DIGITAL parenting tips/advice/what’s trending
READY, SET, GO
SPORTS TECHNOLOGY IN SCHOOLS
CYBER SECURITY CHANGE BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS DIGITAL ART PLATFORM GROWS
OUR TOP ONLINE EXAM TIPS INSIDE
No.7
July 2022
The Rockhampton Grammar School Grow in Character and Scholarship www.rgs.qld.edu.au
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INSIDE 08 COVER STORY
READY, SET, GO IN A WORLD OF SPORT SCIENCE
02 SchoolTV Switching off screen time
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New Art The changing art landscape
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Now and Then Moving with the times
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Cyber Security Transforming user behaviour to protect ourselves
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hello
Technology has revolutionised almost everything we do and will continue to evolve the way we communicate, work, shop, relax and the way our children learn. There can however be a tendency, for valid reason, to focus on the negatives or perils of technology for children – too much screen time, cyber safety, the damage of social media – just to name a few. But we should not neglect to recognise the immense benefits that technology is bringing to our lives and the endless opportunities that it provides to children and their learning. We just need to continue to strive to achieve the right balance. In this issue of Digital Parenting, you will read how technology is enabling new ways to create in art and design at RGS, and how former RGS student (2020) and Rockhampton Art Gallery “Artist in Residence” Ben Scott is exploring the use of digital technology to blur the boundaries between traditional and digital expression. It is a striking reminder of how traditional or foundational skills often provide the crucial underpinning for further exploration or expression through technology. And let’s not forget that technology is not all about screens or digital devices. Athletes and coaches at RGS are benefiting from access to performance data to enhance recovery, reduce injury and hone training for maximum benefit. I hope you enjoy reading this issue of Digital Parenting and learning more about technology at RGS.
Online Exams Mastering the exam evolution Dr Phillip Moulds OAM Headmaster
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TECH UPDATE
SWITCHING OFF SCREEN TIME It's never been more challenging for parents to raise happy, healthy and resilient children. The SchoolTV platform provides schools with an extensive range of wellbeing resources for parents, so they can work together in partnership to ensure better wellbeing for all students.
SchoolTV: Managing Screen Time Many parents have reported excessive screen time as the number one health concern affecting children, especially now in the hyperconnected world we live in. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that there should be no screen time at all for children under two, less than an hour a day for children aged from two to five, and less than two hours for five to 17 year olds. However, these guidelines have been disputed by experts and often ignored by families. Parents must play an important role in modelling a positive approach to using screens, and assisting children to navigate the content they access. Visit schooltv.me/newsletter/managing-screen-time to hear from experts in this field. You can also test your knowledge on managing screen time, with an interactive quiz.
What's trending DUOLINGO
FLEXISCHOOLS
CALM
TODOIST
TASTE
Duolingo is the fun, free app for learning 35+ languages through quick, bite-sized lessons. Practice speaking, reading, listening, and writing to build your vocabulary and grammar skills.
This is RGS Primary’s online canteen ordering system the school launched in March. You need to set up an account to be able to place orders which will link to your child(ren) class and you can get ordering!!
Calm is an app for sleep and meditation. Discover a happier, healthier you through our mediations, sleep stories, music and more.
Used to organise, plan and collaborate on projects, both big and small. Can be used to capture and organise tasks, remember deadlines with reminders and organise projects.
Cooking just got easier with this app. Discover over 50,000 easy to find recipes. From creating shopping lists, organising recipes in a personalised cookbook to talking you through each recipe.
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FEATURE
THE CHANGING ART LANDSCAPE Digital art can take many different forms. It is also just one form of art that captures the hearts and imaginations of people around the world.
Emily Wakeling is Curator of the Rockhampton Museum of Art. It is a role that oversees a team of people who are responsible for developing an exhibition programme at the Museum and also caring for the collection as well. Emily also keeps a close eye on the growing presence of digital creations in the world of art. Digital Parenting met with Emily at the Rockhampton Museum of Art to gain a greater insight into the growing digital presence in galleries and museums.
How would you describe digital art? Digital art can take many different forms. Typically, you can imagine a digital video screen with some impressive sound and visual elements to it but there are endless possibilities. Modified computers, different algorithms playing with technology. There’s projection mapping that can be applied to artworks, for example on the face of a building. There are so many different varieties. New media art has been around for a long time in contemporary art. Before things were digital, people were still using early video cameras and that would have been considered new media at the time. People using tape recorders. That was considered new media. But as the generations shifted, it’s hard to get away from that term. Now most of the artwork using some kind of technology is a digital technology so it’s digital art.
Are we seeing more digital art in galleries around the world? Absolutely. I think that’s just natural with the way digital technology is a big part of modern life and you see it in the production of art. It’s a reflection of everyone’s adoption of the technology. Painting is not going away. I think audiences can appreciate the visual arts from all different mediums. In terms of younger artists, you definitely see a whole generation of people with the skills to produce digital art and that can be an option for them. It can just be a chosen medium, a platform for whatever art they want to make. It’s just an additional medium when it comes down to it. There will always be painting, drawing, print making and now video and sound and all those other wonders that come with digital technology.
