NetSupport Announces Latest Updates
NetSupport is delighted to announce the latest updates to three key areas of its education solutions – school IT Management, school Safeguarding and Classroom Instruction – as well as the introduction of an all-new Observations and Assessment tracking solution for primary years. Building on the already comprehensive features in NetSupport DNA’s IT management suite, this latest release contains a host of enhancements and added support to make it indispensable to IT managers as they monitor and manage all the technology across a school or Trust. Extended features in version 4.7 include enhanced software distribution, endpoint security with encrypted drives, user tracking, custom searches, enhanced device inventory, centralised remote management and much more. Alongside the existing Windows, Mac, iOS and Chrome support, NetSupport DNA now includes the ability to monitor and gather inventories from Android devices and display panels. In addition, there is greater platform support for deployment within MDM devices, plus extra security options. Within the school eSafety and Safeguarding solutions space, NetSupport is the first vendor to take the concept of keyword filtering and monitoring to the next level by using key components of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to utilise ‘CI’ – Contextual Intelligence – in a new module that delivers a Risk Index for keywords triggered by students. NetSupport Group MD, Al Kingsley, explains: “We know that professionals’ ‘eyes and ears’ are the best tools for keeping children safe in the classroom. The Risk Index, using CI, provides as close to a digital equivalent as we can for online activity: it automatically assesses the context and history of a child’s activities; whether they are vulnerable; what device they’re on; the time of day; library or supervised classroom; which websites they’re visiting; what previous alerts they may have triggered; what earlier activities may have set the scene – and in doing so, creates a numerical risk indicator when a keyword is triggered. “Critically, we ensure that all monitoring is kept in-school and that alerts are shared with the local Designated Safeguarding Leads to capitalise on their knowledge of their own students and thereby removing any requirement to use any external monitoring. “To complement this leap forward, we have also introduced an all-new cloud-based safeguarding console to allow Designated Safeguarding Leads to access key information and alerts from triggers across the school’s local network while on the go. This fully secure, Azure-hosted console also includes a smartphone-optimised user interface to help them quickly search for a specific child and review any recent alerts or concerns.” Within the classroom, NetSupport School extends its capabilities with a range of platform enhancements. These include a new unified Classroom and eSafety app for iOS, a new ‘universal’ Student app available from the Windows 10 Store, as well as extended support for Chromebooks. To further streamline the start of lessons in a BYOD environment or when laptop carts are used, integration with leading Student Information Systems is now included to automatically provide the expected list of students for the start of each lesson. To help those schools who use a mix of classroom devices, we are also delighted to introduce NetSupport School for Mac. This offers complete flexibility for the Mac-led classroom, allowing teachers to connect to their students’ Macs, PCs or Chromebooks directly from their Apple device and ensures thatschools only need a single solution to manage all their devices. Given that NetSupport is deeply embedded in the education space (with several of our business leaders having roles within education alongside their NetSupport responsibilities), we recognised that there were weaknesses in the current solutions available for monitoring child development and progress – particularly in EYFS and KS1. Therefore, at Bett 2019, we release our latest product, ReallySchool: an intuitive and easy-to-use tool for tracking and monitoring children’s progress through their foundation stages and into KS1. Already selected as a finalist for the Bett 2019 awards, it creates learning journals of all activities including pictures, video and teacher audio notes; provides tools to develop further parental engagement (a current challenge for many schools); offers the ability to track and identify students who have gaps in their progress; and allows quick identification of those children who are secure in their learning and those who require intervention. ReallySchool completes NetSupport’s portfolio of education products and ensures that through each stage of school life, NetSupport technology is on hand for support. “Technology isn’t a panacea for all of the challenges within schools and Trusts, but it can be a powerful enabler when used for the right reasons to address the right challenges,” says Al Kingsley. “We fully understand the pressured environments that our education colleagues work in and our objective is to collaborate closely with teachers, IT managers, safeguarding staff, education sector professionals and specialist organisations – to take their lead and work to deliver genuinely useful tools for schools, while making sure they are as intuitive and easy to use as possible. “This year, we celebrate our 30thanniversary – something we are hugely proud of and also, we hope, is testimony to the continued evolution of our solutions as a result of working within education and delivering the tools schools actually need. To mark the occasion, at Bett, we are excited to be hosting over 25 leading education speakers on our stand throughout the week, as well as broadcasting NetSupport Radio live each day from the show floor. Finally, we also launch our new Online Safety Almanac and free copies will be available for teachers from our stand all week.” To learn about NetSupport DNA 4.70 or to download a free trial, visit www.netsupportdna.com/education To find out more about NetSupport School or to download a free trial, go to www.netsupportschool.com For more information about ReallySchool, please visit www.reallyschool.com
