Learning Diary by

Hi, I'm Lynda from Dublin, Ireland and I'm doing this course to hopefully improve my knowledge of school ICT infrastructure.

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 14:34:53 UTC

I teach in an all girls school with a school population of 1200 students and 80 teachers. We have 2 computer labs and a laptop and data projector in every classroom as well as visualisers (that you can book in advance to use). Our broadband is supplied through HEAnet and the schools broadband scheme. It's 100mb cabled broadband. We only currently have wifi in Staff room and SEN rooms.

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 14:39:19 UTC

Module 1: Optimising your school network.

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 14:42:47 UTC

Q: How does your school connect to the internet?
Our school is supplied internet through the school's broadband scheme. We have a 100mb cabled system in all classrooms and wifi in the staffroom and SEN rooms. Filtering is controlled by the school broadband scheme supplier and we can apply to alter the filtering levels whenever needed (for example to allow access to Facebook etc) If a website is blocked by the filtering system we can apply to have it unblocked. Luckily we haven't had many if any issues with connectivity - any issues are dealt with promptly by the centralised provider (PDST).

Module 1: 1.2 a more extensive setup

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 14:55:34 UTC

Like other schools in Ireland we have a centrally maintained and monitored broadband service (HeaNet)
Connectivity speed is generally good, reliable and fast (100Mbps) On a daily basis I do not have to deal with any connectivity problems.
We have 4 Ubiquiti wifi points in staffroom, SEN suite and science labs. We were considering expanding it throughout the school but shelved due to cost involved. However there is a plan for government funding which should become available very soon.
Security and content filtering is also provided for centrally as part of the HeaNet 100Mb broadband for schools scheme

Module 1: 1.1 start simple

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 15:06:18 UTC

I am the ICT co-ordinator in my school but first and foremost a full time teacher!
The demands but on me to maintain our network are many but you learn to cope and do what you can when you can.
I do have the help of a technician who visits once a week to fix any issues I can't do or haven't had time to deal with.
We need to plan for the future now- that's our main goal.
Luckily we have a fully labelled LAN network with many switches and patch panels. Problems only really occur when a switch goes down and needs to be replaced.

Module 1.3 an elaborate setup

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 15:13:33 UTC

Luckily we do have outside support to maintain our network and advice on any upgrades needed. They visit once a week or more often if required. They maintain the servers ( we have two) and the daily backup. We also do a weekly manual back up of both servers. They also deal with any maintenance issues in the computer labs and classrooms that are beyond my capabilities.
I schedule the weekly checks that need to be carried out - we are a big busy school (like all schools) There is never enough time to do everything yourself.

Module 1.4 ICT vision and planning

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 15:23:16 UTC

I agree with many of the comments posted already and also enjoyed the presentation.
Two things stand out as vital to me:

1) a good reliable stable infrastructure
2) confident trained teachers

without both it is very hard to embed the use of ICT in teaching and learning in the classroom.

Activity 1.5: the educational purpose of ICT infrastructure.

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 15:43:03 UTC

What is your school using ICT for?
- Is there a school vision for ICT? We have an e-learning plan that now needs to be updated. Our main aim was to get as many staff on board using the ICT infrastrucure in some shape or form. This proved hard as some didn't even have a laptop let alone an e-mail address when we started the process. Now everyone has a laptop and/or ipad or tablet that they use everyday in the classroom for teaching and learning. All communications are sent via e-mail. All teachers have a school email address for this purpose. Some teachers use VLE's with their students.
- How are projects designed? Projects we set out in our e-learning plan initially and since then individual tecahers design their own project.
- Through individual initiatives? Yes or subject departments
- Through a more general school policy? Initally yes - thropugh the e-learning plan
- Why is ICT not being used in some subjects? Which ones? I think at this stage most subjects use ICT in some shape or form. If not then it is more to do with the teacher than the ICT infrastructure
- New pedagogical uses of technology? We set up a teaching and learning group that met once a month to discuss, try out and share experiences using different methodologies in the classroom including ICT. It was very successfull.
How do you give access to technology to your students?
- Computer lab? we have 2 labs and teachers can book access to it for their class when they want. You can also request to be timetabled in the lab if you like.
- Computers in classroom? All classrooms have a laptop. the Science labs have extra to facilitate project work and young scientist projects.
- Individual devices? We don't allow students to bring in their own devces (yet) Teachers can bring in and use thoer own laptops and tablets if they wish and most do.
- Is your network capacity sufficient to meet current and future needs? At the moment yes and it is being upgraded in February as part of government upgrade of broadband project.

