Almost all of us are using ICT in our everyday lives, in ways that we would never have envisaged just a few years ago. We believe that we have now reached the point at AHS where students would benefit greatly from much easier access to ICT. The pressure is coming from both staff and students, who are all keen to exploit the power of ICT in and out of class. So we are moving to a 1:1 system, meaning that all students will have their own device.
It is difficult to overstate the size of this change in terms of how teachers will teach and how students will learn (although we must pay tribute to the great work that is already going on across the school and the way that everyone has embraced GSuite and other tools over the past few years). There will obviously be plenty of times when ICT plays no part in lessons and, unless and until exams go on-line, there will continue to be a real need to keep using pen and paper for the moment. However, using the power of technology whenever it is appropriate will allow us to transform teaching and learning at Aylesbury High School.
Employers, universities and the economy are all wanting our students to flourish in an increasingly digital world and we believe that now is the right time to go 1:1.
There are many educational benefits to using Chromebooks in school, such as:
- Increased collaboration between students and students and teachers
- Use of features such as the Google Classroom to share work and receive feedback
- Improved organisation and presentation of work
- Access to educational apps to enhance teaching and learning
- Access to resources at home
There is a wide range of devices available, but Chromebooks offer:
- Value for money
- Long battery life
- Less than 8 second boot up
- Simple technology
- Access to Google Apps for Education
- Excellent collaboration tools The operating system and the GSuite apps are regularly updated without you noticing (and for free)
- Very resistant to viruses and Trojans
- Purchase cost (and total cost of ownership as well) low compared with other devices
- Convenient for school to manage large numbers