The 1:1 program at Emmaus College focuses on providing tools and resources to the 21st Century learner.  The use of mobile devices to facilitate learning enables students to have unlimited access to multiple digital resources.

Year 7 Laptop Program

At the beginning of (2017), discussions began reassessing the ongoing benefits of using iPads in a secondary education setting. This discussion was partly motivated by the fact that most primary schools now use iPads as their learning tool. Also, mobile laptop technologies have improved multimedia functionality, and prices have come down considerably.

Students, Parents & teachers were surveyed for their feedback. The response was overwhelming. The overall feeling was in favour of moving to a laptop program at year 7.

The college selects laptops for Year 7 students.

By having one standardised device across the year level, students will learn skills from each other. Hardware and software configurations for the college Wifi network will also be made efficient & effective.

Learning Goals

• Laptops offer more powerful software featuring sophisticated functions.
• Students can demonstrate their learning with increased creativity using a variety of software and online tools.
• Using different software and apps, students can choose the type of product they will construct to demonstrate their understanding – truly personalising learning.
• The multimedia capabilities of presenting information using images, sound & video assists all types of learning styles.
• Digital organisational skills are enhanced as students continue to understand the importance of file management.
• Students learn complex software skills dealing with many types of data. For example, statistical data and graphing skills.
• Access to information on a vast range of topics allows students to pursue areas they are interested in learning.
• Collaboration: Multiple students and teachers can annotate and comment on texts and documents (including PDFs).
• Critical thinking and problem-solving skills are enhanced using many sources of information.

One standard ICT device for collaboration, critical thinking, communication & creativity makes learning consistent and encourages student group exploration of the many functions available.

The expectation is that students use the College selected laptop from years 7 to 9.

Laptops BYODD Years 10 to 12

In 2018 the BYODD (Bring your own Designated Device) Policy was introduced.  The College selects the “designated device”.

Students moving from Year 9 into Year 10 must choose a new device selected by the College.

The educational reasons for this approach are:

• ensuring the ICT devices last for 3 years;
• to enable continuous learning, a competitive 3-year warranty agreement is in place with our supplier should any components fail;
• ensuring Software versions are consistent, enabling seamless teaching and learning, and
• all specifications are the same, avoiding incompatibility issues with the College Network and platforms.

The College selects two devices, Windows & MAC OS, purposely made for education.

In consultation with their families, students chose one of the selected platforms. In this way, senior students can choose their preferred platform for learning.

In the senior years of secondary schooling, the continued use and expansion of digital resources available will provide students with the opportunity to continue to develop further their skills of effective communication, collaboration, creativity and problem-solving.

These important skills will be beneficial in all professions once students enter the workforce.