Take-up of information and communications technologies (ICT) in
schools and colleges in the UK is patchy at the best of times but
some schools are showing the way, writes Karl Cushing.
One such school is Sandwich Technology School in Kent, which has
taken a very progressive approach towards ICT, embracing e-learning
and actively encouraging the use of computers by pupils and staff.
The school, which was recently awarded Technology College status,
has 300 networked computers which are used for a variety of
cross-curricular activities. There are also 80 laptops for staff to
use for registering pupils electronically, with a further 50
laptops assigned as part of Microsoft's AAL (anytime anywhere
learning) initiative. These are all linked to the network via a
wireless Wav Lan system. Broadband Internet access is enabled via a
two megabit per second fibre-optic connection.
Not surprisingly, a key consideration for the school was
controlling as well as ensuring e-mail and Internet access.
The school's network manager Robert Draper says the school
considered creating its own bespoke software but this was not
feasible. In the end it went for an integrated, all-in-one solution
offering user controls, audit logs and a firewall for network
security - all managed via a browser-based management interface.
The system, Netpilot Enterprise from Equiinet, offers e-mail
serving; routing; Web, file and print serving; caching; and
multi-user Web access capabilities. However, for Draper the key
benefits are the inbound and outbound user access controls, which
enable the school to set up restrictions based on a number of
different criteria, including individual, group and time. It can
also set up Web access controls such as blacklists for blocking
undesirable sites and whitelists, which block everything bar a few
approved sites.
"During its first year of use, it has proved itself very reliable
and it is simplicity itself to manage," says Draper.
He adds that it has been particularly good for spotting people who
are abusing the system by either downloading restricted material or
visiting chat rooms and user groups. Anyone caught doing this will
be barred from accessing the Internet for a defined period,
although the threat of being able to track misuse is a big enough
deterrent for most people, Draper says.
The school is constantly looking at better ways to use new
technology, says Draper. One current initiative involves setting up
a wireless link to a local junior school, whose pupils will
eventually be taught remotely by teachers at Sandwich. The scheme
uses interactive whiteboards at both schools so they can talk to
each other over the wireless link.
The junior school has got 20 Psion netbooks which will be wireless
connected to Sandwich Technology School's thin-client Citrix
server, providing Internet access and enabling the netbooks to use
full-blown Microsoft Office 2000 applications.