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Technology @ McNamara

Technology can be a powerful tool to help transform learning. It has the potential to empower students to expand their learning beyond the confines of the traditional classroom, support self-directed learning, help educators tailor learning experiences to individual student needs, and support students with disabilities. Technology also has the potential to allow students and educators to collaborate with peers and experts worldwide, engage with immersive learning simulations, and express their learning creatively. 

- Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology, tech.ed.gov 2024

As Bishop McNamara High School prepares students for "the business and the problems of the world" (Moreau, Christian Education), the importance of technology becomes apparent. Within Moreau's philosophy of education, he consistently discusses how the mission must prepare students for the world they live in as well as encourage them to make that world a better place. As a Holy Cross school, Bishop McNamara is committed to remaining current with technological advancements. It is our duty to help prepare our students to be future leaders and good global citizens.

Why Technology?

We must prepare our students to thrive in ever-changing learning environments while embracing educational technologies and building essential 21st-century digital skills ( including critical thinking, problem-solving, collaboration, creativity, and digital literacy ) critical for excelling in their future careers and personal lives in the modern world.

At Bishop McNamara, we will equip our students with the knowledge and understanding of how to navigate and harness the power of educational technologies; empower them to be proficient and self-sufficient digital learners; and challenge them to recognize the responsibilities of living, learning, and working in a connected digital world in safe, legal, and ethical ways.

The Benefits of Technology in Education

Encouraging Curiosity, Creativity, Problem-solving, and Collaboration

With the abundance of information that is available and the ease of access to that information that modern technology has provided, the means of teaching has to evolve. No longer are teachers merely distributors of content; a teacher's job, more than ever, is to help guide a student to a place of enlightenment more than simply delivering knowledge.

Technology allows for students to be able to steer their own education. Students do not have to wait for an interesting topic to be introduced in class, they can go discover that topic on their own. A teacher's role is to guide that student in finding their own passions, while still gaining the necessary training to operate in a modern society.

With technology, students have access to:
  • Digital Libraries or online databases providing students with access to a variety of academic and research materials
  • Online Educational and Learning Platforms to share resources and access information
  • Open Education Resources (freely and publicly available) providing teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others
  • Creative Tools that encourage and inspire students to think creatively, work collaboratively, problem-solve, and strategize, thus facilitating the demonstration of their learning 

Device Requirements for BYOD

Girl Student working on her computer

Bishop McNamara is a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) school. Students are required to bring a device that has a physical keyboard and a built-in camera and microphone. The device must run either Windows OS, macOS, Chrome OS or iOS. Allowed devices include a Windows or Mac laptop, a Chromebook, or an iPad (not iPhone) with a physical keyboard.  The device must be able to run the Google Suite including Docs, Sheets, Slides, Chrome, etc.

Maccess, Maccess Help, User Login

MACCESS is our cloud-based educational learning ENVIRONMENT

Maccess helps our educational team support the entire student journey — from mastering academic concepts to engaging in extracurricular activities. Maccess innovates with interactive assignments—including online submissions, assessments, and discussions. It allows students to communicate with faculty, staff, counselors, coaches, and other students. Parents are provided the opportunity to view their student's academic journey while communicating easily with teachers, advisors, and coaches.

How to Log into Maccess

Log into your MACCESS account provided by the Admissions/Enrollment Office.  Each student and parent/guardian must use their own individual account with a unique email address to log in to MACCESS. Parents/Guardians must use their own Maccess account to sign the Enrollment Contract.

Once your Maccess Account has been set up, follow the instructions below:

Menu bar on new website

To log in, go to the menu in the upper right corner of any page on the website. 

 
Go to the Maccess dropdown and select Student or Parent (remember, use your OWN account!).
Maccess login menu on new website
You will be taken to the login page. If you remember your username and password, enter it on this page. If you do not remember your login credentials or if this is your first time logging in, click on Forgot login or First time logging in.
 
Parents, once you are in the Maccess portal, please take a moment to check your contact information inside Maccess located in the upper right-hand corner of the page in the drop-down under your name. Select Profile.  Some profiles are missing important phone numbers that we would need to send an emergency communication, and it only takes you a minute to check. Our Principal sends important school information and dates each week via email. We must have your correct email address listed in your profile by each parent/guardian who wishes to receive these updates. Check that you are receiving them each Sunday. If not, contact the Admissions office.
 
For technical support, the best place to start is to email Admissions@bmhs.org

School ID Cards

Each student will be issued an ID card during orientations. Students are required to carry their ID card with them at all times, and they must produce the ID card upon request by any faculty or staff member. Failure to have an ID card when requested may result in detention.

If a student loses their ID card, they must immediately report this to the Main Office where it will be replaced. A fee of $5.00 will be charged for replacement ID cards. Failure to pay the said fee will result in detention. ID cards are required for admittance to a variety of school-sponsored activities and must be presented to the SJRC staff personnel to check out any materials or to use a computer.

Use of Google Apps

Two students on an iPad collaborate on assignments in the St. Joseph Resource Center

Bishop McNamara High School is a Google Suite for Education school where all faculty and students use the Google suite of applications for instructional and extracurricular purposes. Google Suite provides secure and easy-to-use tools that help foster collaboration, promote productivity, and strengthen digital safety.

These tools make it easy for everyone in our community to collaborate, communicate, and participate in real-time. They help to save time that can automate,  simplify tasks, and provide access to storage for educational and organizational needs. Google for Education provides our students and faculty/staff with one of the world’s most secure cloud-based communication and productivity suites.

The core Google applications include Gmail, Calendar, Drive, and Docs. Drive and Docs include applications such as word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation software as well as storage for all of these document types. In addition to the core Google applications, some additional Google services have been activated. The additional Google services that BMHS has activated for students include but are not limited to: Applied Digital Skills, Google Cloud Print, Google Earth, Google Groups, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Google Takeout, and YouTube.

You may read about Google's Privacy Policy here: https://policies.google.com/privacy

During the first week of school, all students will be provided access to their school Google account containing the suite of tools. Instruction for usage is available in the suite, through our IT Department, and with all members of faculty and staff.

For more information on Google Apps, review the Student Handbook, page 55.

Digital Citizenship

A digital citizen is someone skilled in using the internet to communicate with others and who understands how to do this safely and responsibly.  A good digital citizen knows what is right and wrong, exhibits intelligent technology behavior, and makes good choices when using technology.

Students must recognize the rights, responsibilities, and opportunities of living, learning, and working in an interconnected digital world, and they act and model in ways that are safe, legal, and ethical. (ISTE Student Standards, Standard 2: Digital Citizen).

School Email System

Students will be assigned a school email from the Bishop McNamara email system the first week of school and will always use their school-provided email to communicate with students, teachers, and appropriate out-of-building contacts.

Students need to use proper email etiquette and conduct themselves professionally,  particularly regarding language, when composing correspondence. Students will send an email to encourage thoughtful, inspiring, necessary, and kind communication, in the Holy Cross tradition.

Be sure to review all expectations for BMHS.org email use in our Student Handbook, p. 54.