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Keeping Children Safe in Education 2023

The 'Keeping Children Safe in Education 2023' statutory guidance has been a great step forward for safeguarding in schools, and provides much needed ‘Must’ and ‘Should’ guidance in many areas of school life.

Working Digitally with Your Class: Who, what, where, when?

You’ve made it. A class set of iPad and one just for you. As a teacher in this situation for the first time, I had a mountain of questions about how to build the basics of digital classroom.

We Support, You Teach – making Apple technology effortless

Freedom of expression, creativity and problem solving - there's so much that Apple products and services bring to the classroom. But the benefits don't stop with the students. KRCS work closely with Apple and together, we can reduce teacher workload and take the burden off IT support.

Teaching the educators - Apple Professional Learning

Apple technology can help teachers give inspiring lessons, lighten their workload and simplify day-to-day teaching tasks. But only if teachers know how to use the devices and apps that are at their fingertips. That’s why KRCS provides teacher training for educators who use Apple in the classroom.

Blended Learning: Tech in Teaching is Simple

Let’s tackle what has become a hot topic in education: Blending Learning. At first glance, it may seem like teaching and learning has to be reinvented: teachers needing to be IT professionals and students not having equivalent access to resources.

Luckily, I’m here to say that’s not the case and Blended Learning works; is simple, effective and achievable for schools going into the 2020 - 2021 academic year. KRCS has been ready to support education with this for years: ready for distance, blended or even face to face learning using iPad and Mac to accelerate outcomes, autonomy and so much more.

KRCS awarded Apple Authorised Education Specialist accreditation

KRCS are pleased to announce that we’ve been awarded Apple Authorised Education Specialist (AAES) accreditation. This replaces the previous 'Apple Solutions Expert - Education’ or, ASE, which has been in place for many years.

Refresh & Recycle: Innovation is a process

With careful budget planning being required in all areas of public life, education is no exception, schools must make the right investments in their I.T. Longevity and value are frequently used in conversations we have with schools and careful planning can help to deliver on this. It’s where the KRCS Education team can help.

iPad Deployment Models: What are they?

As educators, the chance of having an iPad as part of our education tool kit is thrilling. Our minds race thinking of all the possibilities: “We could go paperless!” “Imagine not taking any books home to mark!” “There’ll be so many resources at my fingertips!

Supporting inclusion with the AV1 tabletop robot

Each year there’s a child in your class that you’ve marked absent before the morning bell goes. You know they’re not coming in today, tomorrow or next week. They’ve been diagnosed with cancer, anxiety or M.E. You can send work home in the post, via e-mail or it can be collected by their carer. Mum told you this morning that the pupil is missing everyone a lot too, which is taking its toll on their wellbeing.Surely, you think, there must be a better way for this child to stay connected to school life?

iPad Deployment Foundations

In this short article we will cover the fundamental technologies and programmes which should underpin an iPad deployment of any size in enterprise or education.

Planning Essentials - Getting you Started with your Education Vision.

We work side by side with educators to equip them with technology and knowledge to deliver the best education to their students. As an AAES (Apple Authorised Education Specialist) we currently manage thousands of iOS devices, hundreds of macOS machines and many tvOS devices so schools, colleges and universities can focus on teaching and learning, not technical hassle.

Everyone Can Create

We have talked about creativity in education as a recurring theme for many years. So, what’s so different about Apple’s latest offering? The Book series “Everyone Can Create” promises to change how we look at and implement, creativity in the classroom.

They are a free resource, so definitely worth adding to your Books collection and they provide what is, in essence, a free scheme of work for you to use with your class. Maybe the title should have been “Everyone Can (have a free scheme of work to help them) Create”.

Apple in the SEN classroom

Apple has always had a strong commitment to ensuring that its products have been as accessible as possible, for all users. Even in the 1980s, early versions of the Mac operating system had a number of features designed for visually impaired users to aid them with magnification, text sizing, and contrast. These are features which are still incorporated in today's operating system releases. To Apple, access for all is still a high priority almost thirty years on.

Apple in education; Affordability and value

The topic of affordability is always on the agenda when we discuss iPad & Mac projects with schools.

KRCS director and school governor, Robert Woods, has some valuable insights on ensuring your school's investments are affordable and giving your school the best value for your budget.

Mac deployment in Active Directory environments

A great plan for the upgrade of existing Macs or a new deployment needs an understanding of both the technology and teaching practices.

Updated 23/01/2019

iPad and SEN

Apple offers a huge range of innovative accessibility features which are built into all iOS devices as standard. With great features such as VoiceOver, AssistiveTouch and Guided Access, students of all ages can enjoy interacting with new technology.

(Updated 21/01/2019)

MyScript Calculator

In the KRCS education team, we’re often asked for App recommendations and ideas to help teachers get started with the App Store. We think you should check out MyScript Calculator.

Updated 16/01/2019

TrilbyBookclub

The newly launched TrilbyBookclub is a simple way to collect, publish and access your ebooks.

