Data Protection and Cyber Security in a Pandemic

In a pandemic, when trying to keep students learning and businesses operating, while schools, offices and shops are no longer able to operate as they normally would, cyber security and data protection aren’t exactly top of the list of things to consider.   They may even have fallen off the list altogether.   As such, over a year after the first lockdown I thought it appropriate to share some thoughts in relation to data protection and cyber security in schools.

During a pandemic it is critical to prioritise.   The important things come first.   So, health, safety and wellbeing are likely at the top of the list.   For businesses, during a lockdown, the ability to work remotely is critical while, when looking at educational institutions, enabling online teaching and online learning are critical, all requiring action to be taken quickly.    Back in mid-march 2020, although the writing was on the wall, we didn’t see the first UK lockdown coming and so when it did there was a rapid move to put the relevant technologies in place to enable online working, teaching and learning.

The issue with this rapid deployment of technology was that it was done based on an immediate need rather than fully thought and reasoned out.    Considerations, such as potential cyber security of data protection risks, were, due to immediate necessity, either pushed to the side or given less consideration than they would normally receive, or they are due.    So now we find ourselves a year further on, here are some of the things I think we should be looking at:

  • The big players

Schools coalesced largely around the two big players in relation to cloud based productivity solutions, being Google and Microsoft.    For me this was done for very good reasons given the functionality provided by each, however I wonder if the implications of this, such as the reliance on a single platform had been considered.   I also wonder if schools have considered what they would do in the event of a significant issue/outage within their chosen platform or if specific tools within the platform were discontinued.   I do believe that it is almost essential to select one of the two platforms, however I think it is important to consider the implications of this decision.

  • Where is my data?

During the pandemic, and in order to deliver the best learning experiences possible, teachers introduced new apps, often for specific lesson activities rather than for long term use.    I suspect that as a result of this the overall visibility in relation to the apps in use, and therefore the location of school data, may have reduced.    This is something that will need to be addressed and will likely require schools to audit the apps in use as we move forward.

  • PIA and risk assessments

Linked to the above, apps may have been introduced without an appropriate review of cyber security and data protection, including reviewing terms and conditions, privacy policies and other documentation relating to third-party apps.   This would have been done due to the need to quickly adapt to the remote learning and teaching situation we found ourselves in however as we move forward appropriate reviews and impact assessments will need to be carried out.   Additionally, changes to existing platform settings or their usage are likely to have been made to facilitate learning during a lockdown, and as such any previously conducted risk assessments or impact assessments may no longer be valid; These will therefore need to be reviewed and updated.

  • Use of personal devices

During lockdown both students and staff have often either been forced or have chosen to make use of personal devices in remote working and remote learning.    With this comes cyber risk and also data protection implications, such as the potential for school data to end up on a personal device which is shared by different members of a family.    This needs to be considered and risk assessed, and appropriate mitigation measures put in place, whether these be technical measures and/or policy measures.

  • Remote Access

Remote access to systems was key during lockdown.  How else would students and staff access the relevant systems including both teaching and learning, and administrative systems.   We now need to review this situation with a view to cyber security to limit the risk of the malicious use of remote access by external threat actors, plus also to ensure that remote access settings are appropriate to a secure IT environment.

The above 5 issues are the 5 which come most easily to my mind however I suspect I could easily continue this blog to cover 10, 15 or even more items which we now need to consider.    The pandemic and resulting lock down required us to work quickly and flexibly to identify solutions.   We now need to spend some time and reflect on the decisions made, and to check that in the longer term they continue to be the right decisions.  

As I have commented on a number of previous occasions, the issue with data protection and cyber security is that everything is ok until it isnt.   We may have put new systems in place or changed settings to support us through the pandemic.    There may be no current issue with what has been done however unless we now spend time to analyse the decisions and their potential implications, we run the risk of sleep walking into a data protection or cyber issue.   As some sense of normality hopefully returns to the world, we need to look back to the rapid change the last year has brought and assure ourselves that we are happy with what is in now in place.

Confidence

When looking at teachers using Technology in lessons, one of the key indicators in relation to their successful use of technology is confidence.    Those who, in my experience, have had the most success have been confident about how they plan to use technology and the impact it will have.  That is not to say that it always goes well or as they would have expected, but they are confident in outlook, and when things don’t go as intended, they confidently deal with this as a road bump rather than an obstacle, before moving on.

The challenge therefore is how do we build this confidence, with “training” being key.    Training in relation to the technology itself and how it works, and training in relation to how to use it for the purposes of teaching and learning.   

One of the limitations though in relation to training, to sharing and building confidence, is time.   Time to train has historically been limited to specific inset days where the schedule is often prescriptive.   To counter this limitation, we have increasingly been referring to continual professional development (CPD) or continual professional learning (CPL); I prefer the later as the former suggests something is lacking and in need of development.   The emphasis here, in both versions, being on the “continual” nature of the learning and sharing.   It isnt a once a year or once a term, but something ongoing, continual and day to day.  It should be part of the culture of our schools.

The challenge with CPL (or is CPLS better, where the S refers to sharing?  Education has more acronyms than a series of Line of Duty!)  is supporting it to occur and I think the last year of lockdown has given us a bit of a window into what we need to be doing.

The last year has seen massive amounts of fast paced change as teachers across the world have had to shift from face to face classroom learning, the type that every teacher would have been used to post their training, to online teaching and learning.    What I have seen as a result of this forced change is a need to find support and help.   This need has been met through online platforms, EdTech tools and social media, including solutions such as Microsoft’s Educator Centre, through groups of proficient users such as Microsoft Innovative Educator Experts, Google Certified Educators and Apple Innovative Teachers, and also through more local groups including groups of schools which have come together to support each other.    I have also seen support groups form in individual schools using platforms such as Microsoft Teams to allow staff within school to share their successes and issues, and for other staff to learn from and support each other as and when required.   This is something I feel has worked well in my own school.

The last year has seen various support groups pop up plus I suspect will have seen greater engagement in such groups as teachers everywhere sought to adapt to the forced change brought about by the pandemic.    Teachers have been sharing their issues, sharing their techniques, sharing what worked and what didn’t, supporting each other to get through the challenges the pandemic has brought.   For me the key going forward is for these groups to continue to support teachers, providing a place to share techniques, ideas and thoughts, and for teachers continue to engage.   These groups also need to exist at different levels from the large corporate sponsored groups offered by Microsoft and Google, through to the support groups operating inside our schools, made up of our colleagues helping one another.

One of my favourite phrases continues to be “the smartest person in the room, is the room”.    I think this is key to “training” or CPL.   The days of the expert trainer and one-off training session are gone and especially in relation to EdTech where technologies change, disappear or are introduced on a daily basis.   As such it is critical we embrace a more open, just in time model, sharing not just what works but openly discussing what hasn’t worked, so that we can all benefit.  This needs to be available throughout the year for teachers to engage as and when it is appropriate for them, to dip in and out as needed.

I do wonder that maybe one of the challenges we currently have is that the sharing of ideas, resources, etc is spread across different platforms.   I have seen resources on specific websites belonging to companies or groups, on social media using twitter, on YouTube, on MS Teams, etc.    As such it can be difficult or time consuming to find things, plus it means that on each particular platform you are only able to access a subset of the teaching expertise available rather than all of it.    I suspect this fractured nature of sharing and the associated resources is unlikely to change as people tend to their preferred platform or the platform used within their school, however I suspect as we move forward there will be a greater curation of the available resources.

Building confidence is key to the successful use of EdTech in schools.    We therefore need to consider how we support and enable confident to be built.   Also worth noting, the above refers to confidence of staff however it is equally important that we build confidence in our students, however I will leave that for another post.

Sustainability

Prior to covid-19 I attended a CIO event, where presenter after presenter talked about how their organisation was now looking at sustainability and how to be more environmentally concious.   Up until this point, when I considered sustainability in relation to IT my thinking was focussed on the financial and resources implications of IT.    If we purchase a particular service or equipment, will we be able to continue to support it in terms of ongoing replacement, licensing, and also other support costs into the future?   If the answer is yes, then it is a sustainable solution and therefore one we can move forward with.

