Parent Resources
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Program
Using technology to enhance and enrich teaching and learning at Investigator College
BYOD PROGRAM
Bring Your Own Device
(BYOD) Program
At Investigator College, we operate a successful and well-supported Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Program, which allows students in our Middle and Senior Schools to bring their own laptop or appropriate devices and utilise them in their daily study.
As students reach the Middle and Senior Years of their schooling at Investigator College, the role and use of technology inside the classroom becomes increasingly important.
At Investigator, our approach is one of student empowerment – allowing students to integrate the use of technology into their daily life in the classroom, and utilising digital resources to enrich and enhance our teaching and learning.
BYOD Program Overview
In order to participate fully in their learning at Investigator College, students in Years 7 -12 are required to attend school each day, equipped with a suitable laptop or device.
The purchase of these devices, along with their brand and specifications are at the discretion of parents/caregivers, however the Investigator College ICT Team will provide a list of minimum specifications, which are updated as technology improves.
Using ICT To Enhance Learning Programs
Investigator College believes that the appropriate use of Information and Communication Technology, at the appropriate stage of each student’s learning journey, enhances education across the curriculum.
Studies show that engagement and participation are heightened by use of ICT in the classroom. Even more importantly, learning outcomes are improved when methods of instruction include ICT. Investigator College understands the research findings that this effect is strongest when teachers use ICT in the tutorial mode and take advantage of its capacity to extend learner control, to facilitate peer-learning and to optimise feedback.
Australian Curriculum: ICT Competency
Competence in Information and Communication Technology is designated as one of seven general capabilities in the Australian Curriculum.
As ACARA puts it in The Shape of the Australian Curriculum, ‘students develop ICT competence as they learn to use ICT effectively and appropriately when investigating, creating and communicating ideas and information at school, at home, at work and in their communities’. The centrality of ICT is endorsed in the new SACE through the development of research skills and the digital assessment tasks it encourages.
Our BYOD Program is intended to play a key role in the development of ICT competency, and to better equip each of our students for learning, not only throughout their Secondary Schooling, but across their lifetime.
Student Agreement
Beginning in Year 6, as each student begins utilising their own device on campus at Investigator College, there are some expectations around the responsible use of technology.
To ensure that these expectations are understood, and to impart responsibility for appropriate online behaviour to the individual, each student is required to read the BYOD Student Agreement.
Parent Communication
An explanation of our Bring Your Own Device Program, and the way it is intended to work, is provided to our Parents/Caregivers as their children commence in Year 6.
BYOD PROGRAM
Purchasing Student Devices
Ensuring that each learner is equipped to fully participate in their education is vital to our Middle and Senior years of education. Investigator College has two recommended options for the purchase and use of an appropriate laptop or similar device for students in Years 7-12
Free Choice Device Purchase
Under this option, Parents choose and purchase their own Windows 10/11 device based on the recommended platform and specifications from a retail outlet.
Students primarily support themselves, with access to the internet at school via our extensive wireless network. IT staff will assist with connecting to the wireless network, a printer and the internet, but will not be responsible for removal of viruses and warranty. Print and take a device specification sheet with you to the store.
Device Purchase via
JB Hi-Fi Parent Portal
Under this option, parents/caregivers may choose to purchase a device via our JB Hi-Fi Parent Purchase portal.
The devices in the purchase portal are selected by the College to ensure that they meet the minimum device recommendations.
As Investigator College is viewed as a corporate customer, JB Hi-Fi may also be able to offer a more competitive price point for student devices than smaller retailers.
Parents can use the code investigator2025 to access the purchase portal.
Frequently Asked Questions
To ensure you are prepared to participate in our BYOD Program, our IT Team have provided answers to some common questions from parents/caregivers and students:
What particular brand of laptop would the College recommend?
Most of the major brands make good products, and many people have various answers to this depending on what is being currently released at the time.
This article (via LaptopMag) – ‘Best and Worst Laptop Brands‘ – is a helpful summary to quickly make a decision about which brand to choose.
Can I bring a MacBook?
The College would prefer that students bring a Windows 10/11 device for best compatibility.
If parents have already purchased or own Macbooks then students are welcome to use them as they are now compatible with our BYOD program as of 2023.
Can I bring an iPad or Chromebook?
No, students must have a Windows 10/11 laptop as their primary device for the BYOD program in order to connect seamlessly to the College systems and install College supplied software required for the curriculum.
Can the College help get older laptops upgraded to meet the minimum specification?
Unfortunately, the College does not have any upgrade paths for either newly purchased or older laptops that do not meet the minimum specification.
Please ensure that supplied laptops meet the requirements outlined in the ‘Laptop Specification Sheet’.
Any upgrade questions can be directed to QuikFix Computers, our preferred support partner and repair supplier.
Students are able to borrow a loan laptop for the duration of repairs from our BYOD Loan laptop cupboard in the Senior School.
I have a laptop which is in need of repair, what are my options?
The College recommends Quikfix Computers as the best option for parents needing a repairer for our BYOD program, or a local business offering personalised purchasing advice.
While devices are undergoing repairs, students are able to borrow a loan laptop from our BYOD Loan laptop cupboard in the Senior School. Loans are short-term only.
RESources
BYOD Specifications
Advice from the Investigator College ICT Team regarding the minimum specifications to be considered when purchasing a device for use in the classroom is available via the link below: