As OJCS evolves with the current and future needs of education, we believe our students need to have access to technology – both at school and at home.  Our North Star that students should “own their own learning” almost by definition requires them to own the tools that allow for learning to occur.  Based on current research, current practice and our on-going plans for the future, OJCS created a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Program for students in Grades 4 – 8.

As students become the drivers of their education, making room for them to explore areas of personal interest and document their learning will be essential.  With every student having access to their own device, they will be able to personalize the tools that work best for them, organize and keep track of their work at school and at home, and better develop Now Literacies.  While we leave the choice of which device your child should bring to you, here are the basic requirements and some suggestions on specific devices:

Device Minimum Requirements – Laptop

*All devices must have a built-in camera and microphone.

We do understand that some students may prefer tablets/iPads over laptops.  We would like to point out however, that there are some word-processing functions that do not work as well on a tablet (paragraph formatting, spell-check, etc.)  Additionally, some web-based programs, such as Edublogs, lose some of their functions when working on tablets.  While all devices meet the minimum system requirements/hardware specifications, the school recommends that students beginning in Grade 6 have a laptop device available to maximize their learning experiences.  If you choose to proceed with a tablet, here are the device requirements:

Device Minimum Requirements – Tablet

• Use of the BYOD is subject to teacher direction and misuse of the device may lead to consequences as set out in the signed agreement.
• Devices are to be used for school work only and students are to only use approved applications.
• Access to the Internet will be filtered, as it is currently.
• Students cannot bring any VPN-enabled devices to school.
• Students are not allowed to use/access VPNs while at school.
• Student devices will not be able to access school printers.
• OJCS does not provide any technical support for devices.
• Students are responsible for maintaining their personal device, charging, updating software etc. Devices need to be fully charged each morning, as there are limited outlets in each classroom.

As outlined in the BYOD section of the OJCS Parent Handbook, OJCS will not be responsible for damage or theft of personal devices.