Al’s #EdTech Blog

Sharing insights and articles on #EdTech, #DigCit and #Education

EdTech: Why schools have to become savvy shoppers

A MAT chair of trustees and edtech CEO outlines why, despite reforms aimed at helping schools with their buying decisions, there will always be a need to know how any tool fits into a wider strategy

Governors and Trustees: Overcoming the barriers to recruitment

Governor recruitment seems to be getting tougher and tougher. Al Kingsley considers why governance is a great role, the barriers that exist to recruitment, and how we might start to overcome them

Lifting the lid on school governance

Skills shortages are a concern in many industries across the UK right now. Healthcare, construction, farming, technology-based sectors and more are all struggling to recruit skilled people to fill vacant roles. It’s not going to be solved any time soon. According to the Learning and Work Institute’s prediction, there will be a shortfall of 2.5 million highly skilled workers by 2030.

How the UK can level up by bridging the digital divide

It is vital that our education system is working to bridge the digital divide for future generations. As the pandemic subsides, the rate of digital innovation shows no sign of slowing and continues to exacerbate the digital skill gap.

My School Governance Handbook

With nearly two decades of school governance experience across Infant, Primary, Secondary, All-Through and Alternative Provision schools and academies, distilled into an easy-to-read format, “My School Governance Handbook” aims to make the complex world of school governance simple and accessible to all.

Ensuring every student receives the “right support” in the “right place” at the “right time”

Al Kingsley explores the ways schools can best use digital technology to support and innovate education delivery for those with mental health, learning or physical needs.

Do Your Students Have the Confidence to Keep Themselves Safe Online?

What is self-confidence and why do we need it? Some people have it in abundance; others would love to have more.

‘Soaring rates of mental ill health are prompting schools to refresh their wellbeing strategies’

As the UK’s youth mental health crisis reaches breaking point, with approximately 1.5 million under-18s needing new or additional help with their mental wellbeing as a direct result of Covid-19, schools are facing a fresh wave of students needing extra support.

4 Tips to Ensure Your School Selects the Right Tools for Blended Learning

Learning methods change constantly; this much we know. As technology forms the foundation of schools’ efforts to prepare students for the future, it makes sense to incorporate it into teaching and learning as much as possible right now…

It’s time for a different mindset on digital security and privacy in EdTech

Our children’s immersion in education technology isn’t going to slow down, which means technology-related privacy and security can’t either. We’re never going to reach a point where we put our pencils down and say, “We’re all safe and secure now, so we don’t need to worry anymore.”

Three Tips For Managing Technology In The Hybrid Workspace

The future of work has arrived. the enforced shift to remote working in 2020 largely proved a surprise for business leaders, many of whom found that, contrary to their expectations, productivity did not plummet.

What Is Digital Poverty and Why EdTech Is Responsible for Driving Change?

The shift to remote and hybrid learning catalyzed by the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted many challenges and inequities in our current education system. One such challenge that has recently been at the forefront of my mind is digital poverty, the inability to interact fully with the online world — when, where and how an individual needs.