HS Bring Your Own Device FAQ

We believe that learning to use computing devices effectively is a key element to participating in today's technology-rich world. By requiring students to bring their own device, we allow them to choose the devices they want to use, and learn how to use them for academic and practical purposes.

TASIS can best support Apple products. Students can choose to bring a tablet computer and/or a laptop computer.

Tablets should be no older than 3 years and have at least 64 GB of storage space. The minimum screen size for tablets is approximately 10" (about 25 cm, measured diagonally). "Mini" size tablets are not suitable as a primary device. Students bringing only a tablet computer must have a keyboard and trackpad or mouse that will work with the tablet. 

A Note on Tablets: Many students are finding the use of a tablet with a high quality stylus (e.g. an iPad with an Apple Pencil) to be very beneficial for note-taking, especially in math and science classes. Features like being able to handwrite notes, annotate text, add images to a note, keep notes organized in one place (the app instead of multiple paper binders and notebooks), and searching notes have provided meaningful "upgrades" to the note-taking process for these students.

Laptops should be no older than 4 years with at least 256 GB of storage space. At least 8 GB of RAM is recommended. The maximum screen size allowed for a laptop is approximately 16" (about 40 cm, measured diagonally). Large gaming laptops are not suitable for daily academic use.

A Note for HS Students taking Photography or Yearbook classes: Students taking Photography or Yearbook classes are required to bring a laptop. Please see the minimum system requirements for Adobe Photoshop to ensure your laptop will work. For Macs, we suggest any MacBook Air or Pro with an M1 or newer chip. For storage, you will need at least 20 GB of available storage space for the installation of Adobe Creative Cloud plus an estimated 20-30 GB of storage space for the photos and/or videos you will be working on. The iPad's version of Photoshop is not currently adequate for class, so Photography and Yearbook students must bring a laptop that meets the requirements above.

A Note for Boarding Students: Desktop computers are not allowed in the dorm. External monitors are allowed, but must be 24" (60 cm, measured diagonally) or less.

No. While today's smartphones are indeed powerful computers, we believe smartphone screens are not big enough to be used as a main computing device for academic purposes.

Students are expected to comply with TASIS expectations about the use of mobile phones during class. 

The ability to use computing technology effectively is part of the modern student’s education, and all Middle School and High School students are expected to bring a computing device to school. If you have any concerns about your child’s participation in this program, we urge you to contact the Technology Development Director, Mr. Tim Venchus.

While we believe that computers play an essential role in the modern learning experience, we do not see them as the only tools for learning. We want our teachers and students to find the most effective ways to use technology, but we do not mandate that computers be used for every task. Paper, pencils, face-to-face conversations, and many other non-technological methods of learning and teaching are valuable, and we encourage everyone to take a balanced approach to get the most out of their education.

If you already own a computer that meets the criteria listed in the answer to the question Which device should students use? above, you do not need to purchase a new computer.

If you do not own a computer or your current computer does not meet the requirements in the Which device should students use? section above, many options are available. If you are not in Switzerland, you can purchase a computer at a local retailer or via Apple at apple.com.

For buying a computer in Switzerland, you can shop online at apple.com/chde or digitec.ch, or visit an Apple retail store or other retailers like Art Computer, Manor or MediaMarkt in the Lugano area. You may be able to find discounts at non-Apple retailers, especially on non-current models.

Students should ensure they have the proper charging accessories for their devices that will work in Switzerland. For accessories not made for Switzerland, most computer power supplies will only need an adapter (not a voltage converter). Learn more about Swiss power requirements here.

Students should have a pair of headphones or earbuds available should they be needed for academic purposes.

For tablet users, we strongly recommend a case that covers the front and back of the tablet for protective purposes. Many students have found success using iPads with a keyboard case that includes a trackpad (or a separate Bluetooth mouse) for typing and mouse-like navigation, along with a stylus like an Apple Pencil or Logitech Crayon.