Module 1.6 Webinar

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 16:50:59 UTC

I also missed the webinar but watched the video! Very informative and useful unfortunately th sound quality made it difficult to follow. But having the PDF document for review is great!!!

Activity

lyndamck — 2017-01-04 17:03:41 UTC

1.7 Activity 2 Upgrading the school netwrok

Ways to improve the performance of your current infrastructure?
currently all is working very well and fulfilling our needs. We upgraded two years ago.
How you could expand the school network?
We need in consider going wireless in more areas and with the current government roll out for wireless networks in schools we will be inviting a number of approved contractors to conduct a site survey and make recommendations. We are currently very happy with Ubicquti in certain areas of our school
Ways to make it more secure? A massive consideration and one we addressed last year. Back ups are now more frequent and router access to admin server more secure. Firewalls etc in place. Luckily the PDST monitor all activity and will shut down access to our network if the detect suspect behaviour. All teachers must make sure all their devices are up to date software and anti virus wise.
New types of devices or services you could put in place? Not sure
How to provide technical support and ensure the network performs reliably? We have a well established system that is working well for us. All issues are logged, prioritised and completed.

Module 2 :

lyndamck — 2017-01-05 13:10:20 UTC

2.1 Setting up a wireless network

At the moment we don't have wifi throughout our school campus. This mainly due to finances! However this may change this year due to government investment. Currently we do have wifi in the main staff room, science labs and SEN rooms - all are Ubiquiti and give us no problems at all.

2.2 BYOD

lyndamck — 2017-01-05 13:41:34 UTC

Really good informative presentation. I got a lot from this as we are considering the possibility of introducing BYOD when we have wifi.
Good to learn about the planning considerations involved regarding set out clear defined rules of use for students, planning considerations for teachers, a workable project and the infrastructure / set up considerations needed for a stable connection!

2.3 Webinar Network aspects of School Infrastructure

lyndamck — 2017-01-05 15:35:10 UTC

Excellent presentation I learnt a lot form it. Very useful information on the vulnerabilities of WLAN that I really needed to know and will bring back with me to school.
It came at a great point for me as we are just on the verge of investigating WLAN for our school. With site surveys coming up this January I now feel more confident and knowledgeable to ask the important questions to the tender companies

2.4 wifi set up and BYOD

lyndamck — 2017-01-05 15:38:41 UTC

Your current setup and how to improve it? Currently we use mainly a wired network and have limited WLAN in staff room, science labs and SEN rooms. The AP's are all Ubiquiti and work great for use. We are just about to have site surveys done by government approved companies to supply wifi to schools here in Ireland.
Do you have wifi?Yes - but only in the ares mentioned above - it's not available to students to use on personal devices at all.
Do you support BYOD? This year we amended our AUP to allow students use their smartphones with their teachers permission once the rules of use are adhered to.
Do you consider them as opportunities or threats? Before partaking in this course I viewed them more as threats but now I'm leaning more to the opportunities side, once the rules of use are made clear and the WLAN is secured as best as possible.
What technical adaptations would be required, if any? We need WLAN AP's and a big financial input. The AUP would also need adapting for the next academic year.

