Masterton Primary School ICT Policy 2021 - Glow Blogs

Masterton Primary School

ICT Policy 2021

Masterton Primary Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Policy

Children and young people are innovative, confident and responsible in the use of
technologies and staying safe online. They critically examine and make informed choices
about the use of digital technology to enhance and personalise learning in school and, where
appropriate, beyond the school day. They anticipate and respond to new opportunities and
threats caused by developments now and in the future.
                                                       3.3 Creativity and Employability HGIOS 4

Introduction

Masterton Primary School recognises that access to ICT gives our students enhanced
opportunities to learn, engage, communicate and develop skills that will prepare them for
many aspects of life. To this end the whole school ICT policy sets out the rationale, the aims
and objectives for the learning and teaching of ICT at Masterton PS. It provides guidance on
the measures that need to be in place in order to implement the policy effectively.

Rationale

Within society the use of ICT is common place and continually expanding. Home internet
access and access to hardware has increased to the point where almost everyone has some
form of access to the internet and social media. ICT equipment and software has evolved to
the point that it is frequently changing and updating and new equipment or programmes
becomes defunct in a short period of time.
With this in mind the teaching of ICT is always evolving and we need to ensure that we
equip teachers and learners with the skills to be confident and creative and the learners to
be independent in their use of ICT.

Aims

   •   To develop learners ICT capability in finding, selecting and using appropriate
       information, understanding that not all material on the internet is accurate.
   •   To apply ICT skills, knowledge and understanding to their learning in other curricular
       areas.
   •   To use ICT skills to develop their language and communication skills.
   •   To explore their attitudes towards ICT and its value to them and society.
   •   To develop ICT for effective and appropriate communication.
   •   To develop the ability to access hardware and software for creative and appropriate
       uses.

Curriculum

In 2017 the technologies curriculum was revised and split into 5 curriculum organisers, two
of which are related to computing. These are Digital Literacy and Computing Science.
Because of this programmes of work should be regularly reviewed and updated. As well as
this there needs to be access to regular CPD to ensure that teachers are confident in

teaching ICT to pupils who may be already coming to school used to using hardware and
software.

Some specific aspects of ICT need to be taught directly to pupils. Other aspects can be
taught across the wider curriculum.

As the aims of ICT are to equip learners with the skills necessary to use technology to
become independent learners, the teaching approach that we use should be as practical and
active as possible.

To achieve this we need to have sufficient working hardware and software appropriate for
learning. We also need to be very aware that many learners have access to good quality
laptops, tablets and phones at home. Many are fluent in their use and access them every
day. Therefore any learning and teaching needs to be well thought through and provide
challenge.

ICT across the curriculum

ICT can be used to support learning and teaching in all curricular areas. The ability to log
onto the internet and find information and resources immediately is a 21 st Century
phenomenon.

In using ICT it is necessary to clearly state the Learning Intention and Success Criteria of a
lesson. This will state the purpose of the lesson and whether this is to teach an ICT skill or
whether it is to use ICT to support the teaching of another skill.

Resources

Classrooms are equipped with an interactive smartboard and access to the school network.
There are visualisers available in school for classroom use although not every class has
them. Each class should have daily access to 2 or 3 working computers.
There is a portable trolley of netbooks and the use of this trolley is timetabled so that each
class has access to the netbooks at a time suitable for their needs.
Classes also have access to a portable trolley of i-pads. As with the netbooks the use of this
trolley is timetabled.
The school has full wireless capability which was paid for through fund raising.
It is important that, if any part of the equipment is not working, it is reported to the school
office quickly, who will raise a call to have it fixed.

All computers also have access to educational software appropriate to the age and stage of
the pupils. Schools must hold the appropriate licences before any software can be
downloaded. Permission to download any software must be sought from the local authority
before this is done.
This policy is intended to cover all available technologies used in school, and not just those
specifically mentioned.

GLOW / TEAMS / SeeSaw

Within the school and outwith the school learners use a number of platforms. They are used
to support ongoing work as well as access to homework. Currently in P.1-3 the SeeSaw
platform is in use. For P.4-7 Microsoft Teams is in use. All learners in the school have access
to the secure GLOW site.

Health and Safety

Food and drink should not be consumed near ICT equipment.

After use learners should ensure that the equipment is returned to the relevant trolley and
stored correctly. It is the responsibility of teachers to ensure that ICT equipment is stored
securely. Equipment must also be cleaned prior to storage on the trolley.

An adult should always ensure that learners are supervised when accessing information via
the internet. Although the school has a very strong Firewall and it is unlikely that
inappropriate material could be accessed it is still important that supervision is in place. Any
inappropriate material accessed by accident should be reported to the HT / DHT as soon as
possible to ensure that the site is blocked. If a site is blocked and the learner believes it
shouldn’t be, the learner can ask that the site be reviewed. This is done by Fife Council ICT
Department.
We will make a reasonable effort to ensure learners’ safety online, but will not be held
accountable for any harm or damages that result from misuse of school technologies.

Professional Development

All staff have the responsibility to develop their own expertise and share good practice.
Regular training opportunities can be accessed through the Fife Council CPD online service
in addition to CPD sessions provided by other staff, external agencies and online training
sessions. It is expected that any staff who undertake a training course in ICT will provide
support or CPD to other staff to help build skills and confidence in their use of ICT.

Use of Social Media

Masterton Primary School has a school website which is updated regularly and has a twitter
account (@MastertonPS). The parent group FROMPS has a Facebook page, as do other
groups of parents.
At Masterton we do not use these platforms for expressing personal views and ask that
parents and carers adopt the same view when commenting on tweets or Facebook posts.
We may, at times, tweet or post photographs of children and would advise the following.
   • Photographs of the children will only be displayed online with the explicit consent of
       parents/guardians at the start of the school year.
   • Children will not be named in full – first name will suffice. Should their full name be
       used at any stage then verbal permission will be sought prior to this.
   • No child will be photographed and named specifically if they are the only student
       photographed.

Mobile Devices
In accordance with Fife Policy Learners should not use personally owned devices in school,
(e.g. tablets, digital cameras, smart-phones etc.) unless permission has been agreed by the
school and the parents/guardians.
Children’s mobile devices should be handed in to the office before the start of the school
day where they will be kept securely until the end of the school day. The school cannot
accept any responsibility for any damage or loss to equipment that occurs when the child
has not complied with this.

Online Safety and Security

Teaching staff will ensure that online security and safety is taught and revisited regularly as
part of our ICT programme. This may be completed by the class teacher or a specialised
visitor. This will include but is not limited to:
     • Learners should never share personal information about themselves or others over
         the internet.
     • Learners should never agree to meet someone they meet online in real life without
         parental permission.
     • Learners should not take or share images of other learners without explicit
         permission
     • Learners should not use or accept hurtful comments or remarks made online.
     • Learners should not post anything online that they would not want parents or
         teachers to see.

Cyber Bullying

Harassing, denigrating, impersonating, outing, tricking, excluding and cyber-stalking are all
examples of cyber-bullying and this will not be tolerated at Masterton Primary School.
We advise that:
   • Our learners must not end messages or post comments or photos with the intent of
       scaring, hurting or intimidating someone else.
   • In some cases cyber-bullying is a crime and will be reported as such.
   • The school will support students, teachers and parents/guardians when dealing with
       cyber-bullying.

Summary

In following the recommendations within our ICT policy, we continue to place importance
on learning and teaching in ICT. This contributes toward achievement of the broader aim of
education to help our children and young people gain the knowledge, skills and attributes
needed for life in the 21st century.

S Humphries, March 2021