How do you compare skill sets when you look at traditional art and new art? Myself, I’m not a maker. I wouldn’t want to consider painting to be any less skilled, than for example, as someone who can edit their own videos, and vice-versa. Some people use digital technology in a really DIY punk type of way. Pressing record and then stop. That can be the limit of their skills. And the same with painting. People choose to do either a rough painting with lots of energy and back to basics aesthetics and you have people like the Del Kathryn Barton work in the entrance of the gallery, very detailed, she’s obviously laboured over it for many, many days. In terms of skills, it is good to see more art schools incorporating the skills needed to make digital art. That can be part of a studio practice alongside someone using oils or charcoals.
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FEATURE
What do art galleries of the future look like? Digital technologies are becoming more a part of our digital lives. Of course, we’ll see more of it in art galleries. Beyond the actual artworks we see a lot of technology in museums these days. It could be used as a way of finding your way around a gallery, there are apps on people’s phones that can tell you where the next exhibition is and tell you further information about the artwork on the walls, it can provide an audio guide to the exhibition. There’s lots of ways digital technologies are helping museums. The role that digital technology has had during the pandemic is important to note. When museums were closed, the digital art formats were quite adaptable to viewing online. There were also the options that many museums went down where they photographed the whole exhibition in 360 degrees on a computer screen so you could step through the room to see all the artworks. That can really change people’s art practices, when an artist starts thinking about their audience and who can see it. You might end up seeing more digital art for that reason. Some artists might be thinking about reaching an audience that isn’t in the same city or people with a disability where they can’t visit a museum, if there’s a listening or another limitation, digital art can provide ways of enjoying art in a way that other artworks can’t. Still, nothing beats seeing something in person. I love standing in front of a painting and I love standing in a dark room to watch a digital video work. Some of them are beautiful and cinematic. You need to have that sensory immersion in it, that makes you feel like you’re part of an entirely different world. Some of that you can’t do online.
Rockhampton artist Veronika Zeil
TECHNOLOGY SPARKS COLLABORATIVE FUN Rockhampton artist Veronika Zeil is having collaborative fun with art. The German-born artist that started with a passion for drawing, then painting and then mosaic, Veronika is now playing in the digital landscape and recently having exhibited in the Rockhampton Museum of Art. “Drawing, painting and mosaic work are still my base practice, but I’m now playing with the digital format which allows me to get family, friends and the community being a part of the artwork. It’s more fun and playful,’’ Veronika said. “Through digital art I’ve lost my fear of using help. I was used to doing things by myself, but I’m now learning to involve different professionals and respect their line of work. “Digital art is just a different medium. “It takes a while to get your head around it, but you are just using different tools. It doesn’t change the design process.” Veronika’s first foray into digital art, the “green room” in the Here We Meet exhibition at the Museum of Art, delved into the Rockhampton’s botanical history, looking into the therapeutic effects of the colour green and tapped into the music of a 1500s composer whose pieces focused on the laments of life and death and nature. Veronika, a past parent of RGS, called on the musical talents, and humming skills, of her daughter Larissa Zeil-Rolfe (RGS 2014) to help with the music and sound for the artwork. “It’s been a very cool experience and for me it’s been more minimal. Through technology I almost edited things away,’’ Veronika said. Veronika was pleased with the end product and also intrigued how the project morphed from her initial concepts. “I always say, if it doesn’t work out at least I’ve had fun doing it,’’ Veronika said. Before the creation even begins Veronika is engulfed in a month of research – looking at the progression of her past work and making a clear decision where it will go next; discovering what is happening around her both locally and further afield and how are people responding to those issues; and what other contemporary artists are developing and how they are expressing themselves. “Then I always start with colour. I’m a colour person!” Veronika said she was a bit “panicky” about how she would cope with a digital aspect, but she just allowed the concept to develop. “I produced the parts for a production. I was more like a director. I must have enjoyed it because straight away I did another digital piece (www.hybridgreening.art). “I’m now exploring more immersive ways of art. If you’re in a physical space I like having people participate in the work. “People need to be more childlike and playful, that’s how new thoughts evolve rather than being too opinionated and serious about things.”
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Q&A With Ben Scott RGS graduate
Ben Scott graduated from RGS in 2020. Art was always one of his passions at school, from Primary through to his senior studies in the Secondary School. Here is Ben's insight into his passion for digital art.
What initially sparked your interest in the digital art space? Initially I tried out digital painting simply because I was (and still am) in awe of some artists making these phenomenally interesting digital works. I continue doing digital art because of these artists that inspired me, as well as how much I feel I can explore, experiment and continuously broaden my practice to wherever I need and want it to go. How does this style of art differ from more traditional forms of art? While digital art and traditional art can actually be very similar to each other I think there are a couple of main points of difference that can be acknowledged. Firstly, digital art could be thought of as a kind of intangible form of art as it isn’t always physical. Digital art could be seen as existing in its own digital space, just a series of code that we can see as art. Secondly, digital art relies on some use of technology to exist and so tends to interact with a culture of digital media. Traditional art doesn’t need that. If we were to carve art in stone those works would very likely endure the tests of time. However, digital art requires a digital culture or technical world to exist. While we are able to create physical copies of digital works, the original, digital version of the work will always require some connection to the digital world which includes the people living within and around that digital culture.
