WILLIAM CAREY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL BYOD FOR LEARNING
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WELCOME TO BYOD FOR LEARNING Information and Communication William Carey’s BYOD for Learning Technology (ICT) is revolutionising program started in 2018. All students education. The Internet has brought from Years 5-12 are required to bring a access to virtually unlimited troves digital device to school for learning in of information. The rise of video the classroom. tutorials and multimedia resources The School will make devices available means learning can be enriched and to students in Years P-4. Students in reinforced. Students can take a virtual Years 3 and 4 may choose to BYOD. tour of the Great Barrier Reef or listen Students in P-2 should not bring a to a university lecture with only a few device to school. keyboard strokes. Beyond an explosive increase in access CHOICE IN DEVICES to information, technology has become One of the first questions that parents a key tool in effective education ask is, ‘What device should my child allowing students to learn beyond the bring?’. The School has deliberately constraints of the four walls of the avoided instructing families to bring one classroom or the limits of the school type of device. This is to avoid a one- bell and timetable. The effective use size-fits-all approach, but rather provide of technology also enables teachers to choice, flexibility and adaptability for quickly determine the extent of student our students. learning using online and interactive resources. Gaining data quickly will The school has set minimum allow teachers to modify learning specifications to enable students activities to meet the needs of a wide to use devices that will meet their range of learners more effectively. educational needs while at school. Teachers can now expand their lessons When choosing a device, consideration to incorporate the critical 21st Century should be given to weight, price, battery skills of collaboration, communication, life and functionality. The value of critical thinking and creativity. purchasing extended warranty can also be considered. REDEFINING LEARNING Experience in schools who have run The use of technology at William Carey BYOD for a number of years has shown is not about the substitution of paper that laptops prove to be most functional and pens with digital technology. for students in the Senior High School Rather, ICT is used to modify learning years. On this basis we require our for our students through redefining students in Year 11 and 12 to bring a lesson activities. It also provides laptop as their device. new opportunities for students to experience whole lesson activities that would not be possible without ICT. 2
We strive to equip our Parents and students naturally have students as active and many more questions relating to BYOD and the Frequently Asked Questions responsible digital citizens section of this booklet aims to address and lifelong learners. as many of these questions as possible. If you have further questions once you PROS AND CONS have read this booklet, you can email us Strengths and weaknesses of a range at byod@wccs.nsw.edu.au. of possible device types are included in this booklet to help each family choose USING ICT WISELY the device that best serves their child’s Promoting safe and healthy technology educational needs. If a student has a use by our students is a critical particular interest in using their device component of BYOD to William Carey. for creative endeavours, they shouldn’t It is essential that parents, carers and be forced to purchase equipment that the School work in close partnership to would only be used at school. Using the promote this. Training our children in same type of device at home and at wise use of technology is a long-term school allows them to gain mastery of project, for both the School and families, that device. Parents and students should in building our children’s character and select the equipment that best suits the wisdom. The final section of this booklet student’s learning needs, and enjoy the contains a number of ideas to consider in advantages of digital technologies. the development of proactive responses to the increasing influence of technology Support for students, as they adjust in people’s lives. to using a device for their learning, is a focus area for school planning. The Mr Keith McMullen School has established programs to Principal train students in safe, organised and productive use of technology at school. 3
