In this podcast episode, we speak with Rachael Howarth, Vice Principal of Bradford Girls’ Grammar School about how they’re using Microsoft 365 to assess and engage students in a blended in-classroom and remote learning setting.Rachael walks us through some key ways in which they’re using Microsoft Forms, Class Notebook, Polls and Insights to increase engagement, save teacher time, give feedback and keep an eye on students’ wellbeing.“We’ve been using Class Notebook to engage with students who have been learning from home due to self-isolating. It’s been a blend of live teaching and uploading class resources for those students who share devices and need access to content on-demand,” Rachael tells us. “We’ve also been teaching in school and using tools in Teams to set assignments and rubrics, run polls to get a quick measure of where students are in terms of their learning.”  n the video, Rachael demonstrates how the teachers use polls to help students further embed their learning and see which students have understood the lesson and who may need a recap.“We have been using self-marking quizzes quite successfully – they give the students the answers as they move along,” she explains.“Polls are like the classroom equivalent of holding up mini whiteboards and getting everyone to hold up their answer – you can get a broad sweep of who is understanding and who isn’t.”  This type of interactivity is carried through to providing feedback to students. Teachers at Bradford Girls’ Grammar School are adding audio files to students work to give feedback on assignments. Not only is this engaging for students to actually hear their teacher explain something to them as if they were in the classroom, but it’s also saving teacher time as they don’t need to type or format any additional words.“We’ve also been using audio files for learning objectives – just inserting a clip into a Class Notebook that explains exactly what we want the students to do – they can listen instead of writing out learning objectives and it does save time,” she adds. By using Microsoft 365 in and outside of the classroom, the school has been able to collect valuable data around students’ learning and engagement.  “Some of our students do not have access to the live lessons because they share devices. So we need to look at other metrics to see if they’re participating in other ways: Are they having conversations, are they completing assignments, are they accessing Class Notebook?” Rachael explains.  But, the Insights dashboard goes beyond checking up to see whether students are completing their homework: “It’s been really useful for pastoral support. At one point, we had a large number of users who were working in the middle of the night. So we immediately put out welfare messages to staff, parents and pupils. It gives us the opportunity to have that conversation with our community.”  Bradford Girls’ Grammar School is embracing Microsoft for the future and not simply a remedy to the pandemic:  “We’re learning rapidly – we’ve been on a steep learning curve but we’re implementing these interactive methods of assessment into our practice as we develop as remote teachers. Week on week, we’re getting a high-level engagement on Teams – anything between 190 and 700 daily active users – it shows how useful our students and staff are finding Teams.”Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Office 365 User Adoption for Schools

Assessments and Engagement with Microsoft 365 at Bradford Girls' Grammar School

In this webinar we are joined by Mark Guest from PolyMAT to discuss how the Trust have extended Microsoft Teams and SharePoint further using the Power Platform.Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Extending SharePoint and Teams to Save Teacher Time with PolyMat - M365 Podcast S01 E17

1111In this episode we speak with David James, Head of Education at Cornerstone Academy Trust and Anthony Lees, Deputy Head of Westclyst Community Primary School. We discuss how the trust has lead the way in providing blended and remote learning before, during and after the pandemic.Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Blended learning in primary schools using Teams with Cornerstone MAT (M365 Podcast Episode 16)

Check out our website for the services and products we offer for Microsoft 365, Teams and SharePoint at https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk​In this webinar, we talk to Stuart Carvell, Assistant Principal at Eaton Bank School about how the trust has embraced Microsoft 365. Darren and Lloyd from Cloud Design Box will highlight some key points on how to successfully rollout at trust and school level.Contact us now for more information via the website https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk/contact.Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Embracing Microsoft 365 at the Fallibroome Trust (Microsoft 365 User Adoption Podcast Episode 15)

Jonathan Butler from EdTech DfE Demonstrator College - Wilberforce College in Hull talks to us about the college's Teams journey. Afterwards we will be sharing some best practices to help you get started with Microsoft Teams.Check out our website for the services and products we offer for Microsoft 365, Teams and SharePoint at https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk​Contact us now for more information via the website https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk/contactSupport the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Microsoft 365 User Adoption Podcast Episode 14 - Microsoft Teams with Wilberforce College