Actor David Harewood backs Future First alumni networks in Birmingham state schools
Former state students in Birmingham are to help transform current students’ opportunities and give them a better start in life by going back to their old schools in an initiative to build an alumni network in schools and colleges in the city. The programme – run by the education charity Future First – has been backed by the Birmingham born actor David Harewood who went to Washwood Heath Academy in Burney Lane, Stechford. The school is one of a thousand state schools and colleges across Britain which have worked with Future First to encourage more schools to see alumni as a valuable resource in broadening the jobs horizons of the current generation and preparing them to navigate the transition from school to work. Private schools and universities have long seen the value of keeping alumni in close contact after they have left. More than 226,000 former students nationwide have already signed up to stay connected with their old school. They’re motivating young people as career and education role models, mentors, work experience providers, governors and fundraisers by volunteering at assemblies and workshops designed to broaden young people’s jobs horizons and help them achieve a career of their choice regardless of their background. David, whose film and TV career includes the TV series Homeland and The Night Manager, said: “It’s difficult for young people to understand the skills needed in the world of work unless they meet people in interesting careers. I was very fortunate because I achieved the career I wanted, but not everyone has that opportunity. Future First can help give young people in Birmingham that chance, whatever their background. I’d urge everyone to broaden young people’s jobs horizons by signing up to Future First’s network.” Matt Lent, Chief Executive Officer of Future First said: “Students cannot be what they cannot see. It is vital to open their eyes to opportunities beyond their own world and show them the range of jobs available. Alumni help schools do this by acting as relatable positive role models. If a student sees someone who has the same background has gone on to achieve success, they are far more likely to think they can too.” Future First works in six Birmingham schools, Ninestiles an Academy, Greenwood Academy, Turves Green Girls’ School, Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls, Kings Norton Girls School as well as Washwood Heath Academy. For more information, see the Future First website here. Picture captions: Actor David Harewood supports Future First’s work in Birmingham state schools.
Vivitek’s Solutions Support BYOD & Promote Engaging Learning Experience At BETT 2019
On stand number C135 at BETT 2019, Vivitek, a leading manufacturer of innovative projectors and visual presentation products, will show how its range of high performance solutions propel classrooms and lecture halls into the digital era, ensuring connectivity, engagement and state-of-the-art learning aids for teachers and students alike. Vivitek’s comprehensive offerings for education are supported by a generous five year warranty on projectors, ensuring that its solutions are a long term investment for education institutions. With technology becoming more central to learning, and students and teachers all increasingly bringing their own devices into learning spaces, Vivitek will showcase its BYOD solutions with the NovoConnect range. One product of the NovoConnect range is the NovoTouch wireless collaborative flat panel solution which offers an all-in-one option for the classroom and students. The NovoTouch platform is Android based and it can accommodate wireless connectivity from mobile devices or laptops with Windows, MacOS, iOS or Android operating systems. NovoTouch multi-touch brings true collaboration into the classroom to solicit participation from multiple students either on-screen directly, or connecting device screens simultaneously – making it ideal for classrooms, meeting areas and public areas. Similarly, Vivitek’s NovoCast – a standalone wireless BYOD collaboration system that can be combined with any existing screen or projector – offers a collaborative and seamless approach to group work, allowing a split screen display from four devices. All NovoConnect solutions feature digital annotation and voting-polling capabilities as well as teacher preview, ensuring that ideas in the classroom can be shared with ease. Meanwhile, when it comes to school announcements, timetable sharing, scheduling for events, or the cafeteria’s daily menu; Vivitek’s NovoDS Solution is a great signage tool, which is intuitive to use and simple to set up. Plus, with the NovoDS Cloud service, school staff can easily remotely publish real-time info to display screens anywhere on the campus, making it perfect for real-time announcements