Having attended the CIO event, I am now thinking a little bit differently.   I am now thinking about the environmental implications of procurement, of continued use and of disposal or recycling.

Procurement

When purchasing IT equipment or services we need to start thinking more about the implications of our decisions on the environment.    If it is hardware, we are looking at we need to consider how the product is created, whether recyclable materials are used, how the product is delivered and the resultant fuel requirements, plus also the packaging which may be used.    We need to start asking our suppliers to prove they are environmentally concious.

In relation to online services, we need to start considering the power implications of running servers and the associated cooling of such servers.   Are online service companies acting responsibly and carbon offsetting for example?

Continued use

The environmental implications of how a service or company operates have recently been highlighted to me in two companies which choose to send me significant piles of invoice documentation in the post.   I found myself wondering about the cost to the environment of the paper used, the ink, the process of printing and then of transporting the documents to me via conventional post.    It struck me that both companies clearly were not very concious of the environmental impact of their decision to post me stacks of invoices rather than providing these documents online.

I have since challenged both companies to re-think their processes, which I hope is something they have taken on board.   I think we all need to do more to challenge where processes have not been designed with minimising their environmental impact in mind.

Disposal

Disposal is a relatively obvious part of the product lifecycle and one we should generally already have in mind.   We need to ensure that equipment which reaches the end of its useful life with us, either can be moved on to be reused or can be, as much as is possible, recycled.

Conclusion

I will admit to not previously giving the environmental impact of my decisions enough consideration.   It may have been that my assumption was that each company should be doing this however now I have come to realise that it is for each of use to challenge the companies we work with, the third party suppliers and services, to ensure that together we are environmentally concious.   Going forward I am therefore going to develop a framework for challenging my third parties in relation to environmental consciousness plus will also be conducting a review of our own practices.

It is for all of us to develop our environmental consciousness with a view to ensuring the sustainability of the planet which supports our lives.

Technology Expertise

In relation to one of my previous posts looking at Technology infrastructure I received a comment regarding schools having the relevant expertise to make appropriate technology purchasing and setup/configuration decisions.

“I think one of the biggest barriers is many schools do not have the expertise to truly understand what infrastructure they need. “

This comment got me thinking about the challenge of making technology infrastructure decisions.

I don’t know what I don’t know

The first challenge when looking at infrastructure relates to not knowing what we don’t know.   Technology advances quickly and technology companies love to invent new terminology and acronyms.    As such it is very difficult to keep up to date.   Additionally, in considering technology we have to look at its usability, reliability, technical functionality, cost effectiveness, cyber security and many other aspects.   When looking at new technology or technology which you don’t have experience with, it is almost impossible to know all you ideally need to know.

Vendors and Salespeople

Technology salespeople will often indicate that they have your best interests in mind and that their product is superior to others.   They will also play up what is “possible” and play down any particular difficulties or limitations of their solution.   This is all to be expected, after all as salespeople their job is to sell a product or service.   Sadly, however, it means you might come out of calls with different competing vendors without truly knowing which solution is best for your context.

Change management

No matter how good your planning is, if your technology infrastructure project is sufficiently complex, which is becoming increasingly the case with all technology projects, there is a high likelihood that there will be things you could not or did not predict.   As such the management of change will not be as simple as anticipated and any plan you had, is unlikely to capture the complexities of the real world.

So, what can we do about it?

My first piece of advice is to read and consult widely.   Talk to different companies, read case studies, watch webinars and generally try to keep up to date as much as you can.   It is unlikely this will give you all the relevant information for infrastructure decision making, but it’s a good place to start.  This does take time, however its time well spent.

Make use of groups or forums involving other educational establishments.   There are plenty of forums available including the Association of Network Managers in Education (ANME) for one.   These groups allow you to seek support and advice from others who have undertaken infrastructure and other projects.   You can ask for advice as to possible solutions or seek the experiences of others in relation to particular vendors or services.   As such they are a valuable source of help and can allow you to gather expertise with little cost other than time.