For students using Apple computers, they should have an Apple ID to download apps and to use iCloud features like Find My, iCloud Drive, and iCloud Backup. For students under 13 who do not already have an Apple ID, families can use Family Sharing to create a personal Apple ID for the student.

TASIS does not provide Apple IDs to students.

The majority of student digital work can be completed using Google's suite of education tools and other web-based resources that TASIS provides. In addition, many powerful and free apps for viewing and annotating PDFs, editing photos and videos, taking notes, and completing other student tasks are provided by most operating systems for free, or are readily available for free via app stores or websites.

Students will need access to install apps on their devices. For Parents: if you opt to use parental control features to prevent app installation, ensure you and your child have a plan to get apps installed in a timely manner, if new apps are needed.

Yes. However, students will need to make sure there is enough storage space available for their schoolwork. As noted above, a lot of schoolwork is done online, but special projects may require some on-device storage space.

For any apps, students are expected to abide by the guidelines found in the Responsible Use of Technology section of the student handbook.

TASIS will do its best to limit the number of required apps in order to leave as much space free as possible for content creation and personal use. However, students can do several things to keep space available on their computers:

• Students can delete apps and games not being used.
• All students have access to online storage space in Google Drive through their TASIS email account. Any completed work (e.g. essays, videos, presentations) can be uploaded to Google Drive and then deleted from the computer.
• Photos and videos can take up a lot of space and often aren’t needed on the device after they are used. Students can use online services like Google Drive, Google Photos, or Flickr (website, app) to upload photos and videos and then delete them from the computer*.

*For iOS devices, remember to also delete all photos and videos in the "Recently Deleted" album when freeing up space.

Students will be responsible for backing up their computers and should do so each week.

For iPads, students can create backups with iTunes (Mac or Windows) or iCloud.

For all other devices, an external drive or online backup service like Google Drive will be required. Macs can take advantage of Time Machine with an external drive. 

The first step is prevention. Students are responsible for keeping track of their personal belongings and should avoid leaving valuables unattended in public spaces. Lockers are available to safely store personal items when not in use. TASIS will not be held responsible in the event that any personal items are lost, stolen, or damaged.

In order to identify a lost or stolen computer, it is important that you document the device’s serial number. For Apple computers, iPadOS and macOS have a built-in location tracking feature called Find My. Windows devices can use Find My Device. Android devices can use Android Device Manager. We strongly suggest all students enable the device locator service on their devices before they are lost or stolen.

We recommend that families purchasing new devices also purchase extended warranty services like AppleCare+, which reduce the repair fee for accidental damage.

If needed, students can borrow a TASIS Chromebook until a replacement device is purchased. Please email Mr. Venchus to set up a loan.

Similar to other materials like folders and assignments that are left at home, students will be responsible for making sure they bring their computers to school every day. Missed assignments or class work due to a forgotten computer will be handled in the same manner as forgotten paper-based work.

In the Middle School, TASIS has Chromebooks available on campus that students can borrow at any time during the school day. Students can log into any Chromebook with their TASIS email account.

In the High School, students can visit or contact the Technology Development Director, Mr. Venchus, to borrow a Chromebook while their device is being repaired.

You can learn more about Chromebooks here.

Typically for modern computers, a full charge is more than enough to get through an entire day of use, so students should fully charge their computers every night to be ready for the next day.

As power outlets are limited and we would like to avoid tripping hazards due to charging cables, it is best if devices are fully charged before coming to school.

One of the opportunities of every student having a computer and access to tools like Google Docs and Google Classroom is the ability to use less paper and share work in a digital format. In the case that printed work is needed, students can print at home or email files to themselves to print on a TASIS computer in the Library. Boarding students can print from a dorm computer.

Feel free to contact our Technology Development Director, Tim Venchus, with any questions you may have. He can be reached by email at tim.venchus@tasis.ch or in person during the school day.