or use in emergency situations. The solution has been designed to make it simple to create vivid, true-4K digital signage content instantaneously, thanks to easy-to-use software features without the need for any programming or special training. Just power on and connect the NovoDS devices to the internet, then users can monitor, control, and upload and refresh content to any of the devices in their cloud, from anywhere at any time. Visitors to the Vivitek’s stand will also be able to experience the popular Qumi projector series. The portable HD LED projector is ideal for the curriculum in primary schools, offering a range of capabilities, high quality picture and built in wireless connectivity. The Qumi range is compact, making it easy to move from one classroom to another, plus it features a built-in battery so everyone can get the most out of its use. The Qumi range ensures productive and engaging workshop sessions for teachers and students. Also on display will be the DH4661Z Full HD laser solid-state illuminated projector, which has been developed for large screen projection in smaller spaces. Capable of being installed in places that would be a challenge for conventional projectors, the DH4661Z utilises Vivitek’s advanced technology and delivers on the promise of low maintenance combined with low costs. With critical factors covered for educational institutions that are constantly balancing budgets and resources Vivitek ensures long term solutions for educational institutions’ projector and visual presentation requirements. Commenting on its presence at BETT 2019 Holger Graeff, General Manager, Vivitek EMEA, said: “At BETT 2019, Vivitek will continue to set the bar for visual and audio presentation solutions for those in the education sector. With our focus on BYOD, we will display a full range of connective capabilities that promote collaborative and engaging learning experiences for both teachers and students. With an understanding of the education sector’s budgets, the reliability and value for money of our solutions ensure that Vivitek is an attractive proposition for users in education.” About Vivitek Vivitek, a brand of Delta, offers an extensive line of visual display and presentation products. Vivitek’s line of digital projection and display products incorporates the latest innovations and technologies to meet the market demands for education, business, home theatre and large venue. For more information about Vivitek, please visit www.vivitekcorp.com or www.vivitek.eu
All you need to know from the Schoolwear Show 2018
The Schoolwear Show is owned by and operated by The Schoolwear Show Limited. The show is organised on a purely voluntary basis; the directors giving up their own time to organise the show. The Schoolwear Show is hosted at Cranmore Park Conference and Event Centre. The Schoolwear Show Limited is a major donor to and supporter of the Schoolwear Association. Who should attend The Schoolwear Show is dedicated solely to the independent schoolwear retailer. The exhibition will give you the chance to: Meet existing suppliers face to face Source new suppliers View the latest product innovations Plan your Back to School campaign For the 2018 show, the Schoolwear Association sponsored seminars during Sunday and Monday in the Diamond Suite. The SA hopes the seminars will be an exciting new addition to the show and give more reason to visit by raising awareness and challenging the status quo with some interesting and practical ideas. Each seminar is approximately 25 minutes in duration. Tendering to Win This Seminar deals with the growing requirement of Schools and Academy Trusts for their suppliers to Tender and how to make sure Schoolwear Specialists give themselves the best chance to win and ensure their business competes in an ever more challenging market. The Seminar was presented by Klick Business Solutions, who have worked with a number of Schoolwear Retailers helping them to win Tenders. Sustainability & School Uniform This Seminar focusses on the growing awareness of the various environmental issues in the world, plastic being the current hot topic, but there are many other elements. Hopefully it will both raise awareness and challenge the status quo, putting some interesting and practical ideas into the market. Sustainability and what happens at end of life with textile products, will eventually become part of everyone’s thinking, so it’s important that our market is ahead of the curve. The Seminar has been developed by Oakdene Hollins who specialise in finding solutions in this subject and was presented by Kathryn Shuttleworth, the Managing Director of David Luke. The only limitations to dye-sub printing seems to be the creativity of the person wanting to wear it, which is very exciting! It was also great for our non-school or sportswear items be shown to a wider audience under our Gymphlex brand, and I was delighted that our beautiful, functional and authentic sports garments got showcased. My overall experience of the Schoolwear Show 2018 was hugely positive, with a friendly atmosphere filled with like-minded businesses keen to impress and showcase their talents, and hopefully I will get the opportunity to attend again in the future. Testimonials “We’ve been coming to the Schoolwear Show for 10 years and each year its gets bigger and better. It’s a great place to meet all our suppliers under one roof and see new potential suppliers.” “Very well organised.. and the food is good too!” “Great venue and good to be able to discuss issues with suppliers as well as to learn about new lines and ideas for next year.” “It’s a the right time of year. We see our suppliers and then can get our back to school order to them before Christmas.” For more information about The Schoolwear Show please click here
