Laptop Program
Laptops are an essential learning tool at Mount Clear College
Students have the option of purchasing a laptop through the school at a heavily discounted rate.
Mount Clear College has a 1 to 1 Laptop Program from Year 7 through to VCE, Year 12. Students have the option of purchasing a laptop through the school at a heavily discounted rate. Devices purchased through the school have the added bonuses of onsite maintenance by the Mount Clear College IT technicians, a 3-year onsite Warranty and 3-year Accidental Damage Protection Insurance.
This year we have partnered with ‘Learning with Technologies’ where laptops can be purchased through their customer portal using the following link.
Order PortalWe appreciate that some families may already have a laptop and wish to avoid buying a new one. If this is the case, please contact the College to speak with our Information Technology Manager.
Whilst we make every attempt to support a device that has not been purchased through the school, we are unable to support any hardware issues which may void a warranty. Furthermore, if an externally purchased laptop requires repairs, we are unable provide a short-term loan replacement device.
Frequent Asked Questions (FAQs)
Why are laptops essential for all students at Mount Clear College?
Laptops are an essential learning tool for students at every year level at Mount Clear College. They support students to access learning from all over the world and to build skills and knowledge of programs that are essential in many work and further training pathways. Students will need to use laptops across all subjects in a variety of ways. Some examples are:
- Microsoft Office 365 – provides students with a comprehensive suite of productivity tools, equipping them with the essential workplace skills required for success in today’s professional environment. These include strong written and verbal communication, analytical thinking, data management, organisation, and collaboration.
- Compass Education – a program is designed to enhance a student’s learning outcomes, optimise in-school efficiency, facilitate communication within the school community and provide parents and guardians with up-to-date and meaningful information on their child’s progress.
- Essential Assessment– a program used in Maths to target personalised skill development. It is used in most lessons from Years 7-9 and is very engaging for students.
- Education Perfect – used regularly in Languages and junior English subjects to develop students’ subject literacy skills. We are looking to extend this program to junior Science and Humanities classes in 2020.
- Ed Rolo– a highly valuable online tutorial program spanning a number of VCE subjects. It includes video tutorials and practice exam questions.
- Clickview – a Department of Education library of video resources that students need to access at various times throughout the year.
- eTextbooks – lighter than traditional textbooks and offer a richer, more immersive learning experience.
Why is a laptop program important?
The laptop program is designed to enable our students to thrive as global citizens, allowing them to:
- Learn anywhere, anytime
- Initiate their own learning
- Involve their family in their education through ready access to Compass and Learning Tasks
- Create media rich presentations and projects
- Instantly access information to enrich their learning
- Easily transfer their online school work from home to school and vice versa
- Keep in close contact with the school’s online portal for class changes, events and excursions, learning tasks and homework, as well as the College newsfeed
A stimulating and innovative learning environment is required to connect with today’s student and equip them for tomorrow’s world.
Will there be a warranty and what happens with Insurance?
A device purchased through our College has a 3-year warranty and 3-year accidental damage protection insurance is included.
What is the expected lifetime of the device offered through the College?
The device offered through the College is expected to function effectively for approximately three to five years, depending on individual use. Students should therefore be able to use their device from Year 7 through to the end of Year 9 and, if maintained appropriately, be able to use this device in later years as they enter the senior school.
What is Mount Clear College contributing towards the Laptop program?
We have developed these options based on a proven model adopted by hundreds of schools called a co-contribution model. This means that both the school and families work together in providing the best possible educational experience for the student.
Our contribution towards the laptop program as a school is as follows:
- Microsoft Office 365 software and Windows 11 Education (valued at $100 per year)
- Educational software (valued at approx. $1,000)
- Full technical support
- Using the College’s buying power to offer you the lowest price
- A loan device if your device requires a warranty repair so that your child’s learning can continue uninterrupted
Will future students be offered the same laptop?
As time progresses and new laptops are required, the model supplied may change. This is due to new models being regularly released and the changes in the value of the Australian dollar. However, all laptops will be the model determined to be the most suitable and durable to support the education of students at Mount Clear College.
I have an old device and would like to upgrade - what can I do with it?
The following third party provider offers trade-in pricing for used laptops and iPads: http://www.boomerangbuyback.com.au/
What if I can’t afford to purchase a laptop?
Please contact our Business Manager so that we can assist you with support options We aim to ensure no child is disadvantaged due to financial reasons outside of their control.
Can students put their own software/apps/songs/programs onto their laptop?
Students may download other programs, apps, software and songs onto their device, as long as this use does not impact on the storage space needed for educational resources and programs, or break the ‘Acceptable Use Agreement for the Internet and Digital Technologies’.
What happens if I leave the school?
Provided all payments have been completed, your laptop goes with you. The laptop is the property of your family and therefore will be taken with the student. Prior to leaving the school, the College’s image will be removed from the device and the laptop will be returned to the student with Windows 11 Education. Families will be responsible for any outstanding finance agreements pertaining to the device.
What if I would like to use a device that I already own?
We appreciate that some families may already have a laptop and that they may wish to avoid buying a new one. If this is the case, please contact the College to speak with our Information Technology Manager.
What guidelines do you recommend for the usage of this device at home?
Your interest and encouragement are more important than your computer skills.
- Encourage the use of the laptop in open spaces within your home.
- Remind your child to charge the laptop overnight to ensure it is ready for school each day.
- Spend time with your child asking them to show you the the website they visit online. Make this a regular, ongoing conversation.
- Discuss strategies your child could use if they were upset by something sent or posted online. Such as having open discussions about their concerns and encouraging them to refrain from engaging in potentially harmful conversations online.
- Set time limits around laptop usage.
- Set in place agreed levels of personal information your child can share online. It is important private information such as their name, addressand images are kept just that – private.
- Encourage your child to think before they post information online. They should be aware that once information is posted online it can be difficult to remove.
- Remind your child of the importance of keeping their password a secret. More often than not, accounts are hacked by someone known to the account holder, using a password they have obtained from the account holder.
- Try not to use the removal of technology as punishment. International research shows the number one reason young people give for not reporting online issues, including cyber bullying, is because they believe they will lose access to their online technology and communities.