Yes, parents/guardians are required to purchase a new device through the mandated College IT provider, Centorrino Technologies, and not from a third party or hand-me-down. This is necessary for the following reasons:

1. Centorrino Technologies will preload devices with the College System Software Bundle, which includes the antivirus and device management software required to ensure the security of the College network, and they will pre-configure the devices to be able to connect to the College network.
   
   The devices are delivered to Loyola College preconfigured, ready to go when they are picked up on the first day of school.
   
2. Centorrino Technologies has a business-grade arrangement with Microsoft, which allows for a more streamlined, efficient warranty/accidental damage repair process than is possible through any retailer. Warranty/accidental damage claims typically take 2-3 days. Through the Centorrino Technologies Device Support Program all warranty/accidental damage claims are managed by onsite Centorrino Technologies staff.
   
   During warranty/accidental damage claims processing, if necessary students have access to a loan device in the meantime to minimise downtime. This process is designed to minimise any potential impact on student learning. The parent will be asked to sign a loan agreement to cover the cost of repair/replacement of the loan device should it become damaged, lost or stolen during the loan period.
   
   For non-warranty, accidental damage repairs, there is a fixed maximum fee of $110 including GST. Note that intentional damage incurs the full repair cost.
   
3. Loyola College requires that the device is purchased through Centorrino Technologies. These devices have a full three years’ worth of Extended Warranty and Accidental Damage claim protection – a maximum of two (2) claims over the three-year period.

Payment in full is required before delivery of the device.

• The purchasing portal, go.ct.com.au/Loyola allows for different payment options, including multiple payments over time.

Please note: if circumstances require you to seek additional financial support, you may contact Kathryn Wilson (DP Teaching and Learning), via email on WilsonK@loyola.vic.edu.au.

Even though the device is delivered ready for pickup at Loyola College, Centorrino Technologies needs to capture the address of the purchaser in order to complete a compliant tax invoice for the purchaser.

Other than the Windows operating system, devices will come loaded with the System Software Bundle, which includes antivirus, and access to eBooks for core subjects that cover Religion, English, Mathematics, Humanities and Science.

Students may from time to time also be required by teachers to download and install free apps from the Microsoft Store, for which a Microsoft account is needed. Microsoft accounts can easily be created by signing in with any Microsoft email account e.g. hotmail.com, live.com, outlook.com or msn.com. Microsoft also allows people to use their own email address or their mobile phone number to sign into Microsoft services (https://www.microsoft.com/en-au/account).

Users do not need to enter their payment details when downloading free apps.

At this stage it has not been determined what, if any paid apps will be required. If and when this requirement eventuates, when downloading paid apps users have three options to pay: 1. Credit Card, 2. PayPal, 3. Microsoft Gift Cards (available from Coles, Woolworths, Harvey Norman or most major retailers of gift cards). Commonly labelled as Microsoft or Microsoft XBOX Gift cards, they allow the user to top up their account, similar to Apple ID accounts, and use it for any of Microsoft services including the Microsoft Store.

Please refer to the Centorrino Technologies ordering portal (go.ct.com.au/Loyola) and Information Package for pricing.

While the mandated warranty and accidental damage provisions cover the device for hardware faults and accidental damage, please note that, as the device is owned by the student and not the College, these provisions do not provide insurance cover in the event that the device is lost or stolen. The College takes no responsibility for lost or stolen student devices. Parents/guardians are advised to organise their own insurance cover from their Home and Contents Insurance provider if they require peace of mind in relation to a device being lost or stolen.

In addition to the Extended Warranty (3 years), Accidental Damage Protection covers you for a maximum of two (2) claims, during the 3-year term, for the repair or replacement cost of the device in the event of accidental damage, subject to the Limit of Liability, which Microsoft defines as follows: Cover under this Plan for accidental damage will end automatically with immediate effect following the successful resolution of a second Accidental Damage Claim, after which Microsoft will not accept any further liability.

Please note: an Insurance Excess of $110 applies to each accidental damage claim.

