With classrooms closed, technology opens up incredible new possibilities

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As COVID-19 spread across the globe, the routines of students, teachers, administrators, and families were upended. Schools have been forced to close for all levels of education, and even today, it is unclear if students will return to schools as they knew them in the fall, but technology has been able to open some amazing new doors.

As families struggled with the disruption, school systems around the world were how to save australia number in whatsapp forced to rely on technology to maintain a sense of continuity.

Still, school administrators weren't just buying new computers. They were trying to ensure that all students were able to learn at home. The transition to distance learning placed significant additional demands on already stressed IT systems. And, important after-school programs had to be sustained in addition to regular classes.

“We have seen levels of need in schools around the world that many may have considered insurmountable,” said Aongus Hegarty, President of International Sales, Dell Technologies. “We have also been encouraged and inspired by the dedication and perseverance of teachers throughout this crisis. COVID-19 did not allow them to introduce projects in stages, did not take into account budget or logistics or the home lives of their students. The fact that so many school systems have been able to provide educational resources and continue with assigned curricula is a testament to the spirit of those administrators, teachers and students.”

Dell Technologies has helped schools around the world with large-scale transitions to distance learning.

When schools suddenly closed in England, the UK Department for Education sought 67,000 Dell Chromebooks within weeks . Dell Technologies delivered, and the department can now help ensure that thousands of disadvantaged children can stay in touch with their teachers and continue their education through online classes. Chromebooks also help children and young people stay connected to the social services they need.

COVID-19 prompted schools in Belgium to begin remote learning using Smartschool ’s Smartbit platform . This caused Smartbit’s IT demand to skyrocket to 40 times normal levels. Smartbit knew it needed to increase the capacity of its existing Dell VxRail systems very quickly. But that wasn’t all. Smartbit needed more core and top-of-rack cables and switches, a scalable object storage platform, rapid deployment services, and a refurbishment plan that would manage costs and streamline how the company acquires capacity in the future. Dell Technologies was able to support Smartbit’s needs, quickly deploying the first and second waves of additional infrastructure, helping students continue to learn and engage.

The School of Creative Studies serves students interested in careers in the arts and other creative fields. The school itself had to get creative with its IT plans when COVID-19 became a full-blown pandemic. The Detroit, Michigan-based nonprofit school was in the midst of planning an IT project, but those plans had to immediately and urgently shift toward a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) environment to provide streamlined remote access for students. The Dell Technologies team provided the school with guidance and consulting to develop and implement a custom VDI solution to fit the students’ IT needs, including high-end, graphics-intensive programs. The school now also has a continuity plan in place in case of future disruptions, as well as increased storage and computing capacity that can support a greater variety of learning modes and long-term needs.

The American School of Milan’s mission has always been to make sure students are prepared for the future. But the severe impact of COVID-19 in Italy meant that students, teachers, and administrators would have to shift their approach to education in the present. Under the country’s lockdown, the school and its more than 1,000 students and staff leaned heavily on its robust IT strategy, as well as