For the second instalment of our Modern Learning Blog Series our focus will centre on the benefits of adopting Surface for productivity and efficiency gains.
In the first piece of this series, we explored the benefits Surface can give teachers specifically, but today we’re going to focus on several other stakeholders across the school community and the impact Surface can have on their day-to-day lives.
School Administration
It takes a team of admin staff to maintain the steady day-to-day operation of a school. From informing parents about upcoming events and other school initiatives, to monitoring who is on campus at any given time, to dealing with ill students and the array of guests that enter campus on a daily basis, there’s always work to be done.
Microsoft Surface devices with Microsoft 365 give admin teams the technology and tools to work more efficiently. Some key features that can help to reduce time-intensive tasks include:
- Microsoft Office 365 and its suite of productivity apps enable admin staff to work efficiently across word documents, excel data sheets, email and meeting setting, and more
- Microsoft Teams easily enables staff to communicate directly with different faculties and other school stakeholders, as well as students and family members
- Voice-to-text converter technology enables staff to record meetings and quickly send notes and recordings to other staff present in the meeting
- Surface Pen capabilities on touchscreen 2-in-1 devices like the Surface Pro 7+ and Surface Go can enable staff to take notes when not at their desk, and reduces the need for excessive printing
School Sports Team Coaches and Staff
Sports teams can be the lifeblood of school culture and schools across the country place incredible esteem and respect on their sporting cultures. Just as in the professional world of sport with junior academies, many schools play their part in developing future sporting stars, and as such, look to provide effective and professional sporting environments.
Microsoft Surface devices with Microsoft 365 give coaching teams the technology and tools to enhance coaching and provide more efficient and purposeful preparation for student athletes. Such features include:
- The ability to record training sessions and games for student athletes to watch back during the week in preparation for future games
- Microsoft Teams is a strong means of keeping an open line of dialogue amongst a team, discussing future opponents, communicating team events and timetables, as well as general discussion
- Microsoft Office 365 and its suite of productivity apps give coaching staff’s the tools to easily track player performance, maintain up to date stats, and create playbooks and set team values
- The portability from 2-in-1 devices to draw up plays mid training session or game, and highlight things players can do better, or do more of in real-time
School ICT Team
With the explosion of personal devices, the ever-increasing adoption of cloud, the decentralisation of the classroom and increasing threat landscape, managing a school’s ICT environment has never been more challenging or complex. Add the fact that school ICT teams are typically quite small with limited budget and the challenge of maintaining an always-on, secure environment is exacerbated even further.
But there are many elements of device management that can be alleviated from an ICT Team’s day to day with the adoption of Microsoft Surface devices. Such as:
- The ability to streamline deployment of new staff and student devices with Windows Autopilot, which delivers zero-touch deployment that removes the need for ICT teams to handle time-consuming re-imaging
- Comprehensive security control thanks to Device Firmware Configuration Interface (DFCI) which enables ICT teams to efficiently manage devices all the way down to the firmware level
- Peace of mind knowing devices are up to date and secure because of automatic UEFI updates pushed out by Microsoft, and Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) that works to fend off known threats from infiltrating devices
- Overall reduction in time spent managing devices. Forrester Consulting recently found that schools with Surface devices enjoyed a 50% reduction in ICT time post adoption1
The right technology solution for your school doesn’t have to cost the earth. A Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) program enables your school to plan and deliver education to students using consistent, education-specific Microsoft Surface devices. And it gives parents access to affordable devices tailored to your school’s learning environment.
[1] Total Economic Impact (TEI) analysis conducted by Forrester Consulting, “Maximising Your ROI from
Microsoft 365 Microsoft Surface”, July 2020.