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Tag: technology

Evoke Telecom are recognised ahead of The Comms National Awards 2019

Written by matt on . Posted in Blog, Schools.

The Evoke Telecom Services team are absolutely bursting with pride to have made it to the final of the Comms National Awards 2019 for Best Enterprise Vertical Market solution. The Awards final takes place at the Hilton on Park Lane, London on Thursday 10th October.

BEST ENTERPRISE VERTICAL MARKET SOLUTION

This award is aimed at reseller businesses that have provided a compelling solution for end user customers in the UK private or public sector.

The award recognises reseller solutions in specific vertical markets (e.g. finance, health, retail, local government, sport and recreation etc.) that have increased customer productivity, improved efficiencies and reduced costs in enterprise sized private or public-sector organisations.

The Comms National Awards classifies a Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) as an organisation with 5 to 250 employees. Anything above that number of employees is classified as an enterprise.

Now in their 18th year, the Comms National Awards is the Information and Communication Technologies most respected and coveted prize recognising excellence and innovation across the channel. This year’s awards have seen a record number of entries from thousands of hopefuls. Evoke feel truly blessed to receive this high level of recognition for providing a ‘UK first’ solution supporting what they believe is one of the most important and relevant topics of current times, ‘School Safety’.

Evoke is heavily focused on the Education vertical and pioneering safety within schools and campus environments.

Evoke made it to the final with their provision of the UK’s first Avaya Smart Campus solution to transform security and safety for >2000 pupils at The Loughborough Schools Foundation, whilst at the same time supporting the foundations Digital Transformation strategy and goals.
This virtualised, cloud-based solution enables instant multi-school communication and rapid campus wide lock-down, lockout or lock-in, in the event of an emergency.

“We put our trust in school staff to protect our children, so it gives me great peace of mind to know that the Foundation is so thorough and forward looking when it comes to considering, implementing and thereby protecting the safety of the pupils. It’s also incredibly reassuring to know that their teachers no longer have to rely on outdated technology to communicate with each other and parents. I hope other schools across the country take note.”

Mrs James  ~  Parent of 3 at the Foundation Schools.

This award would mean so much to the Evoke team and the Loughborough Schools Foundation as this will add additional endorsement to the ongoing messaging and prioritisation into other schools of this leading technology which, enables a safer school environment for all pupils.

A Tablet Device for Every Pupil?

Written by matt on . Posted in Blog.

Almost 70% of primary and secondary schools in the UK now use tablet computers, according to research.

What is  more, giving a tablet computer to every school child can have a big impact on improving pupils’ motivation to learn and encourage  independent study, research has found.

The effect is impressive as long as teachers are well trained before using tablets in class and schools invest in extra broadband and wi-fi capacity, the study also noted.

Despite the increase in the numbers of computers in schools, the study shows that hands on access for pupils remains limited. However, allowing pupils to play with and explore new tools could enhance their motivation to think, understand, learn and conceptualise in new and more creative ways.

The study, commissioned by education technology charity Tablets for Schools, looked at a representative sample of 671 state and independent schools. It found that tablets are now being used, at least to some extent, in 68% of primary and 69% of secondary schools, according to the study headed by Dr. Barbie Clarke of the Family, Kids and Youth research group.

What is more, researchers found examples of much more intensive use. For example , in 9% of schools, there was an individual tablet device for every pupil.

Interesting when you make the comparison that approximately 70% of young people have access to a tablet computer at home

The highest use of tablet computers was within academy schools – much greater than in independent schools or other types of state schools.

The underlying trend is for an increasing number of tablet computers in schools – among those not using them at present, 45% reported that they would soon be likely to introduce them.

Between 2014 and 2016, the number of tablet computers in schools is expected to at least double from approximately 430,000 to estimates of somewhere in the region of 900,000 devices!

However, Dr. Clarke, formerly of the University of Cambridge’s education department, says it is not possible to make a definitive connection between tablet computers and improved results. This is because currently researchers cannot definitively isolate the impact of technology as the specific cause of a rise in attainment. Nonetheless,   according to Dr. Clarke head teachers are reporting a positive impact from the use of tablets in the educational environment.

What is more, there is growing evidence that tablets may help to motivate pupilswho might otherwise be disengaged – and furthermore when pupils take home tablet computers it increases the involvement of families.

Dr. Clarke says that the role of technology is going to grow in schools. “The type of device might change, but it’s not going to go away. It will almost seem ridiculous if some of them are not using technology,” she said.

An early pioneer and adopter of ‘a tablet for every pupil’ is Loughborough High School (part of the Loughborough Endowed Schools). In the 2013/14 academic year they completed an impressive 1:1 iPad rollout for every pupil.

They are running an interactive one-day event on 10th February 09:30-4:30pm to share some of the issues involved in 1:1 iPad deployment for School Leaders, Network Managers, Bursars and Governors with a Keynote speaker from Apple UK Education. During this one-day event, school leaders and staff will share their vision and their journey so far:

More information can be found in the Conference Brochure

http://www.leshigh.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Loughborough-High-School-Tablet-Conf-leaflet.pdf

Reserve your place at ‘A tablet for every pupil conference’ by completing the online form

http://endowedschools.com/ocd.aspx?action=showReunion&reunionName=TabletforEveryPupilConference

Register for the event and you will:

  • Hear from the Headmistress, Bursar and Director of Studies about governance and finance issues, and the school’s decision making process
  • Receive technical insights from their IT Director and Network Services team, with learning points for each stage of the deployment
  • Learn how iPads are used by staff and pupils, with an opportunity to hear more about the later roll out at the prep school
  • Meet organisations they have collaborated with to deliver their vision
  • Find out what steps they have taken since the deployment to further enhance teaching, learning and organisation

At Evoke Telecom we work with schools and colleges in the local community to help them achieve their visionary goals and technological improvements with the underlying mission to  improve student outcomes and ensure technology is used as an effective enabler. Whilst the adoption of a tablet for every pupil is a growing and almost inevitable trend, so are the companies in the marketplace that offer expensive and not always best advice and solutions on how to upgrade and improve network infrastructure to accommodate this technology. The experienced team at Evoke, specialise in working with schools looking to deploy tablets, other network dependent solutions and the necessary supportive technologies. We offer good, sound, honest, no obligation advice as to how best achieve the desired outcome in the most cost effective and robust way.

Speak to one of the Evoke team today on 0800 8403688 or 01509 278278 for more information.