Updated 16/01/2019

Duolingo

Ever wanted to learn French, German or Spanish? Or even High Valyrian and Klingon?! Duolingo offers a completely free solution for helping you or your pupils take on a new language with ease.

Updated 16/01/2019

3D printing in education

3D printing, the revolutionary technology originally conceived back in the early 80s, is quietly making a revolution. From robotic hands to iPhone cases to architectural models, almost anything is possible with 3D printing

Apple TV in education

It will surprise most people that the Apple TV was launched over a decade ago. It’s been through several physical changes and many price changes too, since the early models which included a 3.5” hard drive and cost well over £200.

Subsequently, having shrunk dramatically in size, lost the embedded hard drive, added fantastic new built-in applications and dropped in price, it has come to be a must-have item not just for the ‘connected home’ but for the education market, too.

Annual Learning and Technology Conference

KRCS were proud to hold the exclusive Learning and Technology Conference on the 27^th of June at the historic National Brewery Centre in Burton upon Trent. Here are our highlights from the day.

iOS Deployment: A device management checklist

The summer term is the most popular time of year for institutions to review their ICT provision. Whether they have previously invested in an iPad solution and expanding or whether this is your first ever step with Apple devices, with new budgets in place, it’s an ideal opportunity to think and plan ahead.

Managed Service for Education

Planning wisely and budgeting ahead in this current economic climate, is a must. School finances are being squeezed across all departments. ICT equipment and services are not immune.

Every student can experience iPad with Managed Service

FirstClass Managed Service for Schools is a subscription plan, and an important part of our FirstClass Programme. The service is underpinned by an industry leading MDM, Jamf Pro. By incorporating best practice techniques from Apple, we ensure that your devices are deployed, and managed, effectively and efficiently, for up to 3 years.

Apple Special Event, March 2018

The Apple special event, with it's tagline of "Let's go on a field trip", was held on the 27th of March at a high school in Chicago. Given the tagline and the location, it had the expected focus on education. Apple showcased new products, software and initiatives designed to "Ignite the creativity in every student", with a special focus on a revised 9.7-inch iPad.

Little things add up to big things

Here at KRCS we work with many customers of all different sizes and needs. But fear not. No matter how big or small a school you are, we can help you.

CompuCover : Warranty and Insurance products

For many of us, our Macs and iPads are our most used pieces of technology away from our smart phones. In an educational setting, technology is now at the core of the curriculum, enabling teachers and students alike. Unfortunately, some institutions never consider the impact that a faulty, broken or worse, a stolen item, could have on a workflow or on a classroom.

Apple Cache Server

Whilst you probably know the exact size of your school’s iPad or Mac deployment, whether its 30 or 300 devices, and you may have complete control of them via a Mobile Device Management solution, you probably don’t have an clue of how much bandwidth is regularly used in downloading content from Apple and its online servers.

Whilst your site may be benefitting from faster and faster broadband service, when you have dozens of users within the school competing for the same bandwidth, nothing beats the speed and responsiveness of local network storage.This is where a caching service comes in.

iOS Charging Solutions

Many schools and educational institutions are now investing in classroom sets of iPads and are hoping to transform the learning experience of their pupils. However, has anyone thought about the practicalities of supporting these devices, and particularly, how you're going to ensure they're fully charged and ready to use throughout the school, every single day?

September is just around the corner

Your school or college life is over. Your A level results have come in and you’ve got your university place (congratulations!). But what now? If you’ve read the news, you’re now faced with increased tuition fees, housing and living costs, as well as the cost of textbooks and equipment. In the run up to September, you’ll be making some essential purchases and hopefully learning to blag as many freebies as you can!

September is just around the corner... iPad or Mac?

September is fast approaching, your loan paperwork is sorted, you’ve got a room in halls and your uni acceptance letter is getting liberally flashed around for every discount you can get. The question is though, you’re going to need something to type up all those class notes, read through the online course material, to write that late-night, caffeine fuelled essays whilst kicking back with Netflix or iTunes. Which laptop do you get? Do you even get a laptop at all..?

Swift Playgrounds

One of the last, and most significant announcements made at Apple’s 2016 WWDC (WorldWide Developers Conference), was Swift Playgrounds. Playgrounds is an iOS app and is designed to introduce children to the world of programming and forms the core of Apple’s “Everyone Can Code” initiative.

APL and other three letter acronyms…

So you have decided iPad is the way forward for your school. SLT have had various meetings and the governors have agreed to buy the iPad solution. Where do you go from here?

Relaunch by KRCS

The original iPad was introduced in January 2010 and much has changed in the intervening years. Greater performance, improved specifications and incremental operating system updates have helped make the iPad the first choice for the classroom.

However, the management of workgroups of iPads has taken some time to fully mature an this is why Mobile Device Management – or MDM – solutions have now become the tool of choice.

What does this change mean for you – practically – in the classroom?

