Frequently Asked Questions

Oasis Horizons is a scheme where every pupil in every Oasis academy, teachers and support staff, is given an iPad to help with online learning. It is your own iPad, that you are responsible for, to use in your lessons and at home for home learning. The iPad gives you the chance to access the Oasis curriculum and make sure we can give you the best teaching and learning to support you to reach your potential. 

Oasis Horizons is the third part of a wider strategy; the other two elements being the development of an outstanding Oasis curriculum and investing in our pedagogy; making sure that we are sharing the latest and best teaching methods with our staff. It brings together the expert teaching of an outstanding curriculum offer.

First, we want to make sure every pupil receives the same opportunities, and we want to address any inequalities. Oasis Horizons will mean that everyone has access online learning. It doesn’t matter where they are, or what time it is, our young people will be able to learn, study or research online. The iPads will enhance everyone’s learning. 

Second, we want to deliver the Oasis curriculum, and the best teaching and learning, into the hands of every pupil, at home and at school. The iPad will also come with access to hundreds of powerful educational applications, or apps, that pupils will be able to use to take their learning further.

Third, Oasis Horizons empowers our staff to work more efficiently. Research shows that iPads can reduce the time taken to do important but slow activities like marking, and therefore free up more time to support their pupils.

Fourth, we know that learning doesn’t just take place in the classroom, but at home, and that our young people’s families play the most important role of all in supporting their children with their education. Oasis Horizons will bring some of the resources of the classroom into our pupils’ homes, providing a tool for parents and children to use together to drive our pupils’ progress.

Finally, Oasis Horizons prepares our young people for their next steps. Using this powerful tool each day will give them a greater understanding of e-safety, and provide them with the opportunity to engage with technology throughout their school career. Oasis Horizons provides a firm foundation towards further education, or aspirational, fulfilling and prosperous careers. 

​iPads are a powerful tool which will compliment what students are working on in their lessons. Our teachers receive training on how best to utilise the iPad’s capabilities in the classroom, and then they will be able to support our pupils and students to use the apps provided to further their learning, and research.
They allow students to access different aspects of the curriculum at the same time and deepen their learning. The iPads do not replace traditional teaching and learning; teachers will be able to control what students can do with their iPads whilst in their lessons.
 

Oasis Horizons is a big investment in support of the young people in our care. It is primarily being financed by using the money that we invest each year into IT equipment across our academies.

iPads will be provided for all Oasis students from Reception to Year 13, and all teachers and support staff.
At the end of your child’s time with Oasis, they will be required to return the iPad in a good condition.​

We will provide a standard iPad to everyone being issued with a device. The current standard iPad is the 'iPad' 10.2" 7th Generation, Wifi, 32GB. 
The iPad includes some amazing 'Accessibility' features to support people with particular needs. One of the key principles of Oasis Horizons is equality. OCL believe that these features make the standard model iPad suitable for all students including those with specific accessibility requirements.

Yes - all of the iPads will come with a case.
iPads for students from Year 1 to Year 13 will come with a rugged keyboard case which both protects the iPad and makes it easy to type on the iPad in the form factor of a laptop.
Children in Reception will be issued with a different case which provides protection from damage but does not include the keyboard.

As with any electrical device, it is important to follow the safety instructions from the manufacturer. 

You can read safety information for the iPad from Apple here.  Within the guidance you will see advice on:

• Handling – If the device, it’s battery or the screen is damaged, stop using the device immediately and return it to the IT Team for repair
• Repairing – If the device is damaged, do not attempt to repair the device yourself, stop using it immediately and return it to the IT Team for repair
• Battery – Do not attempt to replace the iPad battery yourself. Please return it to the IT Team for them to replace the battery if necessary.
• Charging – Ensure that you use the provided charger for charging the iPad.  Using other chargers, a damaged charger, or a charger when wet, can cause injury, fire, or damage.  Keep the iPad and its power adapted in a well-ventilated area when in use or charging, and beware the device becoming hot.

No – We ask that the iPad remains in the case provided at all times to protect against damage. 
Each iPad will come with an official charger to be used by students to charge their iPad at home.  

Yes. Microsoft OneDrive allows for the easy transfer of files between devices. Students can save files in Microsoft OneDrive and then access the files on a range of different devices. Microsoft Office 365 applications such as Microsoft Word and Excel are available on a range of different devices including iPad and the files are cross compatible.

The IT Team have provided a large range of resources to support home working which are available through the academy website.

Still stuck?

The IT Service Desk will provide support to all users including students / parents / carers between 8:00am and 7:30pm. The service desk can be contacted by phone on 0207 921 4330 or via email ServiceDesk@Oasisuk.org.
Parents / carers may be required to provide proof of identity via security questions when contacting the IT Service Desk.