What are the different skill sets digital artists require compared to more traditional artists? Differences in digital and traditional skill sets can actually be relatively difficult to define as you can use a lot of traditional knowledge when making digital works. Whether you are painting, drawing, sculpting or anything else in digital or traditional art, artistic skill sets are always grounded in the same foundations of elements and principles of art as well as observations in the world around us. However, I do think that an important note is that the digital world is very different to the physical world and that opens many avenues to explore as artists. Maybe the difference in skill sets is how digital and traditional artists are able to observe the type of world their art is based in but that would be a very grey area. Where do you see the future for digital art? I see the future of digital art as something that is constantly developing and evolving as the technological culture and around it does the same. While I do think it’s very difficult to discern in what direction digital art is ultimately heading, I would like to see it encourage art that makes connections between both our digital and physical lives in a way that is meaningful and broadens our perspectives.
How has digital art broken down barriers for artists and created more career opportunities? I think anything that links itself to technology has the potential to create more ease of access and opportunity and digital art is no different. Many industries rely on digital art and allows for more ease in exploring more ambitious ideas because the technology is there to back it up.
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FEATURE
NOW & THEN Technology continues to evolve, and people continue to evolve with that technology. For many parents, you would remember the conversations with your parents and your grandparents about the amazing devices that transformed their lives over the years. The same conversations exist today between parents and their children. What was life like then and what is life like now? Digital Parenting delved into the archives to find some of the technology changes from over the past decades.
TV Viewing Having to watch live TV meant waiting for your favourite show to start at the allocated time, waiting while the ad break was showing (or making a very quick dash to the bathroom) and not being able to press pause. For many people, they only had the option of one television channel (ABC) and if you were lucky in some regional centres you also had a local commercial channel. A trip to the city was met with the added bonus of having multiple television channels to select from. Now we can stream any show at any time on demand, press pause so we don’t miss a single second and binge watch an entire season over a weekend.
Computers Do you remember when there were designated computer rooms at school and they were air conditioned to keep the servers cool? A great subject on a sweltering day at school. Data had to be saved on a floppy disk. Now our children are carrying around their laptops from class to class storing all the information they need. Computers are now mobile. Every room is a computer room.
Telephones Back in the day before mobile phones, you knew where the landline was – fixed to one spot in the house. You could only roam as far as the length of the cord. Yes, everyone in the room had the opportunity to listen to your conversation. In today’s world, we carry our smart phones everywhere (and use it for everything from social media, photography, banking, fitness, and making the odd phone call) but are constantly losing them hence the need for find my phone.
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FEATURE
Research
Road Trips – Directions
Before the world wide web, conducting research for a school project or a spark in curiosity about a topic involved consulting the set of encyclopedias some families were lucky to have in their homes. There was one book for each letter of the alphabet. You always had to keep in mind what information had been updated since the encyclopedia set was last printed. Now, thanks to the internet and a myriad of search engines available, we have all the information at our fingertips and the answer to the curious questions we might ask.
The number one essential item for any road trip was the refidex – a street directory in paper form. Many a car passenger spent pawing through the pages to figure out the best route whilst the driver navigated the crippling traffic in a CBD or carefully checked how many kilometres there were between towns so you could fuel up in time during country road trips. Then along came the Navman in the mid 80’s where you plugged in your destination and the device would guide you effortlessly to where you need to go. Now, almost every car has a built-in navigational system, or we use our phones to get us from A to B.
Road Trips – Music It must have been pretty annoying for the driver, or co-driver, when they were constantly asked to rewind or fast forward to that favourite song on your music cassette. The car sound system gradually progressed to a compact disc where you could skip to your favourite song. Now it’s all about having your personalised playlist and everyone in the car can listen to their own favourite music.
Keeping in contact
Photographs
Remember racing to the mailbox to see if any friends or family had sent you a letter or a post card? You might have been lucky enough to receive a small parcel in the mailbox! The excitement would go into overdrive around birthday or Christmas time. Now you’re more likely to receive a quick, informal email from a friend or family – just passing on the family update or just simply dropping a message to say hi!
The events of yesteryear when everyone packed their cameras and then would then have to wait until the film had been developed at a shop to see if had good photos were on the film. The good ones made it to the photo album! Now you can see your photos in an instant thanks to mobile phones, or if you’re more of a professional photographer, you can check out the screen on the back of your DSRL Nikon on Cannon camera.
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COVER STORY
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COVER STORY
IN A WORLD OF SPORTS SCIENCE,
DON’T FORGET ABOUT THE ATHLETE Schools are fast making ground in the push to introduce more sports technology into their co-curricular programmes and their physical education classes. What was once only something elite, professional sports clubs could only afford, is now becoming more accessible to a broader range of sports.
What role does sports technology now play in schools?
