Mobile Phones & Digital Devices – Student Use

Purpose

To explain to our school community the Department’s and Leongatha Secondary College’s policy requirements and expectations relating to students using mobile phones during school hours.

Scope

This policy applies to:

1. All students at Leongatha Secondary College and,
2. Students’ personal mobile phones brought onto school premises during school hours, including recess and lunchtime.

This policy does not apply to:

1. Outside of schools hours
2. Travelling to and from school
3. Students undertaking workplace learning activities, e.g. Work experience
4. Students who are undertaking VET off campus

Definitions

A mobile phone is a telephone with access to a cellular (telecommunication) system, with or without a physical connection to a network.

A digital device is any device with access to a cellular (telecommunication) system, with or without a physical connection to a network (including the school WiFi network).

A wearable device is any device with access to a cellular (telecommunication) system, with or without a physical connection to a network (including the school WiFi network).

Policy

Leongatha Secondary College understands that students may bring a personal mobile phone to school, particularly if they are travelling independently to and from school.

At Leongatha Secondary College:

• Students who choose to bring mobile phones to school must have them switched off and securely stored in their issued lockable school locker during school hours
• Exceptions to this policy may be applied if certain conditions are met (see below for further information)
• When emergencies occur, parents or carers should reach their child by calling the College office.

Personal mobile phone use

In accordance with the Department’s Mobile Phones Policy issued by the Minister for Education, personal mobile phones must not be used at Leongatha Secondary College during school hours, including lunchtime and recess, unless an exception has been granted.

Mobile phones must not be used on school days while on school grounds at Leongatha Secondary College. This applies during class, assemblies, recess, lunchtime or moving between classes.

Listening to music via air-pods and earphones of other kinds also constitutes mobile phone use for all year levels. It is not permitted at any time unless a teacher has made an exemption for a class whereby they are required to listen to audio that is linked with the curriculum.

Students studying in the Senior Study Areas of D-Block have an exception and can use air-pods or earphones connected to a laptop device only (not a mobile phone).

Where a student has been granted an exception, the student must use their mobile phone for the purpose for which the exception was granted, and in a safe, ethical and responsible manner.

Wearable devices

Whilst smart-watches are not currently prohibited at LSC, students are strongly encouraged to refrain from using these devices in the capacity of a communications device.

Personal digital device use

Leongatha Secondary College recognises that it is a 1:1 Digital (Learning) Device school and as such, students will be in possession of a learning device for school use. Digital Devices are to be used for learning purposes only and must not be used at Leongatha Secondary College during recess and lunchtime unless in designated study areas and for learning purposes.

Secure storage

Mobile phones, Digital Devices and Wearable Devices owned by students at Leongatha Secondary College are considered valuable items and are brought to school at the owner’s (student’s or parent/carers) risk.  Students are encouraged not to bring a mobile phone to school unless there is a compelling reason to do so.  Please note that Leongatha Secondary College does not have accident insurance for accidental property damage or theft. Students and their parents/carers are encouraged to obtain appropriate insurance for valuable items.  Refer to the Leongatha Secondary College’s Personal Property Policy AND/OR the Department’s Personal Goods policy.

Where students bring a mobile phone to school, Leongatha Secondary College will provide secure storage. Secure storage is storage that cannot be readily accessed by those without permission to do so. At Leongatha Secondary College students are required to store their phones  in their issued lockable school locker (locks are purchased by individual student/parent/carer and can be a combination or key lock variety). Combination codes and/or spare keys will be requested by Year Level Coordinators and these will be stored securely for back-up use purposes.

Enforcement

Students who use their personal mobile phones, digital devices or wearable devices inappropriately at Leongatha Secondary College may be issued with consequences consistent with our school’s existing student engagement policies, Student Wellbeing and Engagement,  Code of Conduct and Bullying Prevention policies.

At Leongatha Secondary College inappropriate use of mobile phones is any use during school hours, unless an exception has been granted and, particularly, the use of a mobile phone:

• that in any way that disrupts the learning of others
• to send inappropriate, harassing or threatening messages or phone calls
• to engage in inappropriate social media use including cyber bullying
• to capture video or images of people, including students, teachers and members of the school community without their permission
• to capture video or images in the school toilets, changing rooms, swimming pools and gyms
• during exams and assessments

At Leongatha Secondary College, inappropriate use of digital devices is any use during recess or lunchtime, unless an exemption has been granted, and particularly the use of a digital device for any of the activities mentioned above.

If a mobile phone or air-pods/earphones is used or seen by a staff member:

• Staff will issue the student with a device confiscation slip
• The student will then be required to take the device(s) and confiscation slip to the front office where the device will be securely stored until the end of the day and the slip will be completed with the applicable information (name, date, time etc.)
• An accompanying post will be placed up onto the student’s Compass chronicle by the teacher
• The student is required to display the completed confiscation slip to the staff member who issued it.
• The student will need to use the completed device confiscation slip at the end of the school day to collect their device(s).
• If the student has had any device confistacated a second time, parents/carers will be contacted and asked to come and pick up the device(s)
• If the student has had any device confiscated for a third time, a meeting will be organised with the student and their parent/carer.
• If the student refuses to handover the device, parents/carers will be called in for a meeting to discuss the mobile phone policy and refusal to follow reasonable staff instructions by their child.
• Further consequences may result as second or third confistactions and/or refusal to follow reasonable staff instructions.

Exceptions

Exceptions to the policy:

• may be applied during school hours if certain conditions are met, specifically,
  • Health and wellbeing-related exceptions; and
  • Exceptions related to managing risk when students are offsite.
• can be granted by the principal, or by the teacher for that class, in accordance with the Department’s Mobile Phones Policy.

The three categories of exceptions allowed under the Department’s Mobile Phones Policy are:

1. Learning-related exceptions

Specific exception	Documentation
For specific learning activities (class-based exception)	The teacher will identify the Unit of work, learning sequence etc. for which a mobile is required/can be used.
For students for whom a reasonable adjustment to a learning program is needed because of a disability or learning difficulty

2. Health and wellbeing-related exceptions

Specific exception	Documentation
Students with a health condition	Identified in individual Student Health Support Plan’s
Students who are Young Carers	Identified via a localised student record

3. Exceptions related to managing risk when students are offsite

Specific exception	Documentation
Travelling to and from excursions	Identified within specific Risk assessment planning documentation and communicated to students and parents/carers
Students on excursions and camps	Identified within specific Risk assessment planning documentation and communicated to students and parents/carers
When students are offsite (not on school grounds) and unsupervised with parental permission	Risk assessment planning documentation

Where an exception is granted, the student can only use the mobile phone for the purpose for which it was granted.

Camps, excursions and extracurricular activities

Leongatha Secondary College will provide students and their parents and carers with information about items that can or cannot be brought to camps, excursions, special activities and events, including personal mobile phones.

Exclusions

This policy does not apply to

• Travelling to and from school
• Wearable devices
• Students undertaking workplace learning activities, e.g. work experience
• Students who are undertaking VET

Staff Support of Policy

• Be consistent in applying the policy
• In the classroom and on yard duty
• Model responsible use in the classroom
• Use phone/digital device for learning & teaching
• Phone not visible/not being used
• Don’t read or send emails during class time

Further information and resources

• Student Wellbeing and Engagement Policy
• Bullying Prevention Policy
• Mobile Phones – Department Policy
• Ban, Search and Seize Harmful Items
• Personal Goods – Department policy