Restricting overseas access

New measures are being introduced to protect student accounts from cyber threats by restricting overseas access. From Term 4, Week 5, all student accounts will be blocked from accessing department systems from overseas or using a virtual private network (VPN) by default.

As part of our commitment to modernising infrastructure solutions in schools, we are working to minimise the physical infrastructure required at Schools. By reducing onsite infrastructure, we can deliver more reliable, secure, and better value for schools.

We have commenced a review of existing “member servers” hosted in schools. These are any servers at your school that are in addition to your eT4L server.

We understand these servers often host local school solutions that support teaching, learning, or administration. Consultation and planning will occur with schools to identify suitable solutions for these services.

The eT4L servers are also included as part of the longer-term modernisation strategy and further updates will be shared accordingly as the project progresses.

If you have any questions, please contact:

FileShareCloudUplift@det.nsw.edu.au

The HSC online examinations will be held in Term 4 for the following subjects:

• Science Extension – Tuesday 28 October 2025, 9.50 am–12.00 pm
• Software Engineering – Wednesday 29 October 2025, 1.50 pm–4.20 pm
• Enterprise Computing – Friday 31 October 2025, 1.50 pm–4.20 pm

To give students the best chance of success, schools are asked to minimise competing network activities such as bandwidth heavy tasks like video streaming, software updates, or bulk file transfers should be avoided while exams are in progress.

Limiting non-essential activity helps maintain stable connections, ensures the exam platform runs smoothly, and reduces the risk of technical interruptions.

Your support is vital in creating a reliable exam environment where students can focus on demonstrating their knowledge with confidence. For further support, contact NESA on 1800 200 955 or onlineexams@nesa.nsw.edu.au

This newly released Apple video series, designed for IT teams and school leaders, focuses on the fundamentals of Apple deployment and how to best prepare for deploying and managing Apple devices.

The videos are organised into modular chapters to learn the fundamentals of Apple deployment. These topics are intended to help build comprehensive knowledge around all aspects of deploying Apple Devices, including important planning tasks before devices arrive, leveraging Apple School Manager, Device Management settings, crafting the user experience and streamlining device refresh activities.

Whether you’re new to Apple or refining an existing setup, you’ll gain the confidence to plan and scale with purpose. View the series on Get Started with Deploying Apple in Education page.

File sharing from the cloud is the preferred method of providing access to your files and folders to others. Sharing from the cloud decreases the need for duplicate files, gives users the benefits of working collaboratively and provides a version history. However, there is the potential that files can easily be shared with more users than the intended audience.

In the Google and Microsoft ecosystems you have the ability to share files directly with one person, groups or use a link. Use the guides below to review how you share your files and folders, making sure the permissions that are set are appropriate:

Sharing files and folders using Google Workspace

Sharing files and folders using Microsoft 365

We’re excited to share that stem.T4L kits for Semester 1, 2026 are now open for booking. With kits on offer across robotics, podcasting, 3D printing and more, there’s something for every classroom.

What’s new for 2026? Each school can now book one kit per semester, with a maximum of two kits across the year.

Learn how to create your own stop motion animation without all the expensive gadgets and equipment! Check out this lesson, which will support your digital storytelling and encourages students to explore their creativity whilst upskilling in digital literacy.

As part of Canva for Education, all NSW DoE schools can access T4L Canva for Education resources, or contact Canva’s Learning Consultant, Jo Muirhead for additional advice. You can also click here to see a catalogue of free professional development courses.

We are pleased to release our second phase of stories showcased at EDUtech 2025, which are now available to read here!

Read more about how Berry Public School, Kirrawee Public School and Lugarno Public School are using technology to engage and prepare our learners for the future.

If your school has a story to share about how tech is making a difference in teaching, learning or community engagement, we’d love to feature it. Let us know!

The way you report phishing emails is changing from Monday 20 October 2025. The Outlook desktop app is updating to the latest version. You will notice a change to the Report Message button in the top ribbon.

You should use the following steps to Report in Outlook desktop or web application:

1. Click on Report dropdown in the top ribbon.
2. Select Report phishing or Report junk.
3. The email will disappear from your Inbox.

The department uses advanced Microsoft email filters, but sometimes phishing emails get through. When you use the Report button to report these emails, it helps improve the accuracy of blocking of messages in the future.

Watch these short videos to learn more, including reporting in shared mailboxes and marking emails as ‘Not junk’ to move them to your Inbox.

To simplify our technology offerings and ensure the tools provided by the department always function effectively, and are maintained to the highest standard, we are migrating away from native mobile applications (i.e. apps offered on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store) to a web-based access method.

Impacted apps:

• Parent App – NSW Education (iOS and Android Apps)
• NSW DoE Portal (iOS and Android Apps)

Note: This change affects only the NSW DoE Portal App, not the staff portal accessible via web browser.

What’s changing?

The native apps “Parent App – NSW Education” and “NSW DoE Portal” will be removed from app stores in the coming weeks.

Alternative access:

• Parent App: Parents can use the new mobile-friendly School Websites with simplified info and embedded calendars.
• NSW DoE Portal: Staff can access the portal via any web browser on work or personal devices, ensuring a consistent user experience across all platforms.

Have you explored the Learn tool within Adobe Express?

The tool is designed to help users quickly get up to speed with the platform’s features and capabilities. It provides tutorials, tips, and guided walkthroughs to assist users in creating and editing graphics, videos, and web pages to produce professional-quality content.

ITD publishes three issues of news.T4L each term. Share each issue with your staff! Subscribe to get email notification as soon as a new issue of news.T4L drops.