Written by: Distinguished Professor Aaron Coutts PhD Aaron is Head of the School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). He has published more than 250 research articles and worked in many leading national and international sports organisations. He is a director of Exercise and Sport Science Australia (ESSA) and a member of the international advisory panel for the Nike Sports Research Laboratory. Aaron is also a past student of The Rockhampton Grammar School, graduating in 1991.
Just as technology is pervasive throughout the rest of our lives, it is now common place in sport. Most wellresourced schools have invested in sports tech looking at it as a way to provide further support in the development of their athletes. Data that sports tech provides can be used to inform decisions about training and coaching, or just let us better understand our performances. This can apply to student athletes just as much as it does to elite or professional athletes. The most obvious sports technology that you will see in school is wearable technology such as GPS units. The GPS units, which are miniaturised to fit within small pouches in the athletes clothing, are used to assess the athletes training load and to quantify training and match demands (for outdoor sports). These devices can be valuable information that can be used as educational tools to help athletes (and coaches) understand the demands of their sport, to determine if training is reflecting the demands of competitions and to manage training programmes.
In addition to this, you will also see many athletes wearing smart devices (i.e., smartwatches, bands and rings) that have integrated GPS with sensors that assess physiological response to exercise such as heart rate or ventilation, and even athletes’ sleep. The information provided by these devices helps athletes understand how they are responding to training or the general stressors of life. When combined with other information such as their perceptions, we get insights into how athletes are coping. This information can be used to inform if the athletes should train more or recover. In student athletes we can use this information to assess physical activity levels or see if they are affected by stressors of study etc. There are other forms of sports tech available that may also be found in schools. For example, there are many coaching apps and performance analysis software that are used to assess technical / tactical aspects of sport and give feedback to athletes. We have various technology that can be used in the gym that can be used to assess performance. Finally, there are also database systems – often called athlete management systems – that many schools have that combine all the data THE ROCKHAMPTON GRAMMAR SCHOOL / 9
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COVER STORY
that can be collected from athletes into one central source. The data is used to create dashboards to follow changes in these variables for athlete or teams. These are just a few examples that demonstrate the breadth of tech available to schools and student athletes. New tech is being developed continually, and it is being adopted at a fast rate. Each provide information, that can be used to understand performance or used to guide the decisions around preparing athletes to perform better or to improve health and wellness. However, it is important to recognise that it is not the tech that makes the differences with the athletes – it is how the information is used that determines its utility.
How has the evolution of sports technology grown over the past years? There has been an explosion of sport technology in the past 20 years and it continues to grow. Australia has been the centre of this development, with some of the world most successful sports tech companies starting here. Australia has a strong innovation culture in sport and organisations such as the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) and state sports academies (e.g., Queensland Academy of Sport), and our professional sports teams have been early global adopters. For example, the wearable GPS units that are now worn by athletes all over the word started as a research project at the AIS. Australia has been a leader in this area and it’s a huge global business. The sports tech market is forecast to exceed $31.1 billion USD by 2024, growing in excess of 20% between 2018 and 2024. This market growth is fuelled by an increase in live sporting events, its application in fan experience and the need for data-driven decision-making in sport. When I started working in this area two decades ago, the costs were prohibitive and the knowledge on its applications were poor. Each organisation could only afford a few pieces of sport tech and there were no specialists employed to use the tech. However, since this time there has been a lot of research and development that has supported the tech boom. Today, there are now sport scientists and computer scientists employed in most leading sport organisations. Sports tech was once the domain of elite sport but the knowledge has trickled down to the level of amateur and student
athletes. Now athletes at all levels can afford and use this tech. I would expect the value of this to continue to increase as we improve the tech (i.e., sensors, devices, algorithms tec), as costs reduce and we get better understanding of its applications.
The market is saturated with sports technology programmes and devices. What should schools be looking at, or asking themselves, when they are investing in sport technology? Schools should only invest in sports tech that has been validated, and they have a clear use case and have appropriate qualified staff to use it. One of the important roles sport scientists play in the organisations is doing an analysis before investing in tech and this would include looking at the scientific literature regarding its validity, assessing studies that show how the tech can be applied, and gaining feedback from other expert users.
The sports tech market is forecast to exceed
$31.1 billion USD by 2024
They should also closely examine use agreements around data security and ownership. This is an essential process that needs to be undertaken with care. I have seen many schools and organisations invest heavily in tech without thinking through who can use the tech effectively. My personal opinion, is that the people should come before the tech if schools are looking to invest in this space, they should have the right people in place before they purchase the tech. It can be a very expensive proposition if you get these decisions wrong.
How important is the awareness of also leaving a digital footprint when it comes to collecting sports science data? Yes, like all technology we should be aware of our digital footprint. In sport, this is one concern, but a larger concern is ownership of data. We should be aware what data is being collected and
ensure that consent is provided before data is collected. One valid concern from athletes is the potential misuse of data. In professional sports this may relate to impacts on contracts and/or team selection. In particular, information collected about athlete wellness, injury and performance can each have impact. There are also important responsibilities about secure storage and removal of data. There are now national and international standards for storage of health-related data and these need to be followed. We often find that many tech companies will retain ownership of data – this should be carefully reviewed and considered when considering when using sports tech.
