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ICT strategy for schools: 5 essential tips you may have forgotten

Richard Sambrook Smith 17-Aug-2023 13:28:22

ICT Procurement & Frameworks ICT Strategy & Planning Education Technology Educational Organisations

ICT strategy for schools: 5 essential tips you may have forgotten

For UK schools and MATs, technology has become an integral part of life, allowing them to track attendance, monitor performance, communicate between departments and deliver curriculums in the most effective ways possible. Because of this, the importance of successful ICT strategies in schools cannot be overstated and getting your strategy right, from implementation to execution, will bring about noticeable improvements from the first day.

An ICT strategy will take into consideration not only your ICT objectives, but also your broader vision and where you want to be as an educational institution in the future. It will set out the necessary steps to take next, allowing you to optimise your ICT budget and realise your short and long-term objectives. Essentially, an ICT strategy is a roadmap that’ll enable you to identify, source and harness the necessary technology to unlock a host of benefits and opportunities.

When discussing ICT strategies for schools and MATs, we need to also recognise the value of an ICT audit, and it can play in developing an effective ICT strategy. An ICT audit is a service that can be provided by specialists like Novatia, to delve into your current ICT system and operations. This culminates in insights on your ICT health and effectiveness, therefore leading to bespoke recommendations for the next steps and developing your strategy (more on this later..,).

For now, let's focus on the ICT strategy itself as we provide you with 5 essential tips that you may have forgotten. But firstly, let’s explore the importance of having a successful ICT strategy.

Strategic Benefits

“A vision without a strategy remains an illusion”. Sure, perhaps a little on the nose, but this quote from Lee Bolman certainly rings true for ICT strategies in schools and MATs. The vision for success and meeting key objectives needs to be bolstered by a thorough understanding of your current ICT infrastructure, and what steps should be taken as part of your strategy to get results. A successful strategy can help make your vision a reality and provide a system that delivers for years to come.

Furthermore, the rapidly evolving technology landscape demands that schools continue to weigh up the opportunities and challenges that come with the latest advancements. An ICT strategy acts as a guiding framework that enables institutions to leverage technology seamlessly and effectively into the teaching and learning process where relevant, rather than the sake of it. It enables better resources and more engaging curriculums, often resulting in improved learning and performance. Interactive learning experiences help to make education more enjoyable and impactful for our students.

We touched on other operational benefits in our introduction, such as attendance and performance tracking. Further benefits include improved, data-driven decision-making, administrative efficiency and even enhanced communication between parents and teaching staff. Because of these improvements, cost savings may be present in the long-term as resource management and optimised processes can reduce overall spending.

5 Essential Tips

So now we’ve clarified why an ICT strategy is so important, let’s get onto the essential tips we promised:

1. Conduct a thorough ICT audit - It is essential to first assess the specific needs and requirements of your school, understanding your current ICT situation and objectives. At Novatia, we use our decades of expertise in EdTech to offer thorough ICT audits that lay the foundation for developing an ICT strategy. Our audits provide you with an independent appraisal of your technical, operational, and educational ICT. The findings of our audits are delivered in concise, non-technical reports that breakdown the exact information you require. You can find out more about our ICT Audit and Strategy services here.

2. Identify goals and objectives - Define what you want to achieve with your ICT strategy, such as improving student performance, increasing digital literacy, or streamlining administrative processes. Ensure that your objectives are specific and quantifiable (measurable) to give yourself a clear way of determining the effectiveness of your new strategy. Only once your goals and objectives have been set out can you properly begin implementing an ICT strategy.

3. Develop a foolproof plan - The actual implementation can be overwhelming if not planned out and thoroughly understood. An implementation plan outlines the exact steps and timeline for executing your ICT strategy. It includes tasks, responsibilities, and milestones, taking into consideration important factors such as training and professional development, procurement of hardware and software, and infrastructure upgrades. Break down the plan into manageable phases to monitor progress and make necessary adjustments along the way.

4. Budget and resource allocation - Establishing a detailed budget that includes costs for hardware, software licences, professional development, and ongoing support will make life much easier down the line. There are a lot of moving parts so keeping track of financial aspects will ensure control is maintained. We can support your budgeting by ensuring you’re investing in the right areas, for the right prices and over the right period of time. Our knowledge of the sector is vast and we’re able to guarantee that you don’t end up over-investing in the wrong areas.

5. Evaluate and monitor results - Regular evaluations are essential to gauge the effectiveness of your ICT strategy. As with any new systems, the true success of them can only be measured once it's underway. By collecting and analysing data, you’re able to make data-driven decisions that can refine your strategy. It’s recommended to encourage open communication with teachers, students, and parents to gather valuable insights and identify areas for improvement.

Conclusion

Schools and MATs can ensure a smooth integration of technology throughout their institutions by planning, implementing and executing an effective ICT strategy. Falling behind and failing to assess strategies can lead to outdated systems and ICT infrastructure, therefore potentially resulting in security issues, operational challenges, reduced performance and lower overall satisfaction.

We specialise in ICT audits and strategies for schools and MATs throughout the UK. We can get your new strategies over the line and help ensure the process is as cost-effective and successful as possible, without any unnecessary headaches. Find out more about the areas your ICT audit and strategy should cover in our free resource, or alternatively you can get in touch with us for a friendly chat about how we can help you.

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