Staying human in a digital world
At Great Southern Grammar, our school-wide focus is on the creative, ethical, kind use of technology. As a GSG student, your child will learn to communicate, investigate, and create using a range of programs, devices, and protocols, in line with the Australian Curriculum.
But what they’ll also learn (and the bit that we think is most important) is how to be safe, smart, and kind online.
Safety and productivity
Even as adults, it can be tough to keep our reliance on technology under control — and it's even harder for children. That’s why the IT Department at GSG keeps a very close eye on what our students are doing online.
From Years Three to Five, your child will be assigned a device for in-school use. Through the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) program, your child will learn age-appropriate use of hardware and software, computational thinking, and the ways in which digital systems are used in the world around them.
From Year Six on, your child’s device can be taken home, and may be used across Learning Areas for data collection, word processing, research, audio and video creation, and as a communication tool.
Design Thinking
From Primary School all the way through to Year Twelve, your child’s experience with technology is through the lens of Design Thinking.
“Design thinking is a human-centred approach to innovation that draws from the designer’s toolkit to integrate the needs of people, the possibilities of technology, and the requirements for business success.”Tim Brown, Creator and Executive Chair of IDEO
Thanks to the rapidly changing world we live in, your child will need to be adaptable and flexible in the future. At GSG, they’ll learn the tools they need to become empathetic, optimistic, active members of society — human beings who can contribute to solving complex problems in an innovative way.
We know, it all sounds very serious! But practising Design Thinking’s five-step process is actually heaps of fun. And our students have used it to come up with some incredible ideas, some of which we’ve implemented to make GSG a better place.
The nuts and bolts
We’re a proud Microsoft Surface Gold School. That means, from Years Three to Twelve, your child will be assigned a device that is theirs to use for schoolwork. Not only that, we’re here to help with updates, tech support, and any concerns that crop up.
There are lots of reasons why we chose Surface, but here are a few:
- Multiple methods of input: the touchscreen, pen, handwriting, and speech-to-text tools mean your child can use the device in the way that works for them
- Multimedia: the camera and microphone are comparatively powerful — making Surface perfect for making videos, podcasts, and presentations
- Learning Enrichment: Surface works seamlessly with our favourite Learning Enrichment and research tools
Down the road
The events of 2020 taught us that we can never anticipate what the future holds. But with a solid foundation of technological problem solving, who knows how your child will change the world?