Technology in sports – what are the pros and cons? There is a really interesting discussion around this. It is easy to assume that technology just brings benefits, however there are various cons that need to be carefully considered. As a scientist, I think there is value in data as we use it to develop new knowledge and support evidence-based decision making. This has to help us improve the way we prepare and manage athletes. The information that sports tech provides is objective, and can be used to remove sources of bias in decision making. The information that sports tech has provided over the past two decades has definitely improved the way we manage and prepare athletes at all levels. However, there are also risks associated with reliance, or over reliance, on sports tech. One of the major challenges is the cost for many of these devices and systems. Organisations should carefully evaluate the cost / benefit of having tech compared to employing expert staff. Another challenge is that we assume that the data that sports tech provides is valid and reliable, however this is not always the case and requires careful evaluation. Additionally, it is really attractive to think that we can apply complex analysis such as artificial intelligence to the data we collect from tech to make predictions about performance and injury risk in athletes. Much of the marketing from sports tech companies make unvalidated claims around improving performance and preventing injuries. Unfortunately, whilst that is conceptually attractive, this is not the case. Recent studies have concluded that at present these models cannot be recommended in practice as they are unproven.
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Finally, not all data is good data. Too much information may impede athletes and coaches from experiential learning experiences (i.e., relying on the data and not what they see). There are many contextual factors that need to be considered when making decisions which sports tech may not be able to account for these. The same applies for teaching athletes to manage themselves, whilst in the early stages of use the data can provide information that may help teach athletes about themselves and how they are coping with training. We need to make sure that athletes don’t rely on the technology to make decisions for them. We are a long way from removing humans from the decision-making process! Clearly the solution is to use valid and reliable tech in conjunction with expert input from coaches and athletes. This integrated approach will allow us better improve athlete health, wellbeing and performance at all levels.
Where do you see the future of sports science in schools? Sport science plays a role in helping understand sport and to helping develop best practice methods for improving athletes training, health and performance. Many of the larger schools use sport science in their sport programmes and I see this continuing to help support talented athletes reach their potential through developing individualised training and support programmes. It can also be used to help student athletes learn to understand training and ways they can continue to train and maintain a healthy lifestyle after they leave school. Learning to use sport tech should be one part of this. There is potential benefit to shift the focus of sport science away from performance to more student health and wellbeing. I see an important role as part of the sports staff to develop and deliver programmes that improve sports participation, physical literacy and student health and wellbeing. There is a strong case for using sport as a vehicle for improving student physical and mental health and wellbeing as much as performance. There is no doubt that lifelong participation in sport and physical activity has many benefits (i.e., social, mental and physical health). Developing these habits during school has the potential to have strong immediate and legacy effects. Accredited sport scientists and sports tech can play a role in delivering the programmes.
The Rockhampton Grammar School’s Co-curricular sports programme has this year delved more into the world of sports science. Trialling technology in the rugby union and rugby league programmes, the School hopes to further expand the use of technology across other sports in the future. RGS Director of Co-Curricular Mr Todd Wells said the technology in use at the School included Freelap Timing Gates, the Hudle Video Programme, VEO Camera, Teambuildr and Sport Performance Tracking. So what does this technology actually do and how does it help RGS students: Freelap Timing Gates
The gates can be adjusted by a coach to record data over set distances. Can be used in a straight line for speed or to calculate power over a set distance or it can be used to record agility.
Hudl Video Programme
The programme can record and edit full games or specific coaching sessions that can be uploaded and stored for players and coaches to view on their computer or phones.
VEO Camera
A stationary camera that is set up and records a whole match capturing footage of the whole field and then edits the footage to track the ball and produce a video file of the match.
Teambuildr
Online Strength and Conditioning software for coaches and trainers. Coaches can set up seasonal plans, term plans or block plans to develop certain aspects of an athlete’s physical development. Students complete set programme within the school gym and record all their data which can then be immediately analysed by the software or the coach to provide feedback and manipulate future sessions.
Sport Performance Tracking
• Used in PE Classes and Rugby Codes. Students wear a GPS device for the allocated time and then the data is uploaded into SPT Gametraka. • SPT Gametraka then provides information on each athlete across areas such as: – Total Distance (half of our players are covering around 4-5km for a 30-minute rugby union/rugby league game) – Work Rate – Hard Running – Hard Running Efforts – Sprinting – Sprint Efforts – Top Speed (some of our top athletes are getting up to 8-10 metres/second in game play) – Total Impacts
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CYBER SECURITY:
TRANSFORMING USER BEHAVIOUR TO PROTECT OURSELVES Technology is here to stay, and will continue to grow, but our own behaviours will determine whether this mainstream item will be beneficial or harmful to our lifestyles.
Understanding the "Why?"
Cultural Cyber Security Executive Director Brian Hay visited The Rockhampton Grammar School during Term 2 to speak with students, from Year 4 to Year 12, staff and parents about creating more awareness about the perils of technology and how we can better protect ourselves.
