As chalkboards give way to computer screens and other devices, like smartboards and tablets, it’s important to understand IT’s impact of embracing educational technology (EdTech). From basic technology support, setting bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies, and training on how to use online tools, there’s a lot to coordinate and teachers and students are relying on you for help.
Stay ahead of the learning curve and learn why network administrators need a proper strategy when their schools use Education Technology (EdTech) to facilitate effective, transformational learning.
What is EdTech?
EdTech—education technology—is all about developing and applying technology to enhance and personalize student learning. Picturing iPads and smartboards? You’ve got it. EdTech hasn’t just gained momentum in educational institutions, it’s the norm. And as technology advances, conversations are rampant about how to best integrate new devices, software, and applications in the classroom.
EdTech Examples
Here are more examples of technology used in educational settings:
- Personal computing devices like laptops, tablets, or smartphones.
- Interactive tools like clickers or whiteboards
- Online platforms and classes including massive open online courses (MOOCS) or Udemy online classes
- Online testing
- Social media tools like BlueSky, Twitter, or Instagram
- Software as a Service like Google Drive or Dropbox
- Gamification through learning apps such as Duolingo or Khan Academy
- Applications like Wikispaces or Canva
- 3D printers
- Bring-your-own-device (BYOD) allowing students to bring their own tablets, laptops, or other device to be used at school
- Flipped classrooms when teachers reverse the usual educational model, leading interactive classroom exercises and having students watch a lecture online at home
- Makerspaces as open areas for collaborative and independent work
- Wearable technology such as fitness devices or Google Glass
What IT Leaders Need to Know About Education Technology
Become the EdTech champion your school needs and learn how IT professionals can get the budget and buy-in needed to implement new EdTech initiatives while maintaining a healthy network.
Preventing Education Network Outages
Knowledge is power—not just for students, but also for network admins. As your school’s IT environment grows, it’s vital to keep an eye on performance. The more you know about your network, the easier it is to keep it up and running. Your IT team should have the right tools to proactively monitor network incidents, troubleshoot their cause, and fix them fast. That's why you need network monitoring for education.
A network monitoring tool can give you the full picture of your network that you’ll need especially as your school continues EdTech initiatives. From tablets, smartboards, laptops, and more educational aids, you’ll want to be able to view everything in one spot to track status and bandwidth. And don’t forget that your network goes beyond your network—a great network mapping tool will be able to monitor everything on campus, from security cameras to door locks.
It’s also important to consider live mapping. If your map doesn’t equip you with live performance metrics and actionable data that updates in real time, it’s just a static inventory of devices. You want a tool that reflects the status of all your network technology in real time. A live network mapping tool can help you understand what “normal” looks like for your school so you can keep your network management consistent and reliable.
Ensure Proper Education Network Bandwidth
The main goal of EdTech is to facilitate interactive and engaging learning experiences for students. But if your network bandwidth can’t keep up, it can greatly hinder learning and lead to frustration. With so many devices, especially in schools with a 1:1 computer-to-student ratio policy, you need to make sure the flow of your bandwidth stays consistent, so everyone can keep learning. Bandwidth monitoring is a way for the IT team at your school to determine actual bandwidth availability on your systems.
Get a better understanding of usage, network traffic flow, bandwidth hogs, and network strains across your school’s IT environment. When you can keep an eye on anything that could affect your bandwidth, from internet browsing to downloading to streaming, you can better ensure network availability.
Without a bandwidth monitoring tool, it’s hard to understand where issues are coming from. Make sure you’re monitoring your network as well as bandwidth so you can quickly capture important metrics that will help you pinpoint issues, find congestion, and detect problems on devices. Then you can prevent downtime and poor network performance so that your students can keep learning.