Module 3

lyndamck — 2017-01-05 17:13:13 UTC

3.2 Cloud Services in school

We haven't adopted any particular Cloud Service but we have tried out Edmodo and Schoology. Main difficulties = teacher IT level and time.
However I have given whole staff CPD in using EDMODO and it was received very well at the time. Take up improved but has waned since. It's hard to keep the momentum going with a large staff.

3.3 Challenges using Cloud Services in School

lyndamck — 2017-01-05 18:13:13 UTC

The main challenges are getting teachers onboard and training them to be confident to carry out a project with a class. Secondly not all students have equal access or opportunity to access cloud services at home (not as much as we think sometimes).

3.4 Benefits of Cloud Computing to Schools.

lyndamck — 2017-01-05 19:05:19 UTC

Who makes the decision to go or not to go with Cloud Services:
The decision to go or not to go for cloud services lies with the Principal. While I am ICT co-ordinator I liase with my Deputy Principal on all things IT/ ICT. We also have an ICT Committee where we discuss all aspects of IT/ICT needs for our school. Together we make decisions.

Module 4

lyndamck — 2017-01-12 16:25:34 UTC

4.2 Securing your school infrastructure

What are your experiences with malware, viruses, spam?
Luckily we have two separate computer networks; one for students/ teachers and a second for admin. We have a back up protocol and use firewalls and anti-virus software; all of which is kept up to date and monitored weekly. To date on the student/ teacher network we haven't had any major incident (or minor that I know of). But it only takes one person to skip a procedure and bam..... we will be in trouble.

Personally I have informed and trained the staff regarding the "hows and whys" we have to follow our protocol procedures regarding external devices ( usb daily ) and to educate their students to the same level. Luckily we lie behind a content filtered web browsing system, which is set quite high. This (I think) is the same for all schools in Ireland as it is centrally provided and monitored by the PDST.

Last year however our admin server was hit by Malware and it was a nightmare. At the time it was the choice of Admin and management to be totally independent from the school provided service but that has now all changed for the better. They now lie behind the the same security monitoring provided by the PDST. Up to that point they had their own internet provider, firewall, anti virus etc.

How did you deal with them?

To start all machines were shut down and disconnected to limit the spread of the malware attack. Our tech providers came in immediately and checked back ups and all admin desktops and laptops to locate the source of the attack. Each machine was cleaned and checked and brought back individually. The Data Commissioner was notified regarding the attack. All staff (past and present), parents (past and present) students (past) were notified of our data breach and to be aware of any suspicious activity.

We adjusted our back up procedure protocols too.

It wasn't a happy time but we got through it slowly.

4.3 Dealing with threats

lyndamck — 2017-01-12 17:10:35 UTC

Dealing with threats

What top tip/s would you give other ICT administrators to protect their schools’ ICT infrastructure from attacks?

User training is paramount - educate and inform your students on good practices using computers, usb (or other external devices) , virus scanning, sharing devices and of course acceptable behaviour on-line.

Organise an information evening for parents of new students (we do this every year) and inform them on good practice regarding using computers, devices etc and on the dangers and pitfalls of being on-line.

Forewarned is forearmed

We have also had a guest speaker in to talk to our TY students about what can happen to things they post on-line, predators and cyber bulling. The same speaker does an evening session with parents.

Having a user validation system in place is also a good practice and user privileges to limit student activity on school computers. Online activity is limited by and large by the PDST.

TY students run a Safer Internet Campaign - where they peer inform younger students about how to stay save online - produce booklets, stickers and an information noticeboard

4.4 Using mobile phones in schools and AUP

lyndamck — 2017-01-17 10:30:56 UTC

Have you encountered any security or safety related incidents with students’ smartphones? How did you handle them?