Sports Hall Floor Refurbishment in Pleckgate
Sports Hall Refurbishment this time for the courtship team was in Pleckgate, Blackburn. A little far away from our base in Somerset, but we travel nationwide for contracts on sports halls. The size of this sports hall floor refurbishment contract was 600sqm. With a strong team of five flooring engineers, this wasn’t a problem. The condition of the sports hall flooring was rather dire in the respect that there were scratches from years of activity and lots of wear on the top lacquer, giving a messy finish to the floor. This would be a total sports hall floor refurbishment transformation. The material on this sports hall was Junkers beech, these wooden sports halls clean up brilliantly. See our page for Junckers flooring refurbishment specification on this. The contract was a total refurbishment. This means a sanding back of the top surface until the wooden sports flooring has been returned to a new condition. We would then apply primer to the sports hall floor, then once this has dried we will install our games lines on top. Finally, we will apply two/three coats of sports lacquer to increase traction and protect the flooring. For more information about Sports Hall Refurbishment please visit https://courtshipflooring.co.uk
Ofsted Report Analysis Show Positive Impacts, Says Mesma
Analysis of Ofsted’s early monitoring visits to employers, independent training providers and universities by online quality assurance specialist Mesma has revealed some positive impacts. The news comes as Ofsted says that the levy has contributed to a huge increase in the number of providers delivering apprenticeships, doubling the numbers of independent learning providers and employer providers. However, while Ofsted also declares in its annual report ‘that some of the biggest providers continue to provide real cause for concern’, Mesma’s analysis of providers making progress has thrown up some common themes. Leaders can be seen as heading in the right direction, meeting the requirements of successful apprenticeships provision on the back of reports of a clear vision and well considered strategy. High standards of training and resources, sound governance, and strong analytical and self-critical self-assessment are also contributing to significant progress. Progress in ensuring that apprentices benefit from high quality training, which delivers positive outcomes was shown by staff having relevant industry knowledge, confirmation of early assessments and well-organised teaching. Reports that senior leaders are closely monitoring apprentices’ progress and that apprentices are clear about their career options, also indicate significant progress is being achieved. Advancement has also been achieved by leaders and managers in securing effective safeguarding arrangements on the back of reports about highly effective policies and procedures being in place that are understood by all. Clear reporting procedures, effective safe recruitment practices, comprehensive risk assessments and a generally feeling that apprentices feel safe, were all evidenced in Ofsted’s reports, according to Mesma. Mesma has extracted the key information from content sourced from the public reports published on the Ofsted website at www.reports.ofsted.gov.uk/, which covers more than 86 providers whose reports were published by inspectors between March – October2018. Carole Loader, Mesma director, said: “Early monitoring is a new strand of Ofsted activity, helping to confirm if the hundreds of new large and small apprenticeship providers are on track with delivery of their learning and training strategies. “We can see reasonable and significant progress being made from analysis of the reports, but the data includes those providers new to the register, who have previously been delivering under sub-contract arrangements. “It would be a clearer picture if Ofsted were able to segment this data so that we could see who is ‘new to the sector’ as opposed to new as a ‘direct contract holder’.” Mesma’s analysis of Ofsted’searly monitoring visits for apprenticeship providers can be heard at https://mesma.co.uk/download/key-findings-from-ofsted-early-monitoring-visits-of-apprenticeship-providers/
Young chefs cook up a feast for Wokingham Mayor
This week, the Rainbow Café, located in the Acorn Community Centre, saw a group of young amateur chefs chop, slice and blend to create and serve a hearty lunch for local residents and special guest, the Mayor of Wokingham. Customers from Optalis’ Supported Employment service took over the community café for the day to develop their catering and customer service skills, serving freshly made meals to visitors and the Mayor of Wokingham, Cllr John Kaiser. Donna Morgans, Optalis’ Supported Employment Service Manager, said: “We’re always keen to support our clients and hosting events like these brings new challenges and enables them to gain new skills.” Mayor of Wokingham, Cllr John Kaiser, added: “It is great to see the Optalis team in action, helping to develop customers’ skills so that they can find meaningful employment in the future.” The event is designed specifically to support customers to achieve paid employment and work towards gaining independence in their role. Optalis Employment Coaches work closely with the individuals to ensure they are able to gain experience and skills in their chosen career goals. Eleanor, who was serving food and taking orders, commented: “I am enjoying meeting the public and talking to them. As my ideal job would be in retail, this is giving me valuable experience.” For more information about Optalis’ Supported Employment Service, or if you are a local employer in the Wokingham, Reading or Bracknell area wanting to access a determined workforce, contact Donna on 0118 977 8632 or email donna.morgans@optalis.org
