50 | INSIGHT | INDUSTRY
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edtechnology.co.uk | T: @Educ_Technology
KEEPING STUDENTS SAFE Andy Davies, CEO of Ntegra
There are many different software choices available to help schools manage their classrooms more effectively, so it is important when selecting your software that it delivers the following benefits:
Focused learning – The internet can be a huge distraction to pupils but is also a great tool for learning. Choosing the right software enables teachers to allow students access only to certain websites/devices in each lesson. This ensures the students are focused on the task and don’t have the opportunity to be distracted by other websites (e.g. Facebook).
Online safety – New software enables teachers to restrict access to certain websites but also can now alert teachers if their students are searching any inappropriate words. This ensures the student’s safety whilst using the internet and the teacher can flag up any issues to the student quickly and efficiently.
Saving time – Time lost in a classroom can never be made up. Allowing teachers to react to any bad behaviour quickly helps them to focus on the lesson plan. Also most software supports the vast amount of admin teachers need to do on a daily basis. Marking exams, issuing tasks, and logging students on and offline etc. can all be done online and is automated to ensure all teachers are working with the same processes.
All of the above benefits help empower teachers to keep their students safe whilst using technology in the classroom and also frees up valuable time that can be spent on teaching instead of administration.
RIGHT: progresso iPad - Learner Entry
Andy Davies
popular amongst academy chains and local government, Dickinson says that a key benefit of Progresso is that it consolidates several different functions (including finance, HR, procurement, atendance and grading records) and, moreover, can ensure engagement with the latest technologies. Relevant information can also be ‘pushed’ directly to members of staff throughout a school to ensure its dissemination. Whether this strategy can be implemented, however, may depend on the existing infrastructure inherited by managers. “A number of legacy systems within a school’s IT department might be hosted on a client server,” elaborates Dickinson. “So, to allow remote access, the vendor would either need to write specific portals that allow the data to be inspected, or a CITRIX system will need to be deployed.”
A key strength of Advanced’s
offering, he says, is that they can simultaneously offer software, consultancy and development solutions, which takes care of these considerations on behalf of educators. “For us, it’s a really exciting time,” comments Dickinson. “We’ve designed a system which can live in and interact with the cloud, and which takes advantage of mobile technology. A recent KABLE survey of schools shows that, over the next two to three years, over 80% of educational bodies will consider hosting applications in this way.” As this migration continues,
implementing IT procedures which balance security concerns with an awareness of opportunities for student innovation and connectivity may prove key to the performance of the digital classroom. ET
Classroom image: © Monkey Business Images |
Dreamstime.com
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