Please see the Home Use Agreement for further information.
Please ensure that your child cares for their iPad when working at home and does not take it out of the case at any time. You must: 

• report any loss or damage (including accidental loss or damage) promptly to the Oasis IT Service Desk.
• Report any theft to the Police immediately and get a crime reference number that will be passed on to OCL staff.
• Report any faults with the iPad or installed software promptly.
• Ensure that the iPad is returned when the student leaves the academy for whatever reason, or at any other time upon the request of a member of academy staff.
• Make sure the iPad is not used for any illegal and/or anti-social purpose, including access to inappropriate internet sites, or social networks.
• Make sure that the terms and conditions for use of social media apps are adhered to.
• Make sure the iPad is fully charged, and our child brings it to the academy every school day.
• Ensure that the iPad is maintained in good condition and we agree that if there is a negligent loss or damage that cannot be repaired that we will pay in full for the iPad.
• Follow the Safer Schools App e-safety briefings. 

The Home Use Agreement on the website has lots of information but this is important bit for you to know.

As a student I will:

• Look after my iPad very carefully at all times.Keep my iPad in the rugged case that was issued to me at all times.
• Make sure that my iPad is not switched with any other iPad.
• Make sure at the battery is 100% charged at the beginning of each academy day.
• Always carry it around in a school bag and especially make sure that it is kept in a bag and out of sight on public transport.
• Take care when it is transported that it is as safe as possible (e.g. cannot be seen in a vehicle; not left unattended on a bus etc.).
• Make sure my iPad is not damaged by careless or deliberate actions, including anyone messing or playing around with it and using it for things it wasn’t meant to be used for.
• Always keep my iPad safe from viruses.
• If I think there is a virus on my device,I will report the matter promptly to my teacher.
• Not write on, decorate or customise the outside of the iPad, its case, etc, and will not allow it to be subject to graffiti.
• Not leave the iPad unattended at any time unless secure either in the academy or at home.
• Follow the Safer Schools Appe-safety briefings

It is really important that every child remembers to bring their iPads into the academy every day and that it is charged and ready for use. Persistent failure to do this means that your child has not prepared for learning and may result in sanction.  
If  they forget their iPad, they will not be provided with a loan device for use for the day. They will be provided with suitable materials to write and record the work by other means. Teachers will record the fact that the did not have their iPad with them.

At the end of your child's time with Oasis, be that in Year 6, Year 11 or Year 13 or whenever they leave during a year, they are required to return the iPad in a good condition.

There is a full training programme to make sure everyone involved with Oasis Horizons knows how to make best use of the iPad in an educational setting and how to effectively integrate it with teaching and learning. We have a team of experts working hard to ensure that we are fully utilising the devices, and that every teacher across the family is confident and able. 
With time, the apps and the use of the devices will be integrated with the delivery of the Oasis Curriculum.

Staff iPads have an app called Apple Classroom. This allows teachers to monitor groups of students in their class, enabling them to see every student iPad in the group in real time and see what is on their screen.
Apple Classroom allows staff to control the student iPads including locking the screen, only allowing certain apps or forcing all the iPads to a particular app or webpage.

Whilst in school, pupils and students will be able to access the internet using the academy’s Wi-Fi. Teachers will be able to limit their group’s access to the internet and different apps during lessons.
Outside of school, pupils are able to access the internet using Wi-Fi at home or at other places which provide internet access.

​Social media access forms part of a young person’s digital persona. The following levels of access to social media will be applied to different phases or roles when the devices are away from the academy network:

• Students in primary academies will not have access to social media websites on the device.
• Students in secondary academies will have access to social media services on the device, which will be subject to parental control of social media access.

Pupils and students have access to a personal OneDrive where they can save their documents, and easily access them through the iPad. 
Students are responsible for these documents, and whatever they download to their iPad.

The iPad has the capability of taking photographs and filming. They may only film other people once receiving permission, and ensuring that photographs and recordings are appropriate.

The Acceptable Use Agreement that they have signed when they started to use the OCL IT system in the academy has covered the fact that they must not use images of anybody else (including staff) except when permitted to do so.
Their teachers may ask students to take pictures of their school work, and this pictures might have others in the class in them. Students have been told that they must keep these pictures safe and they are not to show or send them to anyone else. We need to keep everyone safe.

Apps is just another word for applications. Your child will have access to lots of applications. The iPad has a wide range of apps which will support your child’s learning.
 

The Oasis Self Service App Store contains a large range of apps which have been approved for use on Oasis Horizons iPads. Students can add apps from the Oasis Self Service App Store as they wish.
They will need to be careful not to add too many and use up a lot of the memory on their iPad which could stop them working in lessons.

As explained in the Home Use Agreement, the iPad must remain in the UK unless this is approved by the Oasis IT Team. 
If you would like your child to be able to take their iPad abroad, please contact your Academy well in advance of the trip. 

We know that parents and carers are responsible for the well-being of their child and need to make sure that the children are getting a balanced diet of time with technology and time away from it.
Access to the iPads will be used to enhance learning and teaching experiences during academy day. 
This does not mean they will spend every lesson on an iPad. They will have access to an exciting range of tools and resources that have not been possible in the past.

We want every student to be able to continue to learn when away from the academy and expect parents and carers to understand that some of this learning will mean they have to use their iPad. That said, if you feel they are missing out on other activities then you should encourage them to put their iPad away.

