Information Technology Update – February 15, 2018

February 14, 2018

Creating Parent access to App4 on student Notebook

App4 is the College eDiary used by teachers and students and parents are also able to access their son’s eDiary to view their Homework and Assignments. This can be done in several ways:

There is more information on App4 at the parent ICT support web site here:http://ipads.stpats.vic.edu.au/app4.html

iPad and Notebook Boot Camps

We ran iPad and Notebook Boot Camps for Year 7 and Year 10 students in Weeks 1 & 2 which both proved to be very successful. In the Boot Camps we show the students how to setup their devices and connect to the College WiFi and we also cover a number of valuable online resources the boys can use to help support their learning. As well as the Boot Camps we ran -‘Drop-in Clinics’ at lunchtime to assist any students who continued to experience any problems with their device. It is also very important for the boys to understand that any time they can visit the ICT Hub to seek assistance with their device from our expert support team.

At the Boot Camp, we also take time to speak to the nearly 500 students about the incredibly important topics of Digital Citizenship and keeping safe online. In this talk we cover a number of very important topics including:

  • Choosing online names that are suitable and respectful;

  • Only inviting people you actually know in the real world to be your friends in the online world;

  • Only visiting sites that are appropriate and respect the rules that websites have about age. Some sites are only for adults. If you wouldn’t feel comfortable showing the website to your parents or grandparents then it is inappropriate;

  • Setting your privacy settings so that only the people you know can see you and your personal information;

  • Using passwords that are hard to guess and keep these secret;

  • Only putting information online that is appropriate and posting pictures that are suitable. Not everyone seeing your profile or pictures will be friendly;

  • Always reporting anything that happens online that makes you feel uncomfortable or unhappy;

  • Talking to trusted adults, like your parents and teachers, about your online experiences. This includes both the good and the bad experiences.

One of the points I emphasised to the boys was the fact that if they ever felt uncomfortable, bullied, hurt or harassed online that they needed to report this to a trusted adult, not to just accept it let it continue. I also showed them how they can report anything they feel uncomfortable about at the eSafety site here: https://esafety.gov.au/

A number of excellent parent Cyber Safety resources for your information can be found here: http://ipads.stpats.vic.edu.au/cyber-safety-resources.html

Parent iPad/Notebook Handbook and Agreement Sign-off sheets

It is important that at the start of each year all students at the College, with their parents, read through the iPad/Handbook and Agreement. This document clearly states the guidelines and obligations all students must follow when using ICT at the College. The Handbook and Agreement also contains practical information on Digital Citizenship and Cyber Safety as well as care for and security of the device as well as the Responsible ICT Use guidelines and the Protocols for using devices in the classroom. Each student was given a Sign-off sheet to take home and sign along with their parents indicating their acceptance of the guidelines and requirements laid out in the Handbook and Agreement and it is important all students return this completed form to their Pastoral Care teacher if they wish to continue to use ICT at the College. The Parent ICT iPad/Notebook Handbook and Agreement can be viewed on the College website here: https://www.stpats.vic.edu.au/en/students-parents-staff/curriculum/ipads-and-notebooks/

Mark Holland

Director of ICT