Apple Volume Purchase Program

Apple’s ‘Volume Purchase Program’, or VPP, is Apples’ system which allows educational institutions to find, buy and distribute apps (…and books) in bulk. It also a source of many questions for our partner schools and institutions as teachers and administrators look to make the most out of their investment in Apple equipment in their schools.

iPad cases : Insurance-approved protection

Once you’ve decided on which iPad your school, institution and increasingly your business, is investing in, keeping it safe and secure against damage should be your next investment decision.

Restrictions and Settings using an MDM with iOS

Managing restrictions on an iOS device give a certain amount of control, but to enable full control of settings and restrictions that are not available on the device you need to enrol the device in to an MDM (Mobile Device Management) server.

Our Top 5 Applications for the classroom

Education is a massive part of what we do here at KRCS. We are always trying to introduce new and exciting opportunities for students and teachers to not only experience themselves but experience together. So we thought we’d introduce some apps (in no particular order) that our education team think are perfect for the classroom and often recommend on visits.

Shared iPad and Classroom app from iOS 9.3

Steve from our head office sales team, has put together some thoughts on two of the more significant aspects of the iOS 9.3 updates and how they can benefit those schools who use an iPad in the classroom.

Should schools be leasing new Apple Equipment rather then buying it?

In the past the words “lease rental’ have been something that can make schools particularly nervous.

Personalised Learning with iPad

The personal and portable nature of iPad, along with a great selection of workflow Apps, means that the iPad is a fantastic tool for truly independent learning

KRCS awarded CPC supplier status

KRCS Group are proud to announce that we have officially been awarded supplier status with Crescent Purchasing Consortium - CPC. This framework offers best value purchasing arrangements for Further Education, Academies, Free Schools and Schools sectors.

iOS 9.3 - A breakthrough for Schools

Usher in the most significant commitment from Apple to schools since they launched the iPad.  iOS 9.3.

iOS 9.3 is due for release in Autumn, and the beta version already available has revealed a number of amazing new tools and features.

Pixels!….Pixels everywhere!!

Whichever way you look at it, the new display on the iMac Retina 5k has a lot of pixels!

File Management with iPad

One of the questions that comes up whenever I speak to schools thinking of deploying iPad or extending their deployment from an initial few, is how to manage the files that have been created on the devices.

iPad Pro in education

Did we need a bigger iPad? We didn’t know until now, so where does it fit in education? The iPad Pro presents a wonderful opportunity to do something different.

iOS9 and shared devices

Anybody who has deployed iPads in significant numbers as shared devices will understand why preparation for the deployment was essential.

Apple have taken a step back and tried to look at this whole process from a different perspective, and the results are fantastic.

Education Technology and it’s changing pace

We are at a crossroads where technology is moving faster than ever and Education must keep pace in order to stay relevant. The term ‘we are teaching children for jobs that don’t exist yet’ is truer than ever.

Baker Days

The school summer holiday is over and Autumn appears to be here, so for the KRCS education team, that means there will be schools to visit to deliver Apple Professional Development training.

Storage options for iPad in school

Once you've decided to invest in iPad, along with deciding on which iPad that best suits your chosen deployment model, amongst the associated additional items, you also need to consider how you are going to store your new devices.

Upgrades – Getting new life out of old bones

Keeping an eye on the budget and balance sheet is as important as its ever been in these tough financial times.

Back to School

Getting your Mac or iPad ready for a new term is important, whether you’re a student or a teacher.

Focusrite iTrack Solo Review

I spent some time with Focusrite’s iOS-compatible audio interface to see if they’ve really found that magical balance between quality, affordability and simplicity of use. Sound too good to be true?

Apple updates iTunes U to v3.0

Apple has updated iTunes U to version 3.0 with even more powerful tools for teachers and educators to deliver courses and content to students.

5 common mistakes schools make when deploying iPad

Collectively our education team have provided hundreds of schools across the country with iPad solutions. In that time we’ve seen many fantastic achievements but equally we’ve seen mistakes too.

Arbourthorne Community Primary School

In 2013 Arbourthorne Community Primary School were able to achieve a One to One deployment in Year 6 with the help of KRCS.

Hazel Oak School

The children and teachers at Hazel Oak School, Solihull, have embraced technology with the help of KRCS.

GarageBand for Mac Update

With the launch of the new Apple Music, Apple have recently updated their hugely popular GarageBand for Mac with a huge collection of new software instrument sounds, 1000 new loops, Force Touch integration and new ways to share.

Pitch. Explain. Inspire.

Adobe’s Spark Video (formerly Adobe Voice) empowers users with a simple, fast and superbly fun app for creating your very own stories for the world to see. No filming necessary, with access to over 25,000 iconic images (along with all of your own) all you need is your voice to get a story across. 

Updated 18/01/2019.

Apple Schoolwork – a powerful tool for teachers

Schoolwork makes it easy to create assignments, view student progress, and more.