To date luckily we haven't had any major security or safety incidents involving students and their mobile phones on the school premises. The use of mobile phones during the school day is clearly stated in our AUP which is in the students journal and signed by the student and their parents (standard procedure in every school)
On occasion students do break the rules and use their phone to text or make a call during the school day - if that happens and us detected then consequences according to the AUP are followed and parents are informed.
Sometimes incidents involving phones, social media and students happen outside of school but the school has stepped in and dealt with a problem that the parents have not managed to address for one reason or another. On these occasions screen shots of bullying etc are taken and printed out. The students are interviewed, parents a re informed and invited to attend a meeting in school, all relevant stakeholders are informed in cases of child protection issues that may arise and the situation is resolved. (again standard procedure)

What / who should be included in an AUP?
Currently our AUP is standard and only applies to students, their use of school network and school computers and mobile phone use in school. Cyberbullying is addressed in the AUP regarding the use of social media for bullying purposes.
School approved VLE's are listed and communication methods such as using school email accounts only for communication with students.
I feel we need to update our AUP and discuss the possibility of a staff AUP. All users are the weak link in terms of safety and security on the school network.
How do you encourage safe digital practices by not only students but also teachers?
In TY (4th year) when students are 16 years old they are taught safe practices online. They also engage in a "how to be safe online" campaign in school to highlight the risks and inform their peers. A guest speaker form Garda delivers a very hard hitting talk on being safe online and what can happen if you fall victim to a bully or predator (true cases).
Teachers receive in-house CPD from itself regarding current ICT and IT safety issues and initiatives. I will giving one next week on cyber security (thanks to this course)

Module 4

lyndamck — 2017-01-17 10:54:57 UTC

4.1 Webinar Security - Prevention - Recovery

Sorry I missed the webinar but have watched the recording - full of very useful information threats, counter measures and recommendations. All of which I will be taking to my nest IT team meeting - we need an action plan!

4.5 The eSafety Label/Safer Internet Day

lyndamck — 2017-01-17 11:55:13 UTC

I am aware of Internet Safety Day - it's usually in February when my students are on Work Experience - so we run it later usually after Easter.
I was not aware of the eSafety Label and will research more in to it.
Also read in the Padlet about Digital schools of distinction in Ireland - I will look in to that too!

Module 5 The effective ICT Administrator

lyndamck — 2017-01-17 13:42:52 UTC

5.1 Being an ICT Administrator
Two words: stressful and demanding
While I love and have a passion for things technology, I feel you need to be a very patient, understanding and organised teacher to be the ICT administrator as well!
In my school we have gone from zero interaction let alone ownership of devices among staff to them all BYOD to school for use in the classroom. They also have a school laptop and data projector in the classroom. Three years ago some staff didn't even have an email address and were reluctant to engage in our initiate to communicate all memos and info to them using email. Now three years on and things have really improved. We have introduced the idea of using a VLE
with students - at least to try.
I have given many CPD sessions on different aspects of ICT but our main concern currently is Security and Safety.
As a full time teacher my time is limited and often I don't feel I am giving enough or doing enough to help / inform / up-skill my colleagues.
I have an ICT noticeboard where I post CPD course info, news regarding recent security threats, best practice guidelines and how to add network printers to your device......
I love courses like this that I can do in the comfort of my own home and at my own pass.

5.2 The role of the ICT Administrator

lyndamck — 2017-01-17 14:33:16 UTC

I found both videos interesting and contrasting.

Kolbrún really enjoys her role and is lucky to be able to dedicate her day 100% to ICT needs in her school. I particularly liked how she meets with staff 5/6 times a year for CPD and provides all staff with an ICT curriculum for all student groups at the start of the school year. Her school also uses different WLAN networks for different groups - I will look into this as my school embarks on a change over to WIFI from cable network.

Peter's situation is like my own. He is teaching and ICT administrator. In the beginning he outlines the time he is supposed to spend on ICT matters as opposed to the actual time he sends a week. It is a big undertaking. I found his recommendations regarding Switches and and Wireless AP's invaluable and will be mindful of the need for fast switches going forward. Like Peter my school has also moved away from licensed based software (microsoft) to free openspurce software (libra or open office). It took a while for staff to accept the move but as time ticks on it has become less of an issue. The aim for us now is to move into more cloud based services.