DEVICE TYPES STUDENTS IN YEARS 11 TO 12 Students in Years 11 to 12 are required to use a laptop when participating in the BYOD for learning program. This is because of the extended essay writing, research and editing involved in those years. Students in Years 11 to 12 may also be required to access specific software to meet the needs of certain elective courses. Note: Essential software such as Microsoft Office and basic Adobe Suite will be provided by WCCS. See page 12 for details. COMPULSORY FOR YEARS 11 TO 12 LAPTOPS SUITABLE FOR YEARS 5 TO 10 WINDOWS LAPTOP $500 - $2000 • Good compatibility, most software is available for Windows • Variety of manufacturers give a wide range of choice in specs, design and appearance. Windows laptops are widely used in most areas of business and education. New devices should run Windows 10, which is designed to support touch functionality and stylus use. Windows laptops are available in a variety of designs, including the traditional laptop design and a number of 2-in-1 designs such as detachable keyboards and tent-fold models. The 2-in-1 designs often include a stylus which is useful for activities such as drawing/painting and note taking. It is recommended to avoid the bottom of the range units as these laptops are generally not well suited for a student as they are less portable with shorter battery life. Note: Windows 10 S is not appropriate for use on the School network, however, Microsoft has made it free to upgrade from Windows 10 S to Windows 10 Home or Pro. support.microsoft.com/en-au/help/4456067/windows-10-switch-out-of-s-mode 4
APPLE LAPTOP $1500 - $3000 Apple laptops (Macbooks) are preferred by some students. Most major software is available for Apple laptops. Apple does not offer any 2-in-1 touch based laptops or stylus options. It is not recommended to select an Apple laptop for students who have no prior experience with them, as they may find it difficult adjusting to the different interface. Please be aware that staff at WCCS are issued with Windows laptops and hence are more equipped to assist students using a similar type of device. Chromebooks are NOT recommended devices because they are not fully compatible with the School network. 5
STUDENTS IN YEARS 5 TO 10 Both laptops and tablets are suitable choices for your child and they have contrasting advantages and disadvantages. Tablets can be smaller, flexible and less expensive. They are also useful for photography and movie making. It is important to note that, if your child is bringing a tablet to School, they will need a physical keyboard. TABLETS SUITABLE FOR YEARS 5 TO 10 IPAD WITH KEYBOARD $650 - $1500 • Screen size greater than 10 inches • 5th Gen or newer • Lightweight, "instant-on" device with excellent battery life • Premium brand with good build quality and stability. iPads are very portable devices that have been designed specifically with touch interface in mind. This makes them easy to use, and very familiar to students. Depending on the model, they can be cost competitive compared to a laptop, have excellent battery life, and are generally more compact than a laptop. BYOD requirements mean a physical keyboard would also need to be purchased, in the form of a Bluetooth (wireless) or keyboard case. Higher end units (iPad Pro) also support a stylus. The Apple Pencil currently provides an excellent digital drawing experience and may be worth considering for students doing graphic artwork. The Apple App Store has a huge range of apps to perform almost any task needed. 6
ANDROID TABLET WITH KEYBOARD $650 - $1500 • Screen size greater than 10 inches • Android 8 or newer • A variety of manufacturers give a wide range of choice in specs, design and appearance • Lightweight, "instant-on" device with excellent battery life. Android tablets are similar to iPads in that they are designed as a touch interface device, therefore will be easy and familiar to use. Depending on the manufacturer, some models can be less expensive than equivalent Apple iPads. However, as with Windows laptops, the very cheap models should be avoided as they tend to be of poor quality with outdated software. The Google Play Store offers an equally vast range of apps as the Apple App Store and some Android tablets offer stylus support. 7
STUDENT DEVICE REQUIREMENTS 2021 MINIMUM AND RECOMMENDED SPECIFICATIONS FOR BYOD Category Minimum Recommended Rationale Specifications Specifications Wireless 802.11n 802.11ac Adequate speed to access WCCS Wireless. Cellular connectivity (i.e. hotspot or active SIM card in BYO device) is strongly discouraged. Battery 8+ hours of battery To allow for full workday, battery life will vary life. depending on usage, this number may not be accurate for all usage scenarios. RAM 4GB* 8GB or more *RAM is not relevant to an iPad provided it is less than 4 years old. Performance Start-up less than Performance will vary based on device category. 30 seconds. Tablets need to be less than 4 years old. Storage 128GB or more of 256GB of storage. For offline storage of documents and data. storage. Solid State Drive Solid State Drives are more reliable and provide Some form of (SSD) better performance than traditional hard drives. external backup of External backup can take the form of a USB hard data. drive, flash drive or cloud backup. Screen Size 9.7 inch screen size. 13 inch screen with a A screen size of 13” offers the best compromise touch screen/stylus between functionality and portability. Larger interface. units will result in increased weight for transport purposes. Additional Physical keyboard. Front and rear facing Physical keyboard provides increased typing hardware Headphone camera speed and improved ergonomics. Features connectivity. USB/USB C port. Headphone to listen to videos/podcasts, online Built in camera. NAPLAN testing. Headphones. Mic/camera for creation and collaboration using Microphone. multimedia technologies. Many laptops include a built in microphone and camera. In the absence of these, there are headsets available which include both headphones and microphone in a single unit. Carry Case Padded bag or Optional: The WCCS uniform bag has a padded laptop case to transport Ruggedised device pocket that offers the minimum level of the device to/from (MIL-STD-810), an protection required. school. additional hard case or neoprene sleeve. Security Password to lock Tracking software Students are responsible for any actions device. on the device in case performed on their device, as such it is in their of loss. Biometric best interests to ensure no unauthorised activity security such as can take place by securing the device. facial recognition, fingerprint scanner, iris scanner. 8
