Having a digital education platform is mandatory!

From 22nd October 2020 schools have a legal duty to provide remote education for state-funded, school-age children unable to attend school due to coronavirus (COVID-19) according to the newest set of government guidelines.

In response to COVID-19, the Department for Education (DfE) is offering support to schools and trusts in England to set up an accredited digital education platform, either G Suite for Education or Microsoft Office 365.

Fast track for schools going into lockdown

Schools that are at risk of, or are going into, localised lockdown will be prioritised. Wizkids can have your school sync up and running within 5 days. This means that all staff and students will be allocated a google account where you can use essential remote learning tools such as G Suite for Education.

What is G Suite for Education?

G Suite for Education is a free to use digital education platform, it has a wide range of capabilities, perhaps the most prevalent are as follows:

1. Google Classroom

Google Classroom is an app within the G Suite for Education package. It simplifies how the school works so that teachers can spend more time focusing on what matters: teaching. It can be used to:

• Assign and assess work remotely
• Collaborate with the whole class
• Manage all your classes

2. Communication

Communication within G Suite for Education is made simple. Streamlined communication is achieved whether it’s between staff members, pupils, or parents. There are various communication apps within the package that every user has automatic access to, including:

• Video chat (Google Meet)
• Email (Gmail)
• Chat 
• Voice

3. Collaboration

Whether you need to work together on a document, presentation, or spreadsheet, G Suite for Education is made for collaboration. The unique thing about G Suite is that you can co-edit in real time, that means multiple users can edit a document at the same time so there is no need to email versions of a document back and forth.

Timeline

The process from application to deployment is quick and streamlined and should take just one week to complete. So you can make sure you are prepared for possible school closures or self isolations and that you are complying with the government’s guidelines.

Eligibility

Funding is available to state-funded primary, secondary, special schools and pupil referral units in England. The DfE scheme only covers schools looking to get set up on G Suite for Education or Office 365 Education. Don’t apply for the scheme if you want to use a different platform.

How much is the grant?

Set-up funding for individual schools is as follows:

• Eligible primaries will receive £1,500
• Eligible secondaries will receive £2,000
• Academies in trusts are capped at £1,000 per school

The set up cost includes:

• User accounts created from schools data system (including Google Classroom)
• Training portal
• 2 hour handover session
• 1 hour CPD training
• 1 hour technical support

Extra help from Wizkids

On top of the support that is included in the funded set up, Wizkids can offer you some extra help to make life easier. Edulife is our solution to cutting down admin, staying organised, managing school data easily and securely, and allowing teachers to have more time to teach. All of this is achieved with our automated sync between your schools Active Directory and G Suite.

Find out more and apply today

New applications have until December 31st 2020 to apply. You can find out more and apply through The Key for School Leaders.