Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Policy

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Please note that this policy is only applicable to students in Years 10 to 13 and to Staff. 

Years 6 to 9 should NOT have any device on the premises, other than those provided by the college.

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• The English International College grants its students the privilege of using laptops and tablets of their choosing within the College for their convenience. The English International College reserves the right to revoke this privilege if users do not abide by the policies and procedures outlined below.
• This policy is intended to protect the security and integrity of The English International College’sdata and technology infrastructure. Limited exceptions to the policy may occur due to variations in devices and platforms.
• Students must agree to the terms and conditions set forth in this policy in order to be able to connect their devices to the School network.
• The policies, procedures and information within this document apply to all laptops, tablets and/or any other mobile device used in School. Teachers and other School Staff may also set additional requirements for use within their classroom.
• The exact nature of devices permitted varies according to year group. For further clarification please see the section Devices and Support, below.

Users’ Responsibilities

Users must take reasonable precautions to physically protect their device. This may include a robust outer casing and/or a bag designed for this purpose.

Users may not photograph, video or record any other person, without that person’s consent.

Devices may be subject to routine monitoring by The English International College. Devices must be surrendered immediately upon request by any member of Staff. In the case of Staff devices, they must be surrendered upon request by any member of the Senior Leadership Team.

Users in breach of the Responsible Use Policy may be subject to but not limited to: disciplinary action, confiscation, removal of content or referral to external agencies in the event of illegal activity. 

It is strongly recommended that all devices are insured.

3G, 4G, 5G and/or any other connection to telephony and data services must be disabled within the School site. Laptops and/or similar devices must not be physically connected to the School network. All Internet/data connection must be via the School WiFi system.

The English International College is not responsible for the financial or any other loss of the device or any personal data that may be held on or deleted from the device.

Use of the School WiFi network is a privilege extended to Staff. The password must not be shared with anyone outside of these two groups.

Sharing of the WiFi (or any other) password will be treated as a violation of this policy.

Individual users are responsible for the setting up and use of any home Internet connections and no support will be provided for this by the School.

Additional Responsibilities for Students

If a device is left at home or is not charged, the user remains responsible for completing all Schoolwork as if they had use of their device.

Malfunctions or technical issues are not acceptable excuses for failing to complete School work, unless there is no other means of completion.

Students must not use their device in School corridors, on their journeys to and from School or outside of School buildings (unless with the teachers’ permission).

Students should not be using the iPad in lessons unless directed to by the teacher. If not in use iPads are to be stored in bags during the lesson. 

In the event of any disciplinary action, the completion of all class work remains the responsibility of the Student.

Safeguarding and Maintaining as an Academic Tool

• Device batteries are required to be charged and be ready to use in School.
• The Student member should make adequate provision for backing up their own data.
• The whereabouts of the device should be known at all times. It is a user’s responsibility to keep their device safe and secure.
• Devices belonging to other users are not to be tampered with in any manner.
• If a device is found unattended, it should be given to the nearest member of Staff.
• Students are expected to manage their device in a manner that allows space for academic apps and files, as prescribed by class/subject teachers.

Lost, Damaged or Stolen Device

If the device is lost, stolen, or damaged, the office must be notified immediately. Devices that are believed to be stolen can often be tracked.

Prohibited Uses (not exclusive):

Accessing Inappropriate Materials: All material on the device must adhere to the Responsible Use Policy. Users are not allowed to send, access, upload, download or distribute offensive, threatening, pornographic, obscene, or sexually explicit materials.

Illegal Activities: Use of the School’s internet/e-mail accounts for financial or commercial gain or for any illegal activity.

Violating Copyrights: Users are not allowed to have music or other media on their device which is in contravention of copyright.

Cameras: Users must use good judgment when using the camera. The user agrees that the camera will not be used to take inappropriate, illicit or sexually explicit photographs or videos, nor will it be used to embarrass anyone in any way. Any use of camera in toilets or changing rooms, regardless of intent, will be treated as a serious violation. 

Images of other people may only be made with the permission of those in the photograph. Posting of images/movie on the Internet into a public forum is strictly forbidden, without the express permission of the Teacher or, in the case of Staff use, a member of the Senior Leadership team.

Use of the camera and microphone is strictly prohibited unless permission is granted by a teacher.

Lessons may not be recorded or streamed in any medium without the express permission of the teacher involved.

Misuse of Passwords, Codes or other Unauthorised Access: Users are required to set a passcode/password on their device to prevent other users from misusing it. Any user caught trying to gain access to another user’s accounts, files or data will be subject to disciplinary action.

Malicious Use/Vandalism: Any attempt to destroy hardware, software or data will be subject to disciplinary action.

Jailbreaking: Jailbreaking is the process of which removes any limitations placed on the device by the manufacturer. Jailbreaking results in a less secure device and is strictly prohibited.