Although you may be placing your order months before your child is due to start at Loyola College, you can rest assured that your warranty does not commence until January of the year your child commences school. This minimizes any unused warranty period.

In the event a newer Surface Laptop model is released by Microsoft during the ordering Period, Centorrino Technologies and Loyola College will assess that model for compatibility issues on the College’s network.

Assuming there are no compatibility issues and given the price-point of the newer model is similar to the current model, Centorrino Technologies may automatically upgrade orders to the latest model.

The expectation is that students will use a Surface Laptop device until at least the end of Year 9. From Years 10 – 12, students are free to use that same device, assuming it is still in working condition, or they may bring any other Windows or Macintosh device (i.e. Windows or Macintosh) to school, as long as it meets the Loyola device standards.

With greater access to real-time information, digital learning resources, educational software and collaborative workspaces, students experience higher levels of motivation and engagement in their learning.

Typically, students experience initial improvement in areas such as organisational and technological skills, revision, writing and editing work. With the development of presentations and other multimedia projects, students experience subsequent improvement in analytical, presentation and speaking skills.

Involvement in ‘virtual workspaces’ creates opportunities for collaboration and communication, improving relationships in the classroom through a greater level of interaction between students, their peers and their teachers.

A networked environment, where it is easy to share the development of work and research with peers and teachers, is the environment students will live and work in during secondary school and in their future lives.

Students working together and investigating solutions to real-world problems will create links beyond the classroom and move levels of thinking beyond a simple knowledge framework to complex analysis and evaluation.

Increased levels of learning both in and out of school with an emphasis on higher-order thinking, creative thinking and expression will be promoted.

This is a technology-rich world and students are immersed in digital technology in their out-of- school lives. Schools can either capitalise on young people’s affinity for technology or fail to engage them in relevant, digital learning opportunities.

The use of devices in the classroom will evolve over time as students and teachers become more familiar with these technologies. This in turn will allow teaching and learning in the classroom to capitalise on the advantage offered by the use of these devices, wherever that classroom may be.

For example, it is now possible for an English class where students create a podcast of their original poetry, accompanied by a soundtrack they have written and enhanced with their own digital images to share with the world. The device can be used to record and document information, then share the learning. In Art, students can research projects on various artists then use the device as a medium to create their own drawings as well as clay animations. Students in Science could attach probes to real life natural or artificial systems for data analysis and in Physical Education students may use video and spatial technologies to analyse patterns of movement.

Staff and students can collaborate and use the device as a tool that develops the student as information seeker, analyser, evaluator, problem-solver and decision-maker. They will use programs to create ways in which to communicate their findings and publish their own work.

The Surface Laptop will complement the existing school curriculum by providing appropriate digital learning tools in balance with more traditional learning tools. The goals of the curriculum are supported by the use of 1-to-1 devices. Students will use 1-to-1 devices where they serve a purpose; for instance, in research and generating presentations.

Wireless access will allow for ‘just-in-time’ learning where students can search for information or collaborate with others in a real-time context. Students will be able to use their school files at home and be able to collaborate with their peers on projects within virtual classrooms.

Students from Years 7 to 10 will continue to be evaluated against the new Victorian Curriculum F - 10 Standards and Loyola College assessment tasks. The digital devices complement the existing school curriculum by providing digital learning tools that link in with planned classroom activities.

Wireless access points at schools will foster collaboration and teamwork, allowing students to search for information together and share the learning experience.

The digital device will also complement the new Australian Curriculum that calls on students and teachers to use contemporary technology to enhance learning.

Students will continue to write with paper and pen and work to improve their handwriting as well as use the keyboard.

Specialist computers may be required for certain subjects (such as Design Technology and Visual Arts) that require high performance machines to complete tasks. These will continue to be available in limited learning spaces around the College for specialist and collaborative use.

Via Companion Learning (the College’s Learning Management System, LMS), parents/guardians are able to access student work, communicate with teachers and share in the learning experience with their children.

The Ignatian Newsletter and the College website will provide updates to the whole school community about the use of digital devices by students and teachers in and out of the classroom.