Consider the use of a technology integrator.  Using such third parties allows you to make use of their expertise to help you with your technology projects.   This includes their experience of project management of infrastructure projects in the education sector. Obviously the one thing to take care of here is that they too are looking to sell you their expertise and time, and therefore it is well worth talking to other schools for their experiences, in selecting a possible integrator.    Now I note that this will generally increase project cost however in hopefully reduces the likelihood of mis-steps along the way, where trying to take on projects in-house, so is often well worth the cost.   It is also increasingly becoming difficult, with increasing complexity of projects, to have sufficient expertise in house meaning the requirement for external support is becoming more common.

Start small.   Avoid going all in on a project as no matter what planning has been done, it is unlikely you will have been able to predict all eventualities.   So, try to start with a trial or pilot of new infrastructure to see how it works within your context and to allow you to identify any issues which you wouldn’t have been able to identify in advance.   Some vendors will be happy to accommodate free or discounted cost trials, so it never hurts to ask.

Conclusion

As we seek to use more technology and as the technology, and integration of different technologies gets more complex, it is becoming increasingly common not to have the relevant technology expertise available in a school or school group.   In fact, I think it is almost becoming the norm now.   It may be that those that think they have 95% – 100% of the expertise needed, outside of simple projects, are being overconfident.

As such we now need to focus on developing expertise and on leveraging the collective expertise available within the education sector, and even beyond.   I believe we also need to embrace that technology in schools, including the associated infrastructure, is part of a journey.   Given this, we will seldom start out with everything we need.

Devices

Schools need devices both as a tool for learning but also in being prepared for lockdown situations such as those currently being experienced, whether these come about due to a pandemic or due to another cause.

In the UK some work has been done on getting devices to students, some through the DfE and some through charities and other groups, or even schools themselves trying to gather up devices and distribute for use of students.

We have come a long way however we have some way to go.

Now I will note that we can’t ignore that devices themselves aren’t enough.   We need internet access, and the required infrastructure which provides this, which currently not all have.   I have posted previously in relation to the need for infrastructure.   Additionally, we need training for parents, students and teachers plus we need support structures so they can seek help when needed.

The other big concern I have however is sustainability.   We may have issued devices to many students during the course of the pandemic however this is only a temporary solution.  This effort and investment solves the issue for some students as it is now and for the short term future however in 3 or 4 years time the devices which have been issued will be out of date, may have failing batteries or may no longer be supporting updates to their operating systems, and may represent a cyber risk.  At this point we will find ourselves back where we were 1 year ago when the pandemic began.   Once again, we will find ourselves in need of effort and investment to get replacement devices into the hands of our students.

I remember back to “laptops for teachers” and to working in schools some 4 or 5 years later.   The devices needed replacement however the original centralised funding was no longer present and schools themselves didn’t have the funding in place to replace the laptops which teaching staff had been given access to.   What we really need, isnt just investment and effort now, what we need is a longer-term strategy and plan which lays out how we will make sure our efforts now are sustainable and constant into the future.

As to the specifics of the devices themselves, I have at times showed preference for iPads, for Chromebooks and also more recently for Microsoft Surface devices.   In reality, despite my changing personal preferences, I recognise that each device has its advantages and may fit differing contexts so acknowledge that there is no single answer.   For me the key needs are devices which have good battery life, are portable, robust and reliable.    I also think inking ability is becoming increasingly useful although may not quite be a requirement yet.  A decent camera is also a requirement however this is now a standard feature of modern devices. 

There is also the issue of whether all students should have access to the same device or whether it is ok for students in the same class to have different devices and to bring their own device.   Each of these two options has its challenges.   For example, a single device is a challenge in terms of cost whereas bring your own devices is challenging in terms of teachers supporting different devices and the lack of consistency.    Again, I don’t think there is a single best answer, it is very much dependent in the context of the individual school.

Thinking about it, the key issue in relation to devices, is simply ensuring that teachers and students have access to a device.   Once students have the required digital tool, it is then possible to make use of it to support, enhance and even reimagine learning. 

Access to devices is another fundamental requirement if we are to effectively use technology in learning and in schools.

