p>Article content Public schools in Coquitlam (B.C.) could not have predicted the pandemic.
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p>Content of the article B.C. municipality's schools were perhaps more equipped than the majority of schools to face the challenges that COVID-19 presented to education.
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p>It is largely due to its partnership with Microsoft. This partnership allows for enhanced use of Microsoft's cloud-based, interactive, and educational tools that enrich learning experiences in the classroom.
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p>Stephen Whiffin, chief information officer and director of instruction in the Coquitlam School district, says that there has been a widespread movement to adopt technology in schools across Canada for a while.
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p>Since a few years, the goal was to make use of information technology to improve learning for the district's diverse students.
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p>"We have been focusing for some time on the implementation of Microsoft 365 Education, because it is a suite the majority of people are familiar with." https://jasonotto.net/ </p>
p>He says that Microsoft's popularity is crucial for educators and students to to quickly use the software. The school district was able quickly to switch to an online, at-home learning format following the pandemic.
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p>Whiffin says that all of our teachers owned laptops and Microsoft software on them. The IT infrastructure was also there to support this rapid shift.
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p>The new equipment and devices that the school board bought are running the latest cloud-based Windows 10 operating system, that allows for seamless connection to Microsoft 365's Education tools. Microsoft also provides IT management tools that let administrators manage connected devices networks, networks, and other resources.
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p>Article content It also offers its own Surface brand of touchscreen tablet/laptop/desktop hybrids for exceptional performance in educational settings, with affordable to premium price points.
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p>Microsoft's education suite of tools is based on its popular Office 365, the premier software for business across the globe. In partnership with school boards, Microsoft offers a free version of its education software for teachers and students across Canada. This provides access to powerful tools such as Teams, PowerPoint?, Excel and Word on their devices at home for learning, as as access to Minecraft: Education Edition. Students and parents also have access to specific add-ons designed specifically for the classroom.
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p>"For instance, Microsoft Teams - a core communication tool within the M365 suite - comes with special plug-ins designed specifically for education that assist in classroom learning and remote learning," says Whiffin.
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p>Microsoft's education package also includes apps such as OneNote? Class Notebooks. This allows teachers to create virtual spaces for private small group, or classroom activities.
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p>It's about more than software however. As Whiffin states, Microsoft provides the total package, and that's vital in a world where learning is advancing beyond the confines of the classroom.
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p>"All resources should be aligned, not just for learning, but also to provide the infrastructure that supports learning in the classroom as well as at home.
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p>Article content All Microsoft 365 Education tools are secured by unbeatable security and privacy safeguards, Whiffin adds.
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p>"That was crucial as parents and teachers were sure that their students would be secure using these tools," he says. It would be much more difficult to introduce these tools in our classroom without that trust.
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p>Microsoft's 365 Education suite proved to be a valuable tool for remote learning during the outbreak. However, the most striking example of its power to transform lives was that students and teachers continued to use it even after returning to in-person learning.
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p>"That's a testament to the quality of the experience and the efficacy of tools to enhance education," he adds.
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p>The key to the Coquitlam school district's success is Microsoft's unifying platform that meets the demands of students, teachers and other staff members.
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p>Whiffin claims that Microsoft 365 Education offers one set of tools that can help students learn, whether they are using Excel to build presentations, PowerPoint? to crunch numbers or Teams to communicate in real-time.
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p>To find out more about Microsoft 365 Education, or download the suite, click here.
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