Technology

At JKCS, we believe technology offers many powerful tools to help us ignite wonder for God, neighbour, and creation. We are not a technology school, but if you walk around the building, you will see a lot of technology in use!

We believe that using technology in lessons can both add to the learning and take away from the learning. We teach our teachers to think in these terms, and each teacher takes time to carefully construct learning experiences that:

Take advantage of the benefits of technology
Take the time and space to not use technology when that is better for the learning experience
Teach students digital citizenship skills to navigate what they do with technology

Explore the links below to discover how we integrate technology throughout our school.

Technology in the Classroom

Each classroom is equipped with the following technology, which is available to teachers to decide how to use, including allowing access for students to use it when appropriate.

Brightlink projectors + speakers for display and presentations
Swivl stand + iPads for digital communication
Teacher iPad + stand + Apple TV for various uses around the room including a hands-free document camera
Large monitors for extra display

At each grade level, students are taught to use and to learn by using technology:

JK - Grade 2 use school-owned iPads
Grades 3-4 use school-owned Chromebooks + Google accounts
Grades 5-8 use family-owned Chromebooks (Also called BYOC - Bring Your Own Chromebook) + Google accounts

We also have access to a wide range of other technologies that can help students learn including:

Coding Mice for learning the basics of coding
Root Robots for more advanced coding
3D Printing for learning more about spatial sense in 3D design
Screencastify for making screencast and webcam videos + editing
RazKids for developing reading skills in the junior grades
MAP Testing for helping our teachers with standardized assessments
Google Workspace for all digital classroom materials
SeeSaw for digital classroom materials in the junior grades

Bring Your Own Chromebook (BYOC)

In grades 5-8, students are required to bring their own Chromebook to school each day. Families will purchase and care for their own Chromebook for use in school and at home. Students are responsible for the care and use of their Chromebooks. Teachers and parents partner to help teach students how to handle this responsibility and how to use their devices to help ignite wonder for God, neighbour, and creation. This includes teaching students:

How to use devices effectively for school work
How to use devices safely
How to handle devices appropriately
How to protect their privacy
How to communicate effectively with others online
Any other worldview or technical issues that are raised

Here is a list of what students and parents need to know as they prepare for BYOC:

All students must have their own Chromebook to use every day of school.
- It can be any brand, size, etc as long as it is an actual Chromebook (not a laptop with Chrome).
- It must have a keyboard.
Students are responsible for making sure their Chromebook is usable at school every day.
- It must be fully charged before they come to school, and they must bring in their charger to school with the device each day.
- Their device must be in good working order.
Students are responsible for transporting their Chromebooks safely between home and school.
- Teachers and parents will help to teach students how to do this.
Students will be held responsible for how they use their devices at home and at school.
- This includes how they use their Google account.

Student Google Accounts

We provide JKCS Google accounts for each student within our school domain to be used for school purposes. It is mostly students in grade 3-8 that use these accounts. Students do not need to have their own personal Google accounts.

Students are expected to use these JKCS Google accounts for all school-related activities, including research, assignments, projects, etc. in class, and homework at home.

We use GoGuardian to help us filter and monitor our students’ internet and account use. This powerful tool follows student JKCS Google accounts on any device and allows teachers to monitor exactly what students are doing during class. This tool also reports how students use their school accounts outside of school hours, which gives us a powerful accountability tool. Please contact the school if you are interested in learning more about the security for these accounts.

Partnering with Parents

The world is getting more and more digital. This change is seen in the school and felt by families. As society becomes increasingly digital, it is more important (and harder) than ever for parents and schools to help students learn to use technology responsibly. We partner with parents in our school community to help teach students to be the people Jesus calls us to be as we use technology.

We believe there is a balance that parents and schools should strike between control and responsibility. Control is when parents/schools use technology to restrict access or control the screen time of their children. This is a powerful approach, especially when children are first learning to use technology. As they grow, however, we believe in gradually releasing this control and focusing more on how the child can take responsibility for the way in which they use devices.

A partnership between home and school is key to helping students navigate this world. At JKCS, this has included things like Digital Citizenship Day, having guest speakers in to speak to our students and parents, and many meetings and conversations. We ask that parents partner with us by keeping a loving eye out for how their children are using the technology from the school. Please periodically check in with your child on how they’re using their devices and accounts. We encourage parents to sit with students, have them log in, and go through some of their work with them. Feel free to reach out to the school should you have any questions or concerns.