Staff often need apps students cannot have, such as AI planning tools or communication apps for families.
- Use a separate staff section or policy
- Keep the same rule on student data in AI tools
- Block the same high-risk categories, such as gambling and adult
Personal phones and tablets
State phone laws now govern personal phones in many schools. App rules for personal devices on school Wi-Fi belong in a separate section.
The options and trade-offs are on BYOD app policy.
Review and sign-off cycle
A yearly loop keeps the policy and the devices in step. Start it early enough that families see the final text before devices are issued.
Collect issues
Help desk tickets, discipline cases and app requests from the year.
Draft changes
Update categories, AI rules and any new state law requirements.
Review and approve
Board or leadership review, plus counsel if your district uses it.
Match devices
Update profiles and blocklists so they match the new text.
Sign and teach
Student versions signed in class, family versions sent home.
Acceptable use policy questions
What should the apps section of an acceptable use policy cover?
Scope, approved apps, requests, blocked categories, accounts, AI tools, messaging and social media, recording, home use, getting around controls, privacy, accommodations, consequences and review.
Should an acceptable use policy list every blocked app?
No. Name blocked categories and a few well-known examples. A full list goes out of date within weeks and reads like a list of things to try.
Do students need to sign the acceptable use policy?
Most districts ask students and families to acknowledge it each year or when devices are issued. Use a short version for students and the full text for families.
How should the policy handle TikTok and social media?
Name the category, give TikTok as an example, say the apps are blocked on district devices, and point to the approved alternative for sharing video in class.
Does the policy need to mention AI?
Yes. AI tools raise questions about academic honesty and student data that older policies do not answer. Say which tools are approved, for which grades, and how AI help is disclosed.
How often should the apps section be reviewed?
Once a year before devices are issued, and whenever a major change happens, such as a new state law, a new AI policy or a move to take-home devices.
Can we use the same policy for iPads and Chromebooks?
Yes. Write the rules by category and purpose, not by platform. The device team then applies each rule in the right console for each platform.
Make clause 5.4 true on every device
Our category blocklists give you the files behind the blocked categories in your policy, for iOS, iPadOS and Android, updated monthly, with separate files per school on the district plan.
TikTok is a trademark of ByteDance Ltd. YouTube, Chromebook, Android and Google are trademarks of Google LLC. Apple, iPad and Apple Account are trademarks of Apple Inc. ChatGPT is a trademark of OpenAI. Discord is a trademark of Discord Inc.
Names are used only to identify the products discussed. AppBlockList is not affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by these companies. The template is a starting point, not legal advice.