The Technology Department is committed to developing the technology skills of students throughout the school. The changing nature of education and the dynamic nature of technology mean staff are constantly developing new curricula and updating existing programmes to give students exposure to the cutting edge of this exciting learning area.
There are five networked computing laboratories; two of the laboratories operate on the Windows platform and the remainder are Apple. Over the five years the girls are in the Senior School, they are given opportunities to use both platforms. With both software and hardware upgraded regularly, the students are provided with cutting-edge technology allowing them to be prepared for the demands they will meet in our technological society. All subjects are encouraged to make use of the computer laboratories. Out of class time, students can use the facilities before school, during and after school. Boarders have access to the laboratories on weekday evenings.
All students in Years 8 to 10, participate in two periods per cycle of Information Technology courses. These courses expose students to a broad cross-section of technology skills and teach them how to use these skills as tools in their problem-solving.
In addition, all Year 9 students participate in a course on word processing, which focuses on developing their keyboarding skills and teaching them the universally-recognised rules and conventions pertaining to document production. Year 9 students can also explore graphic design in the Digital Design course, Animation, the principles of programming in the Game Programming course, creating robots in Robotics.
In Year 10 students can opt to further study Graphic Design, learning a number of different design applications, including Photoshop and Dreamweaver. The Animation course gives the students a grounding in the basic principles of animation and visual effects that are used in films, computer games, music videos and on the television.
Applied Information Technology can be taken as a Tertiary Entrance Scoring subject or as an examinable subject at the end of Year 12. The aim of the course is to develop the students' knowledge and understanding of the technology challenges associated with life, the community and the workplace. Students use a range of computer hardware and software to create, manipulate, store, retrieve and communicate information. It equips students with the technological expertise and practical skills for many vocations.
Computer Science is a Tertiary Entrance Scoring subject. Students learn to use a variety of software packages and range of computer hardware to create solutions for important problems. This course equips students with the skills and information to confidently and competently use computers.
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