In this episode, Darren, Tony, Keith and Lloyd discuss using breakout rooms in online lessons. A new feature in Microsoft Teams, but how do teachers manage students? What should they consider from a safeguarding perspective when using breakout rooms?You can find out more about Cloud Design Box and our education services on our website - https://www.clouddesignbox.co.ukSupport the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Microsoft 365 User Adoption Episode 13: How To Achieve More With Breakout Rooms In Microsoft Teams

Microsoft 365 User Adoption Episode 12: Saving Teacher Time With Class NotebookOur Office 365 User Adoption Podcast highlights real-life stories from schools, academies and Multi Academy Trusts on how they’ve successfully rolled out Microsoft 365, SharePoint and Teams to staff and students.In this podcast episode, we spoke with Rachael Howarth, Vice Principal at Bradford Girls’ Grammar School and Business Studies teacher on how they’re using Microsoft 365 to support students’ learning and save teachers’ time, whether they’re working remotely or in the classroom.Bradford Girls’ Grammar School started using SharePoint in March and April 2020 when UK schools were forced to close due to the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown.“We started out using SharePoint, but from mid-May, we’ve been using Teams to improve the interaction between teachers and students,” explains Rachael.“Since September, it has been a government requirement that anyone absent from school has immediate access to remote learning, so we adopted Class Notebook to achieve this in an efficient way.”Rachael explains that the school decided it would be a lot easier if teachers planned lessons via Class Notebook so that they could use the resources in the classroom, as well as distributing them to students who were not in school, as well as another cover staff who required access to them.“It’s been working really well. Students have access whenever they need to, and can go back and revise from these resources at a later date.”An example of this in action is a Year 13 Business lesson Rachael shows us during the podcast.“Within this lesson, I have written down some instructions for students. If the lesson was recorded, I could link the video and there wouldn’t be a need for so many words here,” Rachael demonstrates.Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Office 365 User Adoption Episode 12: Saving Teacher Time with Class Notebook

In this podcast, we spoke with James Emmet, Network Manager at Engineering UTC North Lincolnshire about how they use features in Office 365 to support students with Special Education Needs (SEN) and English as an Additional Language (EAL).“We have a high number of students who are EAL, SEN, dyslexic and have low reading ages. I passionately believe that – when used in the right way – ICT is one of the most crucial tools to help these students with their learning,” James tells us.“Our school’s main intake starts from Year 9, so it’s not long after they start before, we have to start prepping them for their GCSEs. Office 365 and key tools like Immersive Reader are essential for helping these students to learn.”Immersive Reader is a free tool built into many of the Microsoft Products, including Microsoft Word.“Using Immersive Reader, students can change the style and appearance of the text to help with reading comprehension,” James explains.“For example, you can change the font, text size, text spacing and even create a virtual coloured overlay.”Meanwhile, Picture Dictionary, the Translate tool and Read Aloud are particularly handy for supporting EAL students.Picture Dictionary allows students to select a word they may not understand and view an explainer image, while Read Aloud turns the text on the page into speech for the student to listen to.Both of these, combined with the Translate tool, are invaluable when it comes to improving reading comprehension in the classroom.“We have found that Immersive Reader is being used by all of our students, not only those with EAL and SEN. In fact, one of our GCSE students who is predicted a level 7 in English regularly uses Immersive Reader to break down texts and closely analyse them,” James adds.Immersive Reader also enables students to highlight word types, such as nouns and verbs, as well as break sentences down into syllables, which both students and their teachers have found useful for English and language-focused subjects.“Because Immersive Reader is already built into many of the Microsoft products, we have not had to spend any extra time rolling it out into classrooms,” he tells us.“It’s really taken off in our school. For example, we demonstrated the tool to one student and by the next lesson, the rest of their class were using it.”The great thing about Office 365 and Immersive Reader is that it works on any connected device. Of course, this capability is more important than ever before as we see many children learning from home.“We love the fact that Office 365 can be accessed via multiple devices and actively encourage our students to use their own devices or one from our bank of iPads. It gives their learning an extra boost.”To find out more about Office 365 for Education, get in touch with a member of our team today.Go to https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk for more information.Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Office 365 User Adoption Episode 11: Supporting Students with SEN and EAL with Office 365

