Frequently Asked Questions

RESPONSES TO FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (Updated in 2023)

CYBER WELLNESS

Addressing concerns about excessive use of PLD and exposure to websites with harmful content

The school takes a multi-prong approach to help your child understand the importance of using the PLD in a responsible manner.  This include (I) the daily routine of bringing the PLD to school and using it properly for learning; (II) classroom routines to regulate the use of the PLD during lesson time; (III) the PLD User Policy that spells out the terms and conditions on the usage of the PLD; (IV) Cyber Wellness lessons, programmes and projects to help cultivate the responsible use of PLDs by students.

On top of the above, a Device Management Application (DMA) software will be installed on all students’ PLDs to provide a safe learning experience for students and to prevent misuse of the device. The DMA can:

1.       remotely deploy teaching and learning applications as well as security patches,

2.       enable teachers to monitor and control the students’ screens live during lesson time,

3.       restrict apps and websites accessibility and filter harmful web content, and

4.       limit screen time.

The school will set the DMA settings for in-school use to help students focus on learning in a safe and conducive online environment. PLD usage time will be set to 5 a.m. to 11.30 p.m. (from 2022). This usage time will be reviewed after gathering feedback from parents, students and teachers.

As a default, these settings will continue to be in place after school, when students are at home as well.

Parents/Guardians will be given a DMA parent account to monitor your child’s/ward’s PLD activities. Do partner the school to ensure your child’s cyber well-being. Kindly provide your personal email address in the PLD Procurement Parent's / Guardian's Consent Form for your DMA account creation.

The following additional resources have been prepared for parents to support you in keeping your child/ward safe online:

1.      Parent Handbooks (I) and (II) on Learning with a Personal Learning Device (https://sites.google.com/moe.edu.sg/ndlp-pld-portal/dma-and-cyber-wellness/handbooks-for-parents)

2.       Parent Kit on Cyber Wellness for Your Child (https://go.gov.sg/moe-cyber-wellness)

3.       MOE Cyber Wellness Programme (https://www.moe.gov.sg/programmes/cyber-wellness )

4.       Media Literacy Council (https://go.gov.sg/better-internet-sg)

5.       National Library’s Learning & Information Literacy Resources (https://sure.nlb.gov.sg )

6.       TOUCH Community Services (https://help123.sg)

You may also want to read more about our school Cyber Wellness programmes. (https://sites.google.com/moe.edu.sg/ndlp-pld-portal/dma-and-cyber-wellness)

INFORMATION ABOUT THE PERSONAL LEARNING DEVICE FOR FUHUA SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

The PLD bundle and Cost

Students will be getting an iPad bundle which comprises the following:

1.       iPad 9th Gen with 6-core A13 Bionic Processor or the newer version

2.       3-year AppleCare+ warranty and insurance

3.       a screen protector

4.       a charger and a charging/data cable

5.       an  Apple Pencil 1st Gen, and

6.       a Logitech Ruggedized Combo 3 (or the newer version) keyboard-cum-protective case.

The total bundle cost is estimated at *$878.50 (with GST) (updated as of Jan 2024).

Please note that all Singaporean students can tap on their Edusave Account to reduce the out-of-pocket expenses when buying the PLD. Please approach the school for information on funding support for Singaporean and non-Singaporean students.

Device specifications

The school-prescribed PLD, iPad 9th Gen (or the latest), will come with 64GB ROM (data storage space).

An upgrade to 256 GB ROM will increase the total cost of the PLD bundle. Each Sec 1 to 3 student will be equipped with an Apple ID (edu version) which comes with 200GB iCloud storage. He/she will also be provided a FHSS Google account with a 40GB Google Drive storage.

Students will be guided to store their files in the above cloud storage facilities for better and longer data integrity. They will be able to access their files even after their graduation from our school or after the disposal of their PLD when they become obsolete. 

The 64GB ROM will be reserved solely for apps installation. Most educational apps or productivity tools in the App Store are below 1GB in size. Web apps such as Student Learning Space (SLS), QuizWhizzer and Deck.Toys do not require installation and therefore, will not take up any storage space in the PLD.