Inappropriate media may not be used as a screensaver or background photo. Presence of pornographic materials, inappropriate language, alcohol, drug or gang related symbols or pictures will result in disciplinary actions.

Users should be aware of and abide by the guidelines set out by the School eSafety policy. The English International College reserves the right to confiscate and search any device to ensure compliance with this Responsible Use Policy.

Acceptable Use

The School defines acceptable academic use as activities that directly or indirectly support teaching and learning within The English International College.

The School defines acceptable personal use in School time as reasonable and limited personal communication, such as reading.

Whilst the School currently chooses to allow access to social media apps via the School networks, this privilege may be withdrawn at any time.

Status updates or other online posting on social media platforms, forums etc. are not permitted during the School day, other than to approved educational sites.

Students and Staff are blocked from accessing certain websites while connected to the School network at the discretion of the School. Such websites include, but are not limited to:

• Adult content and pornography
• Racist or other hate-based material
• Gambling
• Drug related sites
• File hosting or torrents

Devices’ camera and/or video capabilities should be disabled while on-site unless authorised by a member of Staff.

Devices may not be used at any time to:

• Store or transmit illicit materials
• Store or transmit proprietary information belonging to another individual, company or other entity
• Harass or embarrass others
• Engage in outside business activities

Students and Staff may use their mobile device to access the following School-owned resources: email, calendars, contacts, documents, etc.

Devices and Support

Laptops running Windows, Linux, Chrome and MacOS are permitted for Staff and Key Stage 4 and 5 Students

Tablets running Windows, Linux, Chrome and iOS are permitted for Staff and Key Stage 4 and 5 Students

Years 6, 7, 8 and 9 are only permitted to use the iPads provided by the College whilst on College premises. Personal devices should not be on-site.

Students from Early Years to Year 5 will have regular Computing lessons with a specialist teacher. They may also, on occasion, use a college-owned device under the strict supervision of their class teacher. Under no circumstances should students in this age range bring a device from home.

Connectivity issues within the School networks are supported by IT Services; Students and Staff should refer to the device manufacturer or their carrier for operating system or hardware-related issues.

Devices may be required to be presented to IT Services for proper provisioning and configuration of standard apps, such as browsers, office productivity software and security tools before they can access the network.

Devices should be named in such a way as to make the relevant user immediately identifiable on the network. Inappropriate or unclear names will result in a device being blocked.

Reimbursement

The School will not reimburse the Student, Staff member or device owner for loss or damage on School property or on School sanctioned trips or other activities off-campus.

The School will not reimburse the Student, Staff member or device owner for any 3G, 4G or any other form of charges relating to roaming, plan overages, etc.

Security

In order to prevent unauthorised access, devices must be password protected using the features of the device and a strong password is required to access the School network.

The School’s strong password policy is: Passwords must be at least six characters and a combination of upper- and lower-case letters, numbers and symbols. Passwords should be rotated every 90 days and the new password should not be one of the 15 previous passwords.

The device must lock itself with a password or PIN if it’s idle for five minutes.

After five failed login attempts, the device will lock.

Rooted (Android) or jailbroken (iOS) devices are strictly forbidden from accessing the network.

Laptops and tablets that are not on the School’s list of supported devices are not allowed to connect to the network.

Laptops and tablets belonging to Students and Staff that are for personal use only are not allowed to connect to the network.

Students and Staff access to School data is limited based on user profiles defined by IT Services and is automatically enforced.

Any device may be locked out of the School network or remotely wiped if:

1. The device is lost or stolen
2. The Student or Staff member terminates his or her connection with the School
3. IT Services detects a data or policy breach, a virus or similar threat to the security of the School’s data and technology infrastructure.
4. IT Services detects suspicious data usage, including but not limited to excessive volumes of data download/upload.

Risks/Liabilities/Disclaimers

While the School will take every precaution to prevent the Student, Staff member or device owner’s personal data from being lost in the event it must remote wipe a device, it is the Student, Staff member or device owner’s responsibility to take additional precautions, such as backing up email, contacts, etc.

The School reserves the right to disconnect devices or disable services without notification.

Lost or stolen devices must be reported to the School within 24 hours. Where appropriate, Students and Staff are responsible for notifying their mobile carrier immediately upon loss of a device.

The Student or Staff member is expected to use his or her devices in an ethical manner at all times and adhere to the School’s acceptable use policy.

The Student or Staff member is personally liable for all costs associated with his or her device.

The Student or Staff member assumes full liability for risks including, but not limited to, the partial or complete loss of School and personal data due to an operating system crash, errors, bugs, viruses, malware, and/or other software or hardware failures, or programming errors that render the device unusable.

The English International College reserves the right to take appropriate disciplinary action up to and including termination for noncompliance with this policy.

Leaving The English International College

Should a Student leave The English International College, all apps for which the School holds the licence and all materials for which the School holds the copyright will be removed from the device.

Students and Staff are required to surrender the device to the appropriate School authorities for the removal of College assets and intellectual property.