Internet Filtering

There was a time when safeguarding in relation to technology use was simple.    I remember when this was the case, when I was teaching IT in a secondary school as well as acting as the IT coordinator.   The only devices with internet access which the students had access to were in the school, the technologies to allow bypassing of filtering or which might make filtering difficult were few and far between, plus generally only for techie types rather than users in general.  Back then it was simple; Your internet filtering kept students from harmful content plus allowed you to monitor what students were doing online so you could tick the compliance box in relation to online safety.

The world isnt as simple anymore.

Although you still have your filtering in place you cannot consider this enough anymore.    Firstly students now are likely to have a mobile phone with data connectivity;   The filtering of internet access on your school network is of little use here whether students are using their connectivity for themselves or even sharing it as a wi-fi hotspot for their friends.  And in some schools students will even be bringing their own devices to school to actively use in lessons.

Tools for maintaining user privacy have also changed significantly.  15 years ago, in the secondary school I taught in, students would attempt to bypass filtering using web proxies.  These were easy to identify and therefore easy to then block.   Students used these as it was easy for them to use, simply requiring only the web address of the proxy.    Today students have access to all manner of tools from VPNs, which are now advertised on TV in relation to personal data security, to the ability to setup a dark web site with only one or two clicks.    Some services even market the fact they don’t keep logs.   Disposable email and social media accounts can easily be created as and when needed, or maybe even spin up a virtual PC in the cloud, use it then destroy in when done, taking with it any evidence of what it was used for.    The tools schools have to keep students within a safe internet bubble havent changed much, but the user-friendly tools which students have access to in order to bypass any restrictions have grown significantly.

Next the increasing need for privacy and security online is moving all sites and services towards systems which are less easy to monitor.   First it was almost all sites moving from HTTP to HTTPS.   The next step seems to be a move to DNS over HTTPS.   Given DNS requests are a key feature of filtering solutions, the encryption of these requests will render filtering solutions unable to see which sites students are actually visiting.    A solution here is SSL decryption which would allow filtering solutions to decrypt and then re-encrypt DNS requests as well as data however this in itself has its implications;   Is it acceptable to break a fundamental security measure built into sites in the interests of safeguarding?     By breaking the fundamental security of website traffic could we put student data at risk as it traverses our filtering solutions, and if so, is this risk acceptable?    And, is all of this effort worth it if students can simply hop onto their 4G/5G signal and bypass all of these precautions at will?

For me, what was very much a simple compliance measure in the need for a filtering solution has now changed significantly.    We need to therefore stop looking at this issue in terms of simply having filtering/monitoring in place and consider it from a broader risk point of view.   What are the benefits of how we use technology in our school?   What are the risks?   How do we reduce/mitigate these risks?  Do any of our mitigation measures limit potential positive uses of technology and is this acceptable? 

For me it is all about a balance between an open network allowing students to explore the breadth of potential positive uses of technology, along with the corresponding risk, versus a closed environment where technology usage is limited in the name of safety but equally this limits potential beneficial uses of technology.     Each school needs to identify where it stands on this continuum, what it supports in terms of technology use and what mitigation measures will be put in place.   This then needs to be regularly reviewed in relation to new technologies and also new or changing uses of technology within school.

Safeguarding in relation to technology use is no longer simple;  It is no longer a simple compliance tick box, or simple internet filtering box but instead a larger conversation around the benefits and risks of technology use in school, by staff and by students.

Infrastructure

For me there are a number of foundation stones upon which successful technology use in schools are built.   Some of them are technical in nature and some less so.   In this post I want to briefly explore the technical foundations and infrastructure in particular.

One of the things I have found is that building successful use of technology isnt easy.  It takes planning, time, effort and much more.    The only thing more difficult, is trying to build technology use where your users, your students, staff and parents, are not confident in the technology’s reliability.   If while developing the use of technology, the technology proves itself to be unreliable, you will have a hard time getting users to buy back into its use.   As such the key is to try and get it right first time.