“The theme is common, in so far as cyber security and cyber safety, in understanding that it’s your own behaviours that ultimately make you vulnerable,’’ Brian said.
1 Understand the why and understand
it’s a risk. Understand we are dealing with a constantly evolving threat environment. Just because you did something safely and well today it may not apply in 6 months. Staying up to date is critical.
“That’s underpinned by understanding that you’re not just vulnerable today, it can be a life-long legacy. In the modern world we tend to think very transactionally, once something is done and dusted we’ll move forward from here. Well, it’s not like that. “It will get much more personal, and therefore more ugly. “Technology is still a great thing, don’t get me wrong.”
2
Brian said everyone is affected by everything, but the different behaviours mean you might be more vulnerable to more prevalent issues. The former police officer is also calling on the younger members of society to become “the educators”. To help their parents and grandparents navigate the growing technology space. “Kids are fearless. Many times they don’t understand the risks. Older people understand some of the risks but don’t have the skills to manage the risks, even when they think they do,’’ Brian said. “We’re in this evolutionary journey where we haven’t caught up yet. And we haven’t accelerated. It’s about everyone if they choose to buy in and how much they do.
Get foundational hygiene skills right. Your biggest risk is from a phishing (emails), vishing (phone), smishing (mobile text messages).
3 Behaviour and knowledge. Understand and accept you will be targeted and approached by criminals.
4
You put the brain into gear before the heart moves.
5 Learn new skills. Develop the skills to protect yourself and your family.
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Parent thoughts
“We don’t let someone just jump into a car and drive somewhere that hasn’t been trained in a motor vehicle. I’m not suggesting we now have licences to operate things like mobile phones, no, but we do need foundation knowledge. We have to embed cyber safety into our culture, into our DNA.” Brian said there’s a blind faith in the community that technology will protect people, but we have to learn to protect ourselves. “The biggest vulnerability in any organisation, proven by the data, is human behaviour,’’ Brian said.
“ I have concerns about protecting my identity online and throughout the session I learnt of some steps I can take to assist me. I will now be using a Password Manager and a Virtual Private Network (VPN) such as SurfShark.” “ I found the session very informative and refreshing. They took a different approach by way of education rather than to fear the web etc. My security concerns are, have I protected myself adequately? After the session, my answer is no. However the facilitator did give me some tools to enable me to better protect myself by way of password manager, VPN and enable MFA. Just a few small actions can make all the difference. Another parent I spoke to said, “thought provoking and scary”. “ The cyber security talk gave some interesting behind the scenes insights about why we all need to take precautions to be cyber secure. It was good to see that a few simple steps can reduce your risk dramatically.”
“Everyone has focused totally on the technology. They’ve forgotten the kids, the parents and the grandparents. There’s this mindset that you can technologise the human out of the equation. You’re kidding. We have to learn to accept the risk and take the challenge on board.” Brian feels for the innocent people that are harmed by cyber security.
The biggest vulnerability in any organisation, proven by the data, is human behaviour"
“As a community we treat these people as how could you be so stupid. They simply made a mistake of trusting somebody,’’ Brian said. Brian also feels for the parents, who for many, have never been told how to raise “digital children”. “Parents have used digital technology as a babysitting device. When parents were kids, they knew how to cross the road safely because they knew the dangers,’’ Brian said. "They were taught how to play with other kids in the sandpit, taught how to share your toys, taught what was acceptable and unacceptable in the real world.
“I acknowledge the fact that The Rockhampton Grammar School is doing this sort of thing because it’s important. But how do we capture and build a knowledge base for the broader community of all ages and all demographics. We have a long way to go. We have not addressed, as a nation, the seriousness of this challenge.” Brian said it’s a conversation we have left far too late. The conversations include addressing staying safe and keeping your technology devices, and personal information, secure. “How can you expect to manage the risk when you don’t first understand it,’’ Brian said. “I don’t like telling people don’t do this and don’t do that. You need to understand the why. Why cyber crime will continue to grow, why it’s a massive problem today, why government’s can’t stop it, why law enforcement’s can’t stop it, why cyber security/ cyber crime is a 24/7 proposition, why good cyber security starts at home, why it’s everyone’s responsibility – not just the IT department. “We have to own it.
“In the digital world, a child is given an iPad and told to be quiet for half an hour. A lot of parents don’t know the risks so how can they teach them. There’s a void that needs to be rapidly filled. The future of our youth is at stake. “Accept the challenge. “With kids – talk to your children constantly and develop a rapport of trust. Have a full and frank discussion with your kids about the people they could be dealing with. "The internet is not a point of truth. We have to get better at developing the skills to question and validate. “Sit down and have the conversation. Build some ground rules. Develop their trust. “If your child makes a mistake, talk about it calmly and don't make the child feel scared or bad. Otherwise, you risk they might not came back to you with another concern. “It’s about trust. It’s about having an open discussion. “Use the metaphor. We want to teach our children how to cross the road safely. To help our children cross "the road" safely, we all need to learn the foundations and skills of cyber safety and then we can have that conversation.”