Dudgeon grant encourages tomorrow’s engineers
A grant from the Dudgeon Offshore Wind Farm’s Community Fund STEM Programme is enabling Sheringham High School to lead an innovative robotics development project for students from six Norfolk schools. Sonja Chirico Indrebø is the Power Plant Manager of the Dudgeon Offshore Wind Farm operated by Equinor. She recently met a number of the students involved in the project when she visited Sheringham High School and commented, “Among these students are tomorrow’s engineers, vital to the future success of many industries. Norfolk is now a hub for the UK offshore wind industry, a sector which will continue to offer career opportunities for engineers for many years to come. There is a recognised shortage of engineers across the UK, so I believe it is very important that Equinor, as a major offshore wind farm operator, takes an active role supporting projects and initiatives which are designed to encourage students to embrace STEM education and give them hands-on experience of technology.” The project is designed to give students opportunities to observe and develop the STEM skills of science, technology, engineering and mathematics beyond the classroom curriculum, and to increase student uptake in GCSE and A-Level STEM subjects. It will also expose students to the 2019 Robotex Expo international robotics competition in Estonia that will feature technology and engineering companies from all over the world. In preparation for the format of this competition, the 2018/19 project requires students to develop sumo wrestling and line-following robots. Using Lego EV3 kits, the students design, build, programme and command autonomous robots (known as ‘bots’), enabling these ‘bots’ to be capable of a range of actions including walking, shooting, slithering, sliding, spinning and slamming. The Lego kits include a sumo wrestling practice ring and a line-following practice mat. Charlotte Gardener is the Science Teacher at Sheringham High School who is co-ordinating the project; the other participating schools being Alderman Peel High School, Cliff Park Ormiston Academy, Fakenham Academy, Nicholas Hammond Academy and Stalham High School. She commented, “Late last year we hosted a practice session at Sheringham High School to allow groups of students and their teachers from each school to meet each other and to engage in a series of casual, but structured and competitive, ‘battles’. It was obvious that there is a huge amount of enthusiasm for this project from teachers and students alike, and some strong computer programming by many of the students has given them an impressive command of their individual robots.” She continued, “The generous grant from the Dudgeon Community Fund will allow this STEM project to benefit around 75 students in the 2018/19 academic year, and potentially a further 150 students in the next two academic years. In April 2019 we will hold rigorous competitions which will decide which students will be representing Norfolk at the Robotex Expo next November. I believe it is an excellent way to encourage students to engage with the STEM disciplines.” www.norfolkfoundation.com/funding-support/grants/groups/dudgeon-community-fund/
KUBO Robotics launches innovative new coding pack
KUBO Robotics has launched a brand-new innovative coding pack for primary school children. Available from January 2019, “Coding+” builds on KUBO’s existing robotics resource and teaches children aged 4-10 more advanced programming elements and stronger computational thinking skills. Coding+ comes with a set of 36 additional TagTiles which deliver high-quality, innovative programming challenges. The TagTile pieces fit together like a puzzle in order to create a sequence of code. The robot is then placed on top of the tiles and follows a set of instructions helping pupils to understand more advanced levels of programming related to routes, functions, subroutines and loops. In addition to KUBO’s previous functions, Coding+ enables educators to cover time, distance, speed and directions, encouraging pupils to undertake more challenging and sophisticated programming tasks. Daniel Lindegarrd, Co-founder and COO at KUBO Robotics said: “At a time when most children will end up working in jobs that don’t even exist yet, now more than ever we should be teaching them computational thinking and coding from an early age in order to equip them the right skills for the future. “At KUBO we are dedicated to helping educators teach invaluable coding skills in a simple and engaging way that appeals to pupils. We are continuously developing our curriculum content and resources to ensure that we are providing solutions that demonstrate coding in a way that is not only accessible but gives learning STEM subjects a real purpose.” KUBO is designed to make it easy for teachers to introduce computer science and coding into their daily teaching activities, promoting cross-curricular collaboration and hands-on play. For more information, visit: www.kubo-robot.com