All Oasis Horizons iPads are deployed with a filtering tool which works on the device regardless of where the iPad is connecting to the internet. There is additional filtering and monitoring software when accessing the internet at your academy. 
When your child is using their iPad to access the internet outside of school, there will be web filtering and monitoring software applied that is set nationally by Oasis Community Learning.
As with all filtering, this may not stop all forms of access to inappropriate content and therefore parents/carers should take the necessary steps to monitor safe access to the internet when the device is used away from the academy although filtering of access to the most inappropriate websites will be in place.

Oasis Horizons will enable our students to access the internet and online technology, which provide fantastic new opportunities for young people’s learning and their growth. However, we also need to be aware that it can expose them to new types of risks.
We take your child’s safety online very seriously. 

Each Oasis academy is required to teach online safety that empowers, builds resilience and develops a positive online culture amongst our students. As outlined in Oasis’s Online Safety Curriculum Policy, the lessons your child receive will promote the development of safe and appropriate long-term behaviours, to ensure students keep themselves safe online and learn to take responsibility for their own behaviour and choices.

In addition to a comprehensive set of lessons and resources regarding e-safety, each iPad will have the Safer Schools App installed onto it. The Safer School App provides age appropriate, interactive content for pupils on how to stay safe online. Your academy will make available a parents’ version of the app, which you will be able to download to your phone, computer or tablet free of charge.
The app has lots of features including advice on emerging trends, an Online Safety Centre which covers how to block, report and set safety settings, and training courses.

There is more information on e-Safety available in the E-Safety guidance, available on your academy Horizons’ webpage.

Oasis Community Learning’s IT Team will monitor the use of the Oasis Horizons iPad in order to protect users from access to harmful and inappropriate material and to be able to effectively manage and support the use of the devices.

We have provided some safety advice on the academy website, which has been summarised below:

Advice for parents/carers
The safety and wellbeing of our young people is our highest priority. Pupils should follow advice from children’s charities and safety lessons they receive in school on how to stay safe on their journey to and from school (like this advice from the NSPCC.) In addition, we also ask pupils to consider the below advice on how to look after their iPad on the journey to and from school. The key thing to remember is that in the unlikely event that someone your child does not know asks them for their iPad, they are to give it to them immediately. If an iPad is lost or stolen, it will not work for anyone else. We can lock any iPad that is reported missing, and we will then track its location and pass this information to the police.

Advice for primary students
Always keep your iPad in its specially made case. This will keep it safe if it’s accidentally dropped, and it will protect the screen from anything else in your bag.When you are travelling between school and home, keep your iPad in your bag, out of sight. This will help make sure that your iPad does not get damaged or lost. You should only use your iPad outside when your teacher asks you to. Only use your iPad where you can hold it carefully. Accidents are more likely to happen if you’re moving around or when you’re on the bus or train. Wait until you get home or to school before you use it. If you damage or lose your iPad, don’t worry! Just tell your parents and teacher as soon as possible. If we follow these rules we can keep our iPads safe!

Advice for older students
Always keep your iPad in its specially made case. This will keep it safe if it’s accidentally dropped, and it will protect the screen from anything else in your bag. Please ensure that when you are on the move you keep your iPad in your bag. Expert advice on how to stay safe when travelling to and from school is to keep your mobile phone and other valuables out of sight. If anyone you do not know takes your iPad or asks you for it, let them take it. Then tell a parent when it is safe to do so, and report this to the police. Please let your academy know as soon as possible when you return to school. When we know that your iPad is missing, we can lock it so no one else can use it. We will then track your iPad’s location and we will give this information to the police​.
 

If anyone’s iPad is damaged, then it is important that is repaired. These repairs must be undertaken by the Oasis IT Team and must not be attempted by the user or arranged through a third party repair service. If your child’s iPad is damaged, then please let the academy know as soon as possible and a repair will be arranged.
iPads that are damaged due to negligence or lack of care will result in the child’s parent / carer being asked to meet the costs of repair in part or in full.

If your child loses their iPad then you are requested to contact the IT Service Desk immediately via 0207 921 4330. This team will place the device in ‘Lost or Stolen’ mode.
When this mode is activated, the iPad will be locked which will prevent it from being used. The iPad will also beep, continuously, showing its location. When lost or stolen mode is activated then the last known location of the device becomes available to the IT Team. This location will continue to update if the iPad is moved. This will help us to find your child’s iPad.
Pupils and parents / carers are responsible for taking care of the iPad including ensuring that it is not lost.

If your child’s iPad is stolen, please contact the IT Service Desk via 0207 921 4330 and let the academy know as soon as possible. The team will place the device in ‘Lost or Stolen’ mode.
When this mode is activated, the iPad will be locked which will prevent it from being used. The iPad will also beep, continuously, showing its location. When lost or stolen mode is activated then the last known location of the device becomes available to the IT Team. This location will continue to update if the iPad is moved. This will help us to find your child’s iPad.
If the iPad was stolen when away from the academy, then you are also asked to report the theft to the Police and provide the crime number to the academy and to the IT Service Desk. The IT Service Desk will provide location information, obtained from the use of lost or stolen mode to the Police.