The King Edward VI Foundation want to be digital pioneers and make Birmingham the best place to be educated in the UK. It is critical, therefore, that we engage our digital expertise collectively across the organisation. This will ensure that any implementation is secure, robust and aligned with our emerging digital strategies.
Stakeholders from King Edward VI Five Ways and King Edward VI High School for Girls have provided thorough experiential feedback regarding the outcomes of the proof of concept at their schools. Each had both different and common aspects to their experiences. This is invaluable information to allow us all engage in a tailored and meaningful manner with each school and build robust future implementation plans.
Key themes have been captured from stakeholder engagement across the Foundation, including meetings with Headteachers, teachers, staff and students at Five Ways, Handsworth School for Girls, Camp Hill Boys, Camp Hill Girls, King Edward’s School, King Edward VI High School for Girls, Handsworth Wood Girls Academy, Aston and Balaam Wood Academy. These findings, alongside the lessons learned from migrating the Foundation Office, Five Ways and the High School for Girls, will prove invaluable as we plan future steps of the SCEP implementation with schools.
Outcomes of the proof of concept
| Outcome | Refining the implementation framework |
| The pedagogical opportunities of digital transformation and collaboration require further articulation | Teaching and Learning are our priority and our pupils are our most valued stakeholders. We are engaging and listening to understand the context and position of each school. We will demonstrate how the ideal school and classroom works in a Microsoft 365 Education environment. Understand what the art of the possible is for teaching in a digitally fluid world. |
| A tailored communication plan is required for each school | We will work with each Head to create engagement plans and schedules for each stakeholder at each school, including Heads, teachers, staff, pupils, parents, governors, et al. This includes sharing information and embracing feedback. |
| Detailed financial planning is required | Because we are seeking to further improve the way that we use technology in everything we do, rather than just swap one platform for another, further work will be taken regarding funding sources and timescales. |
| The user experience must be the same or better post-migration to the new platform | The move to a unified platform should, in the first instance, guarantee that your functionality is no worse – but the Discovery phase will also reveal and communicate what transformation and improvement will look like across both communications, productivity applications and teaching and learning. |
| Teacher workload must be fully factored in | Careful resource planning will take place to make sure that we do not ask teachers to do more and demonstrate longer term workload reduction enabled by digital transformation. |
| Security and safeguarding are paramount | Pooling cyber security expertise from our digital experts and developing robust and detailed test plans are part of the refined Implementation Framework. |
| IT infrastructure audits are required | Each school will have IT infrastructure audits to understand their current connectivity and capacity, and what they need for their own digital strategy. |
| Clear accountability, project management resourcing and implementation plans | The refined Implementation Framework details roles and responsibilities for sign off, project management and communication need. |
| Capturing teacher, pupil and parent activity and digital usage | The Discovery phase will look in depth at how teachers, staff, Heads and students use their current platform. |
| Technical implementation partner performance | We have brought in Martin Byford-Rew, a Microsoft specialist, who is engaging with the Foundation’s IT experts across our schools to ensure rigour and capture best practice and experience. |
| Training needs | Training will include real data and real examples of carrying out common tasks in a school setting. It will be timed well and also have support afterwards, including “how to” videos and material to make it easy. |
| Student-centric ethos | We will always be sensitive to student requirements and comments. We need to understand any student anxieties. |
| An eye on the future | The team will always be focused on the future. This is a step to enabling digital transformation for all of our teachers and students, supporting our mission of making Birmingham the best place to be educated in the UK. |