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FEATURE
Written by Reniece Carter, Head of Secondary School (Academics)
ONLINE EXAMS As younger people become more aligned, and skilled, at using technology, the school exam landscape is breaking new ground to embrace these skills. The movement of NAPLAN to a digital exam platform removed reams of paper, and its bulk transport, to a new world exam setting.
What is NAPLAN? The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual national assessment for all students in Years 3, 5, 7, and 9. It is the only nationwide assessment all Australian children undertake. Its key measure is to see whether young Australians are developing the literacy and numeracy skills that provide the critical foundation for other learning.
Online NAPLAN Key Features Tailored Testing NAPLAN Online is a tailored test that adapts to student responses, by presenting students with questions that may be more or less difficult. This is the key change to previous hard copy testing where all students in Australia completed identical papers. This was touted as a key benefit for all schools to move to
Hints & tips
an online format. Supervisors at The Rockhampton Grammar School noted this feature proved to be useful for students, particularly in terms of student confidence. Tailored testing provides a more engaging test for students and a more precise assessment of student performance. Students commence with a similar set of questions and depending on their answers, the next set of questions may be easier or more difficult. This therefore gives students greater opportunity to demonstrate what they know. The School found the new adaptive testing, that matches questions to a student’s ability, meant students were engaged with the questions until the end of the assessment task. According to QCAA, in its first year of transition in 2018, just over 15 per cent of schools participated in NAPLAN Online. In 2019, the number rose to
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Practice your keyboarding skills prior to completing assessment tasks online
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Plan your work on paper before you restart typing using the tools you have been taught
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Capture your audience with a great title
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Read your work moving the cursor as you are reading
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C heck your spelling by reading your work backwards
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Significant planning and development occurred at The Rockhampton Grammar School to ensure students were ready for NAPLAN online
approximately 50%, while in 2020 NAPLAN tests were not conducted due to Covid-19. Significant planning and development occurred at The Rockhampton Grammar School to ensure students were ready for NAPLAN online. This was specifically because NAPLAN Online assessments include a range of question formats and interactive features. Students answer questions by clicking, typing and dragging; some questions include audio or interactive tools, hence the need for earphones. Additionally, all questions can be reviewed and answered, or flagged and returned to later.
Timer A timer on the screen shows the time allocated for NAPLAN tests under normal test conditions. Students can choose to display or hide the timer, but the timer will always display during the last five minutes of the actual test so that students have adequate warning the time allowed is ending. RGS students found this feature particularly useful.
Numeracy tools Some numeracy questions include access to online tools (ruler, protractor or calculator). When a ruler, protractor or calculator is allowed to be used, an appropriate icon appears in the top right-hand corner of the test screen. It was important RGS students were made familiar with this feature and understood how to use the tools correctly. Questions at the beginning of the Year 7 and Year 9 numeracy tests do not allow the use of the calculator. As such, students are alerted once they reach the point in the test where the calculator becomes active.
Zoom tool A magnifying glass icon, or zoom tool, appears in the top left-hand corner of the test screen. The zoom tool increases the size of the question on the screen. To enlarge the view to 150, 200 or 300 per cent, students need to click on the zoom tool. RGS students found the zoom tool particularly useful given its adaptability.
Preparing for NAPLAN Online The training and introduction for NAPLAN online was a 6-month process, ably led by the School’s Dean of Academic Administration and Staffing, Mr Julien Wright. The process included three key stages. Stage 1 involved an initial trial in 2021 for both the Primary and Secondary School. This trial ensured RGS had the capability to run NAPLAN online using our network and also introduced students to the NAPLAN Lockdown Browser. It was invaluable in allowing both supervisors and
Student thoughts “Pretty easy, much less of a hassle because we could use our laptops.” (Year 7) “It was really good, and much easier with the laptops as it took less energy than writing.” (Year 7) “So much more organised with the laptop, less worry about shading the circle.” (Year 7) “Computers were much easier to use during NAPLAN – it was quicker to change your answer and a lot cleaner.” (Year 9) “A lot less stressful than I had thought as I haven’t done NAPLAN since Year 5.” (Year 9)
students how the 2022 NAPLAN tests would be delivered. This trial test was referred to as an omnibus as it assessed 3 of the 4 formats of the NAPLAN test suit. Importantly, during this trial students were introduced to the various features of NAPLAN Online including the online calculator, online ruler and online protractor. This trial also ensured students were comfortable with the change in format. Stage 2 saw the School participate in the National NAPLAN Online trial held on 24 March 2022. The main reason for this trial was to ensure both QCAA and ACARA could conduct nationwide NAPLAN testing using the systems developed. Every school that participated in the trial was asked to complete the Writing Test, based on the fact this test would consume the greatest bandwidth. Stage 3 involved the actual delivery of NAPLAN Online testing, which for the School commenced on May 10 and concluded on May 13. Due to the tremendous efforts of the IT Department and various academic staff, it is pleasing to report that NAPLAN Online ran very smoothly at RGS. The process adopted enabled the School to implement systems to help alleviate any anxiety caused due to an inability to simply access the test. These measures included the use of stand-by computers that could be used by a student if their computer was not wishing to co-operate on the day.
