18 Sep 2023
Mobile Phone Ban to come into effect from Term 4 2023
Good morning parents and carers,
As you will be aware, the Department of Education has implemented the new mobile phone ban in schools across NSW. Following consultation with students and SRC, parents via P & C and staff we have revised and amended our procedures to ensure the school is compliant with the new Policy. This policy comes into effect Day 1, Term 4 2023.
As a school we have elected to implement the OFF and AWAY procedure, which we believe promotes student self regulation and is cost effective. We understand this will be challenging for some students, including some of our senior students, and students will have to start making a habit of reading the monitors provided around the school to check on any room changes, rather than reach for the mobile phone.
These procedures have been made available to all students via Sentral. Students in Year 7 – 9 have received a lesson on the implementation of the new policy. Students in Year 10 - 11 will receive a lesson on this policy when they return in Term 4.
Just as a reminder, students and parents sign the ICT Policy *Charter of Use for a BYOD at school. Charging of laptops at school has become lax over the last few years and creates H& S issues in classrooms. I expect with the new policy there may be more reliance on the laptop and therefore students need to come with a fully charged lap top every day. Please read this excerpt from the policy
*26. The use of power cords creates a Work, Health and Safety risk and also increases the possibility of damage
to the device should a student trip on it. Students are expected to bring their devices to school each day
with a fully charged battery. If one battery does not provide the required length of use then a power bank
should be purchased. Students will not have provision to charge batteries at school. Batteries are
considered a consumable device and will deteriorate over time. If the laptop/tablet device is purchased
privately then typically it has a one year warranty and will most likely require a replacement battery before
it reaches three years of use.
Thank you for your support to implement this policy in the most positive way.
Our most up-to-date published policy can be found on our Policy Library Page
Kind regards
Suellen Lawrence