At Papamoa College we want to encourage and enable learning that can happen ANYTIME, ANYWHERE and in a way that allows all learners to reach their highest potential. One of the many ways of achieving this is through e-Learning.

Student learning with devices will allow us, as a school, to develop digitally literate citizens who will be best placed for using technology in their worlds outside of school in a considered and responsible way.

Through the use of e-Learning devices, Papamoa College learners will have access to a wide range of learning tools. This will enable us to seek out and choose the best tools for every learning situation to meet the needs of a wide variety of learners. By having access to digital devices, our learners can have personalised learning programmes and share their learning with the world.

Based on consultation, research and experience, the Papamoa College leadership team made the decision to become a Google Suite school. This means we have the full range of Google Education products available to use in our teaching, learning and administration. The advantage of the Google suite is that it is accessible on all devices across all the different platforms (eg. Windows PC, Android, Apple).

The suite includes the following tools:

• Drive (with storage for every student)

• Classroom

• Docs

• Sites

• Sheets

• Slides

• Forms

BYOD -Bring Your Own Device

Papamoa College provides some laptops and other devices for student use, however, it is limited and we can not guarantee that every learner will have access whenever a device is required.

To ensure that learning can happen ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, we encourage our learners to embrace the opportunity to bring their own devices to school each day for learning. This will ensure:

• Uninterrupted access to devices and the internet at school

• Assured reliability of the device

• Seamless learning between home and school

• Improved capacity for collaboration / feedback / forward with other students and staff

• Ability to explore new learning environments and communities beyond the classroom

To assist with determining an appropriate device for learning, we have some recommendations.

Suitable for Maximising Learning

Any wi-fi capable laptop or netbook less than 3 years old

• E.g. HP Pavillion, Acer Aspire, Toshiba Satellite, Apple MacBook/Air, Chromebook, SurfacePro

Adequate, but with limited functionality:

• Wi-fi capable tablets with detachable keyboards

• E.g. iPads

Not suitable as a primary BYODevice:

• Small hand-held devices

• E.g. mobile phones

SOME OTHER CONSIDERATIONS:

• Length of battery life: Charging lockers will be available for use during the school day. However, battery life will need to extend through class times when the use of a device is required for classwork. New batteries might be able to be purchased for older devices with degraded battery life.

• Weight (mass) of device: The size and weight of the device should be considered in terms of the added weight in the school bag.

• Hard Drive: SSD (solid-state hard drives) will last much longer than HDD hard drives.

While the benefits of student-owned devices coming to school are obvious, we are aware of some concerns from parents around security and cost. We take both of these concerns seriously and have taken steps to mitigate these concerns.

Experience at Papamoa College and at other schools that allow student-owned devices on campus indicates that, provided students take similar precautions with their digital device that they would with their other belongings, then very few issues actually arise regarding damage or theft. To support students, we also provide lockable storage for students to store their unattended devices.

Papamoa College has partnered with PB Tech and Noel Leeming to provide options for families/whanau.