What happened in classrooms? Sample tests for writing, reading, conventions of language and numeracy for each NAPLAN test year level from the NAPLAN public demonstration site were used with RGS students. These sample tests contained questions which show the types of technology-enhanced features of the online tests, including interactive navigation, audio features, and drag and drop style responses. In English, RGS used a range of ACER programmes that allowed students access to online testing to enhance their preparation. The School also used these to determine the strengths and areas for improvement for our students, and teachers taught a suite of skills that not only prepared the cohort for NAPLAN, but assist students to read more effectively, enhance their grammatical knowledge and become better writers.
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The School’s Writing Boost Programme, which requires all Year 7-10 students to write for ten minutes at a set time each day, has enhanced the way students write using a timed approach. To support the move to the online format, Year 7 and Year 9 students in English typed their Writing Boost responses.
Naplan 2023 From 2023 NAPLAN is changing: •T he NAPLAN tests will move to Term 1. • I n 2023, NAPLAN will be held from Wednesday 15 March to Monday 27 March. The Head of Secondary School (Academics), Ms Reniece Carter, explained, ‘the hope is by moving NAPLAN to Term 1, results will be available earlier and can be used by schools to aid in informing teaching and learning for each Australian School.’
While students step into a NAPLAN exam room unsure of what content they will be presented with, it was all about pre-planning for The Rockhampton Grammar School’s ICT Department. RGS Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) Manager Mr Neil Nankivell said his team was focused on ensuring the School’s first foray into NAPLAN online exams was a success. Mr Nankivell said they wanted to remove any technical issues that could have possibly provided more distractions or stress for the students. It was not a case of crossing fingers and hoping for the best on the day for the School’s Year 3, Year 5, Year 7 and Year 9 students. The RGS team’s NAPLAN online preparation started years earlier,
The Head of Department for English (Year 7-10), Louise Heilbuth, in consultation with the Studies Directorate, also implemented eWrite (Australian Council for Educational Research) to: • increase student familiarity with online writing platforms, and • gauge student performance and identify areas requiring explicit teaching for both NAPLAN preparation and to improve overall writing skills. Year 7 students first engaged with the platform in February with students writing a persuasive piece. Following an analysis of these responses, three areas of writing were explicitly taught as a part of the English curriculum: sentence construction, paragraphing and punctuation within sentences. Students completed a second task which showed a significant achievement growth. Year 9 students engaged with the platform at the end of Term 1. With similar focus areas to Year 7, the Year 9 students embarked on explicit teaching of skills within the context of their English unit.
eWrite will now be embedded into the English programmes from Year 7-10. Students at RGS were not concerned with NAPLAN moving to an online format. In fact, when asked, most preferred this mode to pen and paper. The Head of Mathematics, Tania Norford indicated students in Years 7-9 regularly use online platforms to answer numeracy questions as part of their mathematics programme. In addition to the learning of concepts that take place every lesson, students are exposed to NAPLAN style questions as part of their homework sheets. The Year 9 Mathematics textbook has several online NAPLAN practice tests that allowed students to use an online calculator and ruler. Additionally, as part of their preparation, Year 7 completed a practice test from Mighty Minds. During the practises, teachers stressed the importance of using pen and paper to do working out and monitored this while students were completing the tests.
Our Learnings Observation of the School NAPLAN trials revealed a set of behaviours that was not consistent with the outgoing traditional written trials. Fewer students were planning prior to writing, and the use of paragraphing while writing diminished. English teachers used this information in lessons for NAPLAN preparation.
testing laptops and preparing for additional banks of laptops in Primary.
Day two again continued to run smoothly and day three was again problem-free.
Preparations escalated over the past year. A NAPLAN trial run was held in October last year with class groups before full cohort trials occurred in March this year. It was an issue-free trial.
“During NAPLAN we had up to 300 students undertaking the tests at one time,’’ Mr Nankivell said.
“On the day of the first Online NAPLAN Tests in May, the RGS IT Department had 12 spare laptops charged, logged in and ready for the NAPLAN codes and 25 headphones available for students,’’ Mr Nankivell said. “We allocated most of the IT team to the event with three IT staff onsite and our Senior System Administrator on call ready to correct any connection problems. The day ran as smoothly as could be expected for a first day.”
“Throughout the school the number of concurrent connections to the data network peaked at 1360, this is our highest number to date. Our internet bandwidth usage peaked at 553Mbs. The School’s data network held up very well. “Overall, students could undertake the tests with very minimal technical distraction or disruption. This was the IT Department’s main goal and we are extremely happy with the outcome.”
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RGS Capricornus Quarterly Digital Parenting is published by: The Rockhampton Grammar School Archer Street Rockhampton QLD 4700, Australia www.rgs.qld.edu.au (+61) 7 4936 0600 ISSN 1839-4663 CRICOS Number 00507F ABN: 71 055 702 035
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