5.3 The challenges facing the ICT administrator

lyndamck — 2017-01-18 16:26:22 UTC

Every school is different and faces different challenges. It is so important for the government of the country to have investment in education as a top priority.

All three schools need to prioritise putting in place the best infrastructure possible, even with limited funds (some good ideas put forward by other participants already) Use open source software where possible to cut down on costs and free up funds for other things like hardware. You could also approach corporate agencies who are upgrading and ask them to donate their desktops or laptops to you - wipe them down and install open source operating system on them.

Think about using cloud services like Google Apps for education

Then think about prioritising training for staff - start small on small things - hopefully get some momentum and motivation to use ICT in the classroom.

5.4 Ways to reduce ICT costs in your school

lyndamck — 2017-01-18 16:51:06 UTC

It would be great to replenish desktops and projectors every 3 years like Paul Hynes suggests but in reality it happens every 5 years or whenever we get an ICT grant from the government.
When we do renew hardware we recycle what we have in-house - by putting open source software on the machines and placing them in the library or science labs. Whenever a classroom based laptop fails we can swap one of these machines in until funds become available to replace it.
Moving totally to open source software has ben great - though not a smooth transition with staff complaining but that settles down fast enough.
BYOD is an interesting idea and one we haven't adopted yet but will be looking into in the near future.
Printing ideas and tips were great! What are the ink friendly fonts??? anyone ?? We don't allow colour printing in my school, just plain black. This in itself cut down on printing costs. Students are encouraged to use cloud services for project work and presentations. This also cut down on printing costs and paper usage dramaticallyOur biggest costs would be paper and photocopier maintenance.

5.5 My Professional Development

lyndamck — 2017-01-22 10:19:07 UTC

My experience is similar to Peter's. I also teach in a large school (1200 students and 80 teachers) We have two networks, Admin and Students / Teachers. I don't have any certification or qualification in IT skills but I do have passion and interest. I'm self taught. I've been ICT co-ordinator now for 10 years and in that time the necessary skills are: organisation, patience, facilitator, assertiveness and understanding. I keep a weekly log of issues that arise and with the deputy principal decide which items take priority, which ones I can do myself given the time I have and which ones I assign to our IT technician, who is on site once a week. I recommend carrying out a complete ICT Audit every few years and from that schedule a phased investment and procurement of hardware and resources needed to maintain and improve ICT skills in your school. Every year I give a CPD to all staff on some small idea using ICT with students. It is well received and there is always a buzz of enthusiasm afterwards.

Module 5 Activities

lyndamck — 2017-01-25 17:56:52 UTC

Problems and Solutions
A difficult situation happens daily - reluctance to engage with and use the equipment, complaining the log on process is too slow, having little or no patience regarding problems that need to be fixed. My experience is just like everyone else here. It's frustrating when many of of my colleagues want to learn and use IT more in their subject areas but their colleagues just cause a scene and make progress slow. Sometimes people are just rude and forget that I'm human and a teacher first! My colleagues are lucky they have a great infrastructure to work with in comparison to others posting here and no matter how often we run CPD in house there is little or no change of attitude. Somethings just can't be solved.

Expectations
In the beginning I think staff thought I was their personal guru for all things IT. My main task is to record issues and schedule maintenance once a week. I no longer change ink - teachers can do that now (though in the beginning were reluctant to be shown how to). I have a great Admin staff and we have a system in operation so we never run out of ink .... I am expected to change wifi passwords and renew all devices including personal staff devices. I take it upon myself to learn about new applications and pass on to my colleagues. I have typed up how to guides for re-occuring issues that all staff should know how to fix themselves and I do refer to the IT noticeboard daily. As ICT co-ordinator you always seem to be on call but have to lay down the rules too.