All teachers have been involved in an ongoing ICT skill development program since the introduction of staff laptops. Since 2013 teachers at Loyola College have been embedding ICT in the curriculum offering (digital pedagogies), to exploit the learning advantages offered by contemporary learning and digital devices.

Peer support is a strong element for success and teachers will be involved in mentoring and coaching each other to complement their growing ICT capabilities. The College will continue to support staff in their professional learning activities to enhance their knowledge and skills.

The digital device provides our students with a resource to facilitate their learning. Teachers will supervise students as they would for any learning activity as they create and maintain a safe, comfortable and learning-focused classroom.

Appropriate use of the Internet service is closely managed by the College’s filtering system, which effectively blocks content deemed inappropriate or dangerous. This filtering also applies to the use of digital devices outside of the school network.

Education and support are important for maintaining acceptable use of digital devices, particularly in relation to Internet access. Loyola has policies in place to ensure appropriate use of technology and the Internet.

A specific policy has been developed which parents/guardians and students are required to sign. However, it is important that teachers, students and parents/guardians share the responsibility to ensure the safe and responsible use of digital devices at all times. Parents/guardians are asked to continue conversations with their child about Internet safety.

The digital device has been deliberately chosen for a number of reasons, including its light weight and dimensions. The digital device will alleviate the need for students to carry calculators and some textbooks, further reducing the weight of items students need to carry. The digital device should not be packed into the bottom of an oversized backpack with other books and items, because this can lead to a compression fracture of the screen.

School personnel may request to inspect the browser history and/or caches as well as any file belonging to the student which resides on the digital device. Any student file stored on the school servers may be inspected and monitored for appropriate use at any time. Students and parents/guardians need to be aware that files stored locally or on school servers should not be considered as private.

Our booklist provider is Box of Books, which provides options on some titles for families to select hard copy or digital subscription.

Password-protection of student devices is a requirement for gaining access to the College network.

When not in use, the device should be in a student’s locker, and never left unattended when out of the locker. It is the responsibility of the student to look after their device at all times, even if a student leaves their device unattended.

An unattended device around buildings or school grounds will be picked up immediately by a staff member and treated as a lost property item. This may incur a penalty, such as confiscation of the device for a short period of time.

Students are expected to charge the device overnight and to bring it fully charged to school each day. Surface Laptops have a great battery life and should last the day, even under heavy use. The College does not provide charging facilities and there may be no opportunity to charge the digital device during the day.

For software related issues the College’s ICT Helpdesk will provide support (iCentre, iCentre-ICT@loyola.vic.edu.au). The ICT Helpdesk is open from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Monday to Thursday and from 8:00 am to 4:15 pm on Friday during the academic term as well as term breaks, but is closed during the Christmas shutdown period and Public Holidays.

Outside of ICT Helpdesk working hours, for hardware related issues contact the provider, Centorrino Technologies Support Desk on 1300 852 110 for assistance.

That is the responsibility of the parents/guardians. When off school grounds, parents/guardians have full responsibility and authority to monitor device usage.

Examples of this include:

• Encourage use in a family room or other open space and not in the bedroom;
• Restrict use at certain times of the evening or weekend;
• Monitor use of social media;
• Prevent use for non-educational purposes, eg gaming, and
• Examine the documents and other contents of the device.

Parents/guardians may be interested in using parental control technology to limit and monitor their children's online activities. While Loyola College does not recommend any specific parental control technology, it is aware that parents/schools have used the following products:

• Circle (https://meetcircle.com/)
• Firewalla (https://firewalla.com/)

Students will be able to access their Microsoft Office 365 and One Drive for Business files and subject files through Companion Learning (the College’s Learning Management System, LMS), provided they have Internet access.

Internet access from home is an expectation of Loyola College.

Other examples of use of ICT at home include:

• Using online collaborative websites such as class blogs and wikis
• Using school email
• Completion of homework using online resources, or any subject-specific software
• Working with audio, images, video and multimedia files.