Introduction to Developing Online Technology In Education:
Our project to develop an effective ICT infrastructure and to develop our schools as an ICT school of excellence began with the development of a large extension to our school in c.2012. this gave interested staff an opportunity to develop a system that they believed would fulfil the needs of students and teachers.
Staff researched various ICT systems, developed links with ICT companies, in particular VMware. Mr Gordon O'Reilly, Director of Global Training enabled Bandon Grammar School (BGS) to use a particular type of software that would have traditionally been used in the finance and corporate sectors.
Dr Edward Gash and Mr Darren Platts helped to design and implement a VDI system managed on a server located within the school. This system (Generation 1) has helped to develop ICT skills of many students within the school and an interesting observation worth noting is the increase in students choosing ICT-based courses at third level.
A second point to note is the speed with which more and more students are completing the European Computer Driving License. (ECDL)
Key Terms: (Click on the hyperlink below to view a definition)
Other activities that we undertake:
Introduction to Donating Old Technology In Education
Who we are:
We're part of a small
group of teachers who are using their free time to help schools in the locality
to improve their ICT resources and infrastructure.
What we're attempting to do:
Get second hand computers into the primary schools in Cork
What we’re looking for:
We’re looking for old / second-hand IT equipment that
your firm may be considering sending to recycling or simply throwing out.
We need second hand computers or laptops. Preferably,
the laptops would also include the charger while the computers would include
leads, keyboard, mouse and if possible, a flat screen monitor. (Most of the
primary schools simply do not have the space for the old-fashioned large
monitors.) Computers and laptops that have Windows XP or higher are the minimum
standard required.
It is a simple situation that any assistance would be
a help. We can collect the units if needed. We have a policy that the memory on
all equipment received will be erased (re-formatted) to ensure security and
privacy. We have had some success in obtaining equipment but we need a lot more
to satisfy our anticipated demand.
Where these units will go:
Once ready, these units will be distributed for free
to local schools. (Or specific schools if you would prefer) We have been in
contact with six schools so far. Two secondary schools and four primary schools
have benefited from the system. They
really appreciate the fact that we re-format the hard drive on the units,
install software where required and deliver them to the schools for free. (No
strings attached – nothing expected in return … not even a thank you!)
Our mission:
We are simply committed to fostering a local
environment where our youth have access to computers. We are also running the
Bandon Coderdojo in our school in support of this policy. A Coderdojo is a
voluntary computer club manned by teaching staff and volunteers to encourage
children to discover the world of ICT. We simply cannot do this without working
computer equipment.
If there are any queries, please feel free to contact
me using the links provided.
Thank you for your interest and support in this
project.