Infrastructure

Using technology now largely involves devices of some sort being connected to the internet.   Devices access the resultant bandwidth through the network infrastructure with the initial connectivity through Wi-Fi or it can be through network cabling.  This infrastructure is critically important to technology use.   In deciding on the infrastructure needed consideration needs to be given to the number and type of devices which will be in use, how technology will be used as well as the need to futureproof any solutions.    Cyber security and safeguarding are also a significant consideration to ensure users are kept safe and that users, systems and data are secure.   In my experience good infrastructure isnt cheap, but the costs of a poor infrastructure in terms of lost time, loss of user confidence and lost effort significantly outweighs the financial cost.    In relation to cost it is also worth noting that infrastructure costs are not a one-off.   Any investment to improve infrastructure requires continued investment to keep everything maintained, supported, secure and also up to date with new technology as it arises.  The above applies to both infrastructure in schools to support technology on-site but also the broader need for infrastructure at a national level to support students and teachers at home, as they have been through the recent significant period of lockdown.

I do however wonder in relation to the above whether 5G may start to change things at least inside schools.    As we currently look at BYOD and students bringing their own devices, will we eventually be looking at BYON and students bringing their own network, their own infrastructure, in the form of 5G enabled devices.    In doing so might this allow schools and other educational establishments to move the funding currently focussed on infrastructure to other areas.    On the reverse of this though, this will likely also result in new challenges such as providing support and also safeguarding where each student and teacher is effectively using their own network.     It will also be a challenge in terms of access to 5G across countries as a whole;   I note some areas in the UK which are currently lucky to get 3G or 4G never mind a 5G signal, and that’s after many years of 3G and 4G being in operation.

Pilots and trials

In developing new infrastructure, pilot projects are key.    Through smaller pilot projects you can limit potential loss of confidence, plus users involved are also more likely to accept a level of unreliability or trial and error based on the trial nature of the project.    This is all about limiting the scope to limit the risk while allowing new things to be tried, whether this is a Wi-Fi solution or new network switching, etc.   Going big from the outset may seem like the way to get things done quickly, however it also represents greater risk, and sometimes the issues that arise mean that it actually takes longer.   It also tends to be more costly unless you are lucky and everything goes exactly as is planned, which in my experience is seldom the case with IT projects above a very small scale.

The wider need

The global pandemic has proven that schools across the world were at vastly different places in terms of being ready to use technology to address the challenges which arose.   The same is true in relation to technology use in general in schools.    The foundational infrastructure is equally varied across schools, however, in my view, requires significant investment both in the short term but also continually in the longer term.    

We cannot hope to consider the pedagogy, training of teachers and students, sharing best practice, etc, in relation to technology use in education before we get basic fundamental and reliable infrastructure in place.    There is a lot to do in the immediate term to address this and ensure the basic infrastructure exists in all schools.    There will then need to be an ongoing effort to maintain this.  

The pandemic for me have clearly identified the need for the technology infrastructure to be addressed;   Now we just need to do something about it!

EdTech: Start with the why?

Back in 2013 I shared a framework in relation to EdTech which consisted in 4 layers.   The bottom layer being focussed on understanding why EdTech is important, the next layer concerned with fundamental building blocks, before training/professional development, eventually leading to confidence.

Looking back at this framework, I think there may be some things which could do with being added, however largely I think it still stands.

Considering the first level of my framework, focussed on all involved being aware and embracing the reasoning as to why technology is important, I identified the following:

  • Technology Based World: The world is certainly more technology based then ever before as we live through the current pandemic, as we seek to keep in touch with others via Zoom, we seek to work and learn from home and we use apps in almost every area of our lives.
  • Manager of Learning: In the pandemic, we havent had access to the usual data associated with teaching face to face, however instead we have access to analytics in relation to student interaction with online platforms plus tools such as the replay function in OneNote which provides us insight into students learning in how their answers to questions have developed.
  • Deliverer of Learning: Online platforms can deliver the learning content to students and then guide students through additional materials based on their strengths and weaknesses, all on an individual student level.
  • Facilitator of Learning: Technology has facilitated learning opportunities which wouldn’t have previously been possible including allowing guest speakers to join virtual classrooms or students to explore space via VR.   There are still many further opportunities which we have not yet identified.
  • Research Evidence:  This point I am not so sure on; The evidence which currently exists often presents opposing outcomes.   I think in 2013 having been focussed on the benefits of EdTech I may not have truly appreciated some of the research which found against edTech’s impact.   That said, for me, there is enough research to suggest technology can, in the right context, with the right staff involved and applied in the right way, have a positive impact on learning.
  • Changing Brains: This is another point, on reflection, I am not as confident on now that 8 years have passed.   I think back in 2013 I was concious of evidence regarding changes in how we think, some brought about by requirements of the changing world and some brought about by technology itself.   Technology therefore is important in allowing us to be flexible, agile and adaptive.
  • Globalisation: As the world collectively suffers from the impact of a global pandemic, I think it is all the more evident that the world is getting smaller and that we are increasing living in a global world.   As such we need to embrace technology to help us to make the most of this globalisation.

Considering where we are now, in a pandemic, where technology has become critical to the continuing provision of lessons and learning, my hope is that within education in general we now better appreciates why we need to be making use, or even better use, of technology in our schools.  

Before seeking to use technology in our schools, it is important to start with the why, and understand the reasoning behind its importance.

Esports in education

Some 20 years ago I started a gaming club in the college I worked in using a couple of games consoles.  It quickly grew and changed from a leisure activity to something a little more competitive with matches set up to find the best gamer.   Fast forward 20 years and esports is now a significant business but in my opinion it hasn’t yet developed the foothold in schools and colleges that it deserves.

I suspect a big part of this is that many in schools still look at esports as “gaming”, as a leisure activity involving simply playing computer games and having fun.    I don’t think this does esports justice as it doesn’t take into consideration some of the key skills which esports has the potential to develop in students.

Strategy

Most of the esports games involve students working in teams and therefore, like in conventional sports like football, there is a need for strategy.   Will the team go all out attack, or sit back in defence?   How will each player help the team to succeed?     The development of match strategy and also the refining and adjustment of this strategy in game is key to a successful esports team.

Communication

Linked to the above is the importance of communication.   Esports competitions can be rather frenetic with a need for team members to share situational and strategic information efficiently at speed.   A team which effectively communicates both prior to and during matches is much more likely to succeed.

Teamwork

As a team sport the importance of team work is key in esports.   An effective team is likely to be more successful than the sum of its individual players.    Each player needs to be able to work with the others in the team, appreciating their needs and their situation within the game before working towards the success of the team as a whole.

Competition and Sportsmanship

Again, as in traditional sports, esports competitions allow students to develop the skills needed to manage challenges and difficulties as presented by a competitive environment.    They can help students develop resilience plus the all important sportsmanship skills in dealing graciously with both victory but also defeat.

For me esports is an important addition to schools or colleges activity programme and even to their academic provision through the likes of the recently launched esports BTec qualifications.  

One closing note though, I do continue to see esports competitions and involvement being dominated by male students;   It would be nice if we could encourage more girls to get involved.

Is online teaching as good as IRL?

I have read a lot about how online teaching isn’t as good as classroom teaching.   I myself agree that this is the case however I have come to realise that I have fallen into the generalisation trap.    I have bought into a simple argument that online teaching is either better or worse than real life, classroom, teaching, that there is a binary judgement to be made and that the world, in this case, is simple.    The world however isn’t simple and is seldom binary.     The line should read that online teaching isn’t generally as good as in real life teaching.

So, what brought me to this realisation?

I have seen some students absolutely excel in remote lessons, and not students who were previously excelling, but students who were struggling.    I am not sure if it is the added independence they have found online teaching has provided, the lack of peer pressure or something else, but they have excelled in terms of work rate, engagement and work quality.    Clearly for these students online teaching works better than teaching in a classroom.    These are the students who prove the assertion as fact, that “online teaching isn’t as good as real-life teaching” to be false.

Here for me lies the challenge as we move forward; How can we take these successes and translate them to the world of education as it will exist once we return to a semblance of normal, post pandemic?   How do we make sure that the students who have gained from online teaching, who find online teaching suits their needs, don’t lose out when we return to the bricks and mortar classroom?