We have been asked by some schools facing part-closure to create a podcast about delivering content in virtual lessons using Microsoft Teams.In this podcast, we focus on using Microsoft Teams to provide remote lessons. This should allow some continuation of learning even if the teacher or students are remotely located and unable to get into school.You can try and replicate some of the real things you would do in a real classroom. You won’t have the same eye contact or body language as you would in person, however you can still do a lot to deliver the lesson.Take away points:Start a video call to broadcast the lesson and record it (in the General channel)Mute students as they join the video call (you should only need to do this for the first 5 students entering the meeting)Use the video recordings as revision material (or if students can’t make the live lesson)Students do their work in Class Notebook or they could create files in the Files tab during the lessonTeachers can virtually walk around the classroom by looking in the student class notebook sectionsHave one-on-one conversations by using instant messagingUse group conversations to discuss topics within the classIf you want to do group or project work – use channels to split up the classMake sure that students and teachers have good access to the internet and a device. Mobile devices work fine for watching lessons but might not be great for participating.We recommend that you use these tools in a normal classroom environment to begin with (not working remotely). This is great for becoming confident with the tools and training students on how it will work. Then, if you are faced with a situation where you need to teach or learn remotely, you will be prepared!EXTRA TIP:Measure student activity by seeing if they have done any work, asked any questions or contributed to the lesson.Check out our website for the services and products we offer for Office 365 and SharePoint at https://www.clouddesignbox.co.ukContact us now for more information via the website https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk/contactSupport the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Office 365 User Adoption Podcast Episode 10 - Virtual Lessons using Microsoft Teams

We speak to Elaine Topham at Grimsby Institute about the Microsoft Innovative Educator program. Elaine is the Senior Learning Technologist at the college and is an MIE Fellow (one of only six in the UK).How could it benefit your school or college? What are some of the perks? How do you apply? Listen to find out all of the answers.Blog post and YouTube video coming soon with all the links.https://www.clouddesignbox.co.ukSupport the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Office 365 User Adoption: What is an MIE Expert and how do I become one?

In this episode we speak to Gareth Rose at Notley High School & Braintree Sixth Form about School Leadership with Microsoft TeamsFind out more by visiting the Cloud Design Box website at https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk.Microsoft Teams is a great collaboration tool and can be used to extend the classroom. In our latest podcast, Tony and Darren from Cloud Design Box discuss the real benefits of using Microsoft Teams in the classroom. This time we are focusing on the file sharing aspect.Communication is central to good lessons and learning in the classroom. That could be teacher to student, or it could be students working together in the class. Teams allows this communication to happen anywhere by extending the classroom.Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

School Leadership with Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams is a great collaboration tool and can be used to extend the classroom. In our latest podcast, Tony and Darren from Cloud Design Box discuss the real benefits of using Microsoft Teams in the classroom. This time we are focusing on the file sharing aspect.Find out more by visiting the Cloud Design Box website at https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk.Communication is central to good lessons and learning in the classroom. That could be teacher to student, or it could be students working together in the class. Teams allows this communication to happen anywhere by extending the classroom. Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

Office 365 User Adoption Episode 7: Sharing Files in Microsoft Class Teams

Find out more by visiting the Cloud Design Box website at https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk.In our Office 365 User Adoption Podcast this month, Tony and Darren from Cloud Design Box talk about the benefits of tagging resources and discuss metadata vs folders.Support the show (https://www.clouddesignbox.co.uk)

User Adoption: Tagging Resources in SharePoint and Teams

We understand that seamless user adoption of Office 365 and SharePoint can prove tricky, with many hurdles to jump before your whole organisation is fully on board.That’s why we’re creating a series of podcasts focusing on real-life user adoption stories, with schools, academies and businesses just like yours.

hubhopper

Office 365 User Adoption for Schools

hubhopper