Bring Your Own Device to School  B.Y.O.D

At Wairau we ask that students bring their own device to school. The concept of BYOD is not new to education and is used by numerous schools up and down the country to supplement the devices provided by the school. Our goal is to increase student access to a device and ideally enable all students to have a dedicated device to use for their learning. 

Integrating BYOD in classroom teaching comes with several benefits. Starting with learner motivation and engagement, technology increases learner engagement and enhances students’ performance. This is especially so when students use their own devices and not those provided by the school. Interacting with their own devices, students are more likely to stay motivated and engaged.

Organisation and streamlined workflow are two other important benefits of using BYOD in education. When students are allowed to bring their own devices and use them in class they no longer need to switch between devices; they can organise and access all their coursework and homework from a single platform. 

This ultimately enhances their productivity and enables them to study more efficiently. Access to technology when needed, also provide teachers with new ways to create engaging lessons that keep students interested and involved in learning. . Knowing that students have access to their devices, teachers can use educational software or apps that can help them better assess students’ work as well as provide specific feedback on a particular topic. This can help improve student performance, as it allows teachers to track student progress and make sure that students are on track to reach their academic goals.

The way in which young people use technology has shifted significantly with children spending more time than ever online. This shift presents many new challenges not to mention an increase in online risks and threats.

As a school, we take our students' digital safety and wellbeing seriously. We continually look at ways to ensure we can proactively keep children safe when online. That is why we have implemented a partnership with Linewize, which supports us to take digital wellbeing and safety to the next level.

This partnership with Linewize enables us to add additional layers of filtering and supports us to monitor that students are accessing educational content throughout the school day or when completing homework using their school account. 

Linewize App for Parents

The technology that Linewize provides protects more than 12 million students and now includes a parental child safety app from Qustodio, giving you visibility of how your child engages online on their learning device, especially when using their own account.

Designed to keep children safe online, the app gives you visibility over what your child sees and does online for up to two personal devices.

Key features include parents being able to:

●      Filter and block apps and content that you don’t want your child to see 

●      Customise what your child can access during homework hours

●      Balance screen time by setting time limits on devices as well as for specific apps

●      Protect screen-free moments such as mealtimes and bedtimes.

Please use the link below to create your Qustodio account through our Online Safety Hub and help manage your child’s learning device.

https://wairau.onlinesafetyhub.nz/parent/home