A policy of buying refurbished CANZ computers has helped Waiopehu College achieve its hardware goals, writes John MacGibbon. Waiopehu College, a 700-student secondary school in Levin, is well-equipped computing-wise, with better than one computer for every two students. Helping the school achieve this ratio has been a policy of buying refurbished former corporate computers. The school takes a horses for courses approach to its ICT. The 380 computers include about two hundred refurbished computers for bread and butter work, 150 higher powered PCs for IT studies, photography and design classes, and 30 Macs for music classes. Added to this are more than 30 staff laptops. There is also a mixed ownership policy. Refurbished computers are owned outright, while the other computers are...   more

The Internet is not a naturally safe environment. From phishers to paedophiles, when kids go online they’re at risk. What’s being done to protect them? Lee Suckling investigates. For young people, cybersafety refers to the ways students can use the Internet in a safe and cautious manner. With such easy access to the Web’s tools – from Facebook and YouTube, to Google and simply downloading files – the dangers that can affect students in today’s online world are numerous. These include harassment or bullying, accessing inappropriate content, contact with strangers, posting of private information, using copyrighted content or plagiarising, and importantly, not seeking support when an issue arises. The good news is that huge efforts being invested in...   more

A school principal’s role in guiding e-learning is now essential in order to ensure continuity and sustainability, writes David Kinane. In a recent interview social media website Mashable asked the question: “Should CEOs be fluent in social media?” (fizurl.com/fluent) While the article accepts that current regulation in the US makes it very difficult for CEOs to do this, it also suggests that the fact that they didn’t was also a generational issue. I think that the same question should be asked about school principals here in New Zealand: should they be fluent in social media? I think that they should! However, I suspect that a large number are not aware of the positive potential that social media tools might bring to them and their schools. Again, as Mashable...   more