Using students’ existing device

Every student is required to have a PLD and is encouraged to purchase one through the school. The PLD bundle will come with the necessary warranty and insurance as well.

Students’ may request to use their existing iPad if it is 6th Gen or later which comes with the Apple Pencil.

Apple Pencil is required to support the school's teaching and learning plans with PLD. This includes visual note-taking which will be utilised in most subjects, Geography and History Investigation field work   which require students to use  the back-camera, GPS and Apple Pencil to co-create digital artefacts, and the Digital Art Programme (with weighted assessments). With the mature use of PLD, the Apple Pencil will be utilised in even more areas.

The iPad 5th Gen is not compatible with the Apple Pencil. Furthermore, as it uses a much older and slower processor (typically A9) compared with iPad 9th Gen which uses A13, it may not be able to perform the media processing work which are embedded in the students' learning tasks.

If your child would like to use an existing iPad, there are a few matters to take note of:

1.   The iPad is your child’s personal learning device and thus it should not be shared with other family members as this may compromise his/her learning experiences that are enhanced by the device.

2.  The ICT Team will ascertain whether the specifications of the existing iPad are on par with the school-prescribed device. For example, it would need to be compatible with the Apple Pencil.

3.  If your child’s existing device is assessed as suitable, your child has to backup all the data on the existing iPad as our ICT personnel must reset it to the factory default settings before installing the DMA in it. The DMA can be uninstalled from the device upon your child's graduation.

4.  Your child’s device will not be covered by warranty or insurance provided for in the school PLD bundle. The iPad vendor will not be able to service your device in the event of malfunction.

The iPad provides completely different features and affordances from laptops, such as sensors, GPS, back camera, inking with Apple Pencil, ultra-portability and long lasting battery. All the existing or future curricula and co-curricula learning experiences will be designed based on these features. Use of other devices, such as Macbook, Chromebook, laptop and Android tablets, will not be compatible with these learning experiences and may result in your child having  difficulties in collaborating with his/her peers when doing group learning tasks.

For more information, please visit our PLD Initiative Portal (https://sites.google.com/moe.edu.sg/ndlp-pld-portal/learning-with-plds) and (https://sites.google.com/moe.edu.sg/ndlp-pld-portal/purchase-of-personal-learning-device/ipad-as-fhss-pld-a-thoughtful-decision).

After graduation from the school

Students will keep their iPads after their graduation.

The school will uninstall the Device Management Application (DMA) from the devices upon students’ graduation, and students will have full control over their devices thereafter.

DEVICE MANAGEMENT

Downloading Apps

Students will not be allowed to download or install any app. Should they need any educational app or productivity tool, they can request through the teachers, or submit a request via the ICT Services Portal (https://sites.google.com/fhss.edu.sg/fhss-ict-service-portal/home). After reviewing the app, if approved, it will be pushed down to the students' PLDs via the DMA instantly.

USE OF iPADS VS HARDCOPY LEARNING MATERIALS

Students will use their PLD frequently to attend to different learning tasks. Increasingly, we are moving towards the less frequent use of pen and paper and the use of more digital resources. One of the examples is our school's Mathematics Department which has created its Mathematics Interactive Textbook (https://sites.google.com/view/matholicism). We will step up the investment of time and effort to expand our digital learning resources.

Having said that, the PLD will not replace the use of pen and paper, or textbooks completely. Students will use their PLD to access curriculum-aligned resources in the Student Learning Space (SLS) and other platforms to complement their learning from textbooks.

SUPPORT

For technical support (software) for students, they can submit their request(s) via the school's ICT Services Portal (https://sites.google.com/fhss.edu.sg/fhss-ict-service-portal/home) or approach the Helpdesk 4REAL (For Responsible Empowered and Active Learners) at Blk F, Level 3,

For Cyber Wellness matters, feel free to contact our School Counsellors.

For parent-child relationship matters that arise after the students receive the PLD, you may contact the school via email at fhss@moe.edu.sg. Our Year Head Team or the school’s Parent Support Group will respond to your email to address your concerns.