Activity 2

Make a note in your learning diary about your own professional development, for example:

a) The opportunities, challenges and problems you face that could be overcome with some training

b) List your top three training needs to help you do your job more effectively

c) Note the training possibilities in your area, whether online or face to face

a) Opportunities like this course are so valuable and a positive way to spend my time. I have learnt so much and already see the benefit on the ground at work. Before this I knew little about wireless networks, BYOD and the groundwork to put in place first. Also found cybersecurity and data protection section excellent. I feel these few topics have helped me overcome many problems that I currently face.

b) top 3 training needs .... difficult one
more about networking issues - while I have a technician who deals with these issues I'd like to be more confident with the language...

c) in my area we have the PDST who run training CPD for teachers in local education training centres and online. I love the online courses and engage with them as much as I can. It's all about having Time and timing in general.

Module 6

lyndamck — 2017-01-29 13:13:20 UTC

Great course - I got so much out of it!
The reading materials are great. Found the Irish ones for school self evaluation and road map invaluable.
The course has helped focus my thoughts on ideas on projects my school needs to engage with. We are currently updating our ICT plan (e-Learning plan) so this course and it's contents will be used.
Best advice I can give : start small and think security first. Once the ground work is established and the rules are clearly defined then you can build up your infrastructure and roll out your methodologies.

ICT Development Plan

lyndamck — 2017-01-29 18:19:43 UTC

Module 6

lyndamck — 2017-01-30 19:25:54 UTC

6.1 Trends and future technologies

Trend is definitely towards cloud computing and BYOD - it makes sense to move in this direction to collaborate and engage students in education and the digital era.

Lots to think about - I found the Gartner Hype Cycle very interesting when applied to digital technologies in education

Module 6

lyndamck — 2017-02-04 08:57:30 UTC

6.2 New Tools and Services

Fantastic lists of tools and Apps.
Personally I use the following with my students:
Scratch
Audacity
Weebly
Prezi
Edmodo

I'll be adding to my list once I try out some from the list.

Many Thanks

Module 6

lyndamck — 2017-02-04 09:11:27 UTC

6.3 Access for all in education

I found this section very interesting
I would to know more about UDL

Some great links provided by other course participants too:

seesaw
literacy shed
CAST.ORG
UDL-net project

As teachers we are stretched constantly and always want to up-skill and provide the best level of education to all our students.

The greatest resource needs is TIME

Module 6

lyndamck — 2017-02-04 09:26:54 UTC

6.4 supporting students with SEN

http://sennet.eun.org
http://sennet.eun.org/studies-and-evidence-wp2#UDL

Camera Solution -

LOW COST SOLUTION FOR STUDENTS WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENTS

Material: MAZI video camera, ICH-32, Network cube 
AP: 300Mbps Universal WI-FI, Range Extender TL- WA850RE

Note: for security reasons, an independent wireless network is created for each classroom with no Internet connection.
We use the Mozilla Firefox browser. The camera is accessed through its own IP.Users must log in with their username and password.The up, down, left and right arrow keys are used.The images can be enlarged using the Ctrl + “+” keys.The images can be enlarged using the Ctrl + “+” keys.Several computers can be connected at the same time.COMMERCIAL SOLUTION 
Transformer USB: 2150,00 €
LOW COST SOLUTION 
MAZI video camera + WI-FI Range Extender: 320,92 €

Module 6

lyndamck — 2017-02-04 09:39:11 UTC

6.6 Completing the ICT plan

Great course - I got so much out of it!
The reading materials are great. Found the Irish ones for school self evaluation and road map invaluable.
The course has helped focus my thoughts on ideas on projects my school needs to engage with. We are currently updating our ICT plan (e-Learning plan) so this course and it's contents will be used.
Best advice I can give : start small and think security first.

https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/ict-development-plan-6117760

http://www.digitalschools.ie

http://www.digitalschoolseurope.eu/roadmapself-evaluation/

http://edtech.digitalpromise.org/?utm_content=buffer8a574&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

http://www.schooleducationgateway.eu/en/pub/teacher_academy.htm