HEALTHY COMMUNICATION Maintain open lines of communication AND SAFE within families. • Regularly discuss the use of ICT at USE OF ICT home and at school. • Develop an ICT use agreement Technology is very much a key within the household between component of learning in the 21st family members. Century. When used wisely, it can improve and enrich learning. It is • Decide on times for school work, essential that parents and the School times for entertainment using an work in close partnership to promote electronic device and screen free the health and safety of our children times. and students as they use ICT. Training • Discuss how and where ICT can be our children in the wise use of used (and not) to maintain strong technology is not solved with a quick relationships. fix. Healthy and safe use of technology is a long term project in building our • Establish common agreed practices children’s character and wisdom. for the whole family regarding use of technology. These are easiest to Please note that the following maintain if established when children comments and links are provided are young. Don’t wait for problems to assist parents and carers in this with technology to arise later as it is important task. The external articles harder to implement change. and sites, however, do not necessarily represent the views of William Carey • As children grow, agreed practices Christian School. may need to be modified to be age appropriate while still providing safe and healthy use of technology. 9
ESTABLISHING AND MODELLING HEALTHY PRACTICES • Make the parent/carer an • Physical health. Set up a comfortable administrator for the device and set and healthy workplace to use up a profile for your child. Establish technology. Good ergonomics are that this device is for school work important to avoid muscle fatigue or and thus, as a parent, you can ask to eye strain. Balance physical activity look at work, Internet histories and with sedentary activity. device use at any time. • Ensure you plan time away from • Keep screens out of the bedroom. screens. Regular breaks from Establish a common charging area working with digital technology for smartphones and look for are important to remain refreshed. spaces, where possible, for children Setting blocks of time to concentrate to use their devices in a common on screen-based activities broken area of the house. up by time away from technology has many benefits. It will improve • Agree on good digital etiquette. It is physical, emotional and mental important to relate well with others, health as well as boosting focus. both online and face to face. People need to feel heard and respected. • Plan to switch off screens well So consider how ICT is used when prior to bedtime. A large body of in a group, i.e. does ICT build evidence now shows that the blue connections or pull people apart? light from smartphones, tablets and computers can interfere with the • Minimise distractions. While body’s natural sleep cycles. Sleep multitasking often gives the is vital to learning, particularly the individual a sense of being effective consolidation of long term memory. and active, the impact is actually It is important that sleep areas are detrimental. Multitasking or being kept separate from work areas. in a distracting environment impairs efficiency in completing work • Model the technology practices and impairs short and long term that you want your children to work. Distractions include mobile adopt. Parents/carers have a phones, social media, games and responsibility to understand the television. Even listening to music long term investment of building uses up some of the brain’s capacity character in our children. Consider to concentrate. Music with lyrics how you use technology around noticeably reduces the brain’s ability your children and practise good to complete work effectively. digital etiquette. 10
RESOURCES Filtering software can help in providing protective boundaries to children. We utilise filtering software at School and recommend that families use a suitable form of filtering at home. It is important to understand that no filtering software will provide complete protection. Thus active parental involvement is vital in keeping children safe. Investigate the parent control services offered by your Internet Service Provider (ISP). This can include filtering of content entering your house through the modem and times when the modem can be automatically switched on and off (including remote/online control of your modem). A number of online resources are available to provide parents with help in supporting their children with healthy and safe technology use: • thefrankchat.com – Designed for educating young people, parents and the community about the harms of pornography. James Grady, author of 'The Frank Chat' is a school chaplain and teacher. • parentech.com.au – Established by the Australian Parents Council to support parents in the digital age. • esafety.gov.au/parents – Is provided by the Australian Government Office of the eSafety Commissioner. It provides a wide range of useful tools and information for parents on identifying online risks and implementing strategies to maximise online safety. It also reviews multimedia games and provides tips on adjusting settings to increase privacy. Students are trained to work with technology in safe and healthy ways within a framework of biblical Christian principles. 11
SOFTWARE In order to facilitate the completion of required tasks, students will need a range of software installed on their devices. WCCS email addresses are linked to a number of services that allow students to access a range of included software on their BYOD using those subscriptions, this includes: Subscription Available Software/Service Web Link G Suite (Google) Google Classroom, Drive, Apps drive.google.com (Docs, Sheets, Slides) Office 365 Word, Excel, PowerPoint, office.com (Microsoft) Outlook, Access, OneNote Creative Cloud Acrobat, After Effects, adobe.com (Adobe) Animate, Audition, Captivate, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign, Lightroom, Muse, Photoshop, and Premiere Tablet devices should have the Google Drive Apps installed including Google Documents, Google Slides and Google Sheets. Other tools/apps may be requested and/or suggested by teachers. Students will normally be given several days notice to install apps. STUDENTS WILL NEED THE FOLLOWING SOFTWARE: • Web Browser - Much of the content is delivered via web based tools and applications, students will therefore need an up to date modern browser. Firefox, Chrome, and Edge are all acceptable options for this. • Office Suite (Word Processor, Presentation Software) - Microsoft Office (available for free to students through the School) or Google Docs are the primary office suite packages used. This includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Slides for presentations. • Multimedia Suite - The full Adobe Suite, which includes Acrobat, After Effects, Animate, Audition, Captivate, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign, Lightroom, Muse, Photoshop and Premiere, is available for students who wish to make use of it. This software is provided upon request and does not incur an additional cost for the student. Please be aware that the school does pay a licensing cost for each student, so we encourage only those who have a specific need for it to request the software. To obtain a license, students can speak to Mr Snelson in T12, or any of the IT staff in J2. Alternatively they can simply email adobe@wccs. nsw.edu.au from their school account. • Faculty Specific Software - Where a course requires the use of a specialised application, the School will provide a recommendation for a suitable application on each platform. For some specific courses, the School will provide access to specialised and/or expensive software in a computer lab. 12
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Is my child required to bring a portable What technical support will the ICT device to school? School provide? Students in Prep to Year 2 should not The School’s ICT department can bring a device to school as we provide provide assistance with connecting these whenever they are needed. devices to the School’s wifi and Students in Years 3 and 4 are allowed services. For any issues that arise due and encouraged to bring a device as to faults with the device’s hardware and a voluntary BYOD user. All students in software, it is the family’s responsibility Year 5 - 12 will be required to bring a to resolve these in a timely manner device to school. to reduce any interruption to student learning. Many retailers offer extended How do I connect a device to the support and/or warranty. This is an school’s Wi-Fi (onboarding)? option you may wish to consider when Student devices need to be registered making a purchase. with the school’s wireless network every 12 months. This is a relatively What do I do if my child's device is simple process that can be done via being repaired or replaced? your home internet connection prior If a student's device is temporarily to the start of the school year. We unavailable, students can access a loan recommended doing this the week device from the school library. Please before school starts to ensure your note that this service is not a long term child is able to access resources from option. Students sign the device out day 1. For grades that are new to BYOD, at the start of each day and return it there will also be an induction run at to the library each afternoon. Parents/ school which will provide assistance for Carers will also need to provide a note students who were unable to complete that outlines the reason the device is the process on their own. For detailed unavailable. This should be addressed instructions see sites.google.com/wccs. to the Dean of Students (High School) or nsw.edu.au/techhelp/byod/setting-up- the classroom teacher (Primary). wccs-wifi 13
Where do I buy a device? will need to ensure this does not To provide families with the opportunity void warranty. The school strongly to purchase a device that suits their encourages all students to activate child’s needs and at a competitive price, some form of remote device tracking. families can select from a wide range All of the mentioned devices offer a of retailers. We recommend that a built in service that does this for free. purchase is made later in the year when Instructions on how to enable this for retailers start setting competitive prices Apple devices can be found at: support. in the lead up to Christmas (note: some apple.com/en-au/explore/find-my schools have used purchase portals to Microsoft offer a similar service for streamline purchasing but we have found machines running Windows 10, with that they do not always provide the best information at support.microsoft.com/ value and can limit the choices available). en-au/help/11579/microsoft-account- find-and-lock-lost-windows-device What about smart phones? and Android devices are detailed via Smart phones do not meet the minimum google.com/android/find. Laptops can specifications for the BYOD program. also use 3rd party tracking software The smart phone screen size is below such as homeoffice.absolute.com and 9.7 inches and lacks a physical keyboard. preyproject.com. Students who bring smartphones to School will still be required to meet the Won’t a device just make my child’s acceptable use policy (in school planners) school bag heavier? for mobile phones. The School is particularly mindful of the weight of bags, particularly for What about protecting the device? our younger students. We will lighten The WCCS school bag has been bags by moving to electronic textbooks designed with a padded protective where possible. It is recommended pocket. This provides basic physical that device weight be considered when protection. There are many protective making a purchase as this does vary cases that will provide additional significantly between devices. protection. Use of a lightweight protective case is recommended. Will the use of the Internet be monitored by the School? As with other equipment, individual Yes. Currently all devices that access students are responsible for their our School’s wifi network have their own property at School. The School's Internet connection filtered and their insurance will not cover student activity is logged. Parents should devices. Parents are advised to make understand that if students access their own insurance arrangements the Internet using their own 3G/4G to cover the possibility of theft, loss cellular capable devices, their activity or accidental damage to the device. is not filtered or logged by the School. Parents are also advised to ensure the Students are therefore not allowed to device has regularly updated protection use their own cellular hotspot. against viruses and malware. To reduce the risk of loss or theft, devices should be marked or labelled in an indelible manner. Engraving the device is a good strategy but you 14
Will students be able to recharge their One strategy we have adopted is devices during the day? the eSMART Schools Framework. Students are expected to bring a device eSMART provides a prevention and risk that is capable of lasting a full day of management framework to schools, use. It is the responsibility of students helping them better integrate cyber to ensure their devices are fully charged safety practices and promote the before the start of each school day. safe use of online technology in their In some circumstances students may community. Our School has an eSmart need to charge part way through the Cybersafety Policy to outline strategies day. Students should have their charger and responses to issues of cybersafety tested and tagged, a service which is and cyberbullying. available every Wednesday. Students My child is in Year 5. What apps will drop their device off at the Uniform Shop they need? before school and it will be ready for pick Throughout the year, parents will be up during recess for a cost of $5. informed via an Edumate broadcast Won’t BYOD lead to more distractions as apps and programs are required. and inappropriate behaviour? The apps required will differ from An increase in the use of digital grade to grade. technology may cause distractions and Will my child be looking at screens lead to inappropriate behaviour. Our all day? School wants parents to know that we No. ICT is a tool for learning but it take both of these matters seriously. cannot replace face to face teaching and Our current policy requiring students the collaborative interaction between to turn off and put away devices during groups of students and between lesson breaks will continue. Students are students and their teachers. Lessons will required to be supervised by teachers at involve a mixture of activities that will all times when using ICT at School. require students to use their devices as Our School also asks that parents/carers well as engage in activities that don’t partner with us to provide students with involve digital technology. ongoing support and training for wise and healthy use of digital technology. 15
How will my child maintain organised class notes? Students will be assisted through training to develop good processes for maintaining notes. Online organisation can be administered by the classroom teachers. Many digital learning activities will make use of Google Classroom, one component of the Google for Education Suite. Google Classroom is used by the classroom teachers to help students remain organised. Doesn’t the government supply funding for laptops? Can’t the School supply a device? The Australian Laptop Funding Scheme ended in June 2013. As a result, this funding is no longer available for any school students. Schools that provide ICT devices to their students accomplish this by adding the cost of the devices to the school fees. What about storage of my child’s work? It is important that students back-up their work on a regular basis. The School’s assessment guidelines state that computer failure is not an acceptable excuse for non/late submission of an assessment task. ICT devices do occasionally fail so students need to ensure they regularly back-up any work saved on their devices, on an external hard drive or to the cloud. What expectations are there regarding my child’s online behaviour at school? At the beginning of each year, all students will be required to sign an Acceptable User Agreement before being permitted to use any information and communication technologies (ICT) at School. For students in Year 5 to 12, this can be viewed in the Student Planners. Safe and responsible online behaviour is explicitly taught in lessons at School and parents/carers are requested to reinforce this behaviour at home. Parents/guardians can view some of the resources used in the Cybersafety program at: esafety.gov.au/educators/classroom-resources I have more questions, who do I ask? If you have further questions, we are keen to hear from you. If you would like to contact the School regarding BYOD for Learning send an email to byod@wccs. nsw.edu.au. From the start of next year, the School will be providing a number of contact points to help students and parents as they join BYOD for Learning. 16
TECHNICAL NOTES The following section addresses some appropriate. It is important that you of the common technical issues noted complete the onboarding process using from previous years of BYOD. Please the child’s account, rather than the consult this page when completing the parent account, as the certificate that onboarding process at home. If you allows the device to be connected to the are experiencing issues that are not WCCS WiFi network is linked to the user addressed below, or require technical that is logged on at time of onboarding. assistance, please contact: If you are unable to complete the byod@wccs.nsw.edu.au onboarding process from home, Windows 10S operating system issue: please either grant the child’s account Please note that if your device is a administrative privileges so they can Windows 10 laptop, it is possible that onboard the device from school or the operating will come installed provide credentials that will allow the with Windows 10 S. Windows 10 S is installation of applications. a modified version of the Windows Antivirus protection and locking/ operating system that prevents the tracking software: installation of applications that are not Student online safety is a priority of the approved by Microsoft. This will prevent BYOD program, and as such we have the device from installing the software implemented a number of systems necessary to onboard the device onto to ensure safe student Internet usage the School’s wifi network. To resolve while on the School network. We have this, you are able to upgrade to regular experienced some issues with third party Windows for free. A tutorial for antivirus products that interfere with a switching is available on the Windows students ability to connect to our WiFI. Support website: support.microsoft. In these situations it may be necessary com/en-au/help/4456067/windows- to disable or remove these products in 10-switch-out-of-s-mode order to complete the process. User privileges requirement: Static DNS issue: It is a common configuration when In some cases, you may employ a setting up a new laptop for a child feature known as a static DNS or use to create both an administrator products such as a Virtual Private (parent) account along with a regular Network (VPN). The school’s WiFi user account for your child. In these requires the use of dynamic DNS cases, if the student account has not settings and does not allow VPN traffic been granted privileges to install through the firewall. If you have set applications, they will be unable to DNS to static values or use a VPN, they onboard the device or set up school will need to be disabled in order for the printer software. This issue is also laptop to have Internet connectivity at prominent with Android tablets. school. Static DNS entries are usually In order to work around this issue, we only done in specific circumstances, ask that you complete the onboarding so if you are unsure whether you have process from home so that you can made these changes, it is unlikely that enter the administrator password where this applies to you. 17
CONTACT Questions and Technical Issues: byod@wccs.nsw.edu.au Multimedia Suite: adobe@wccs.nsw.edu.au 18
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att d go m e t r fo p gr eat things WILLIAM CAREY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL Bumbera Street, Prestons NSW 2170 Ph: (02) 9608 2277 Email: admin@wccs.nsw.edu.au Web: www.wccs.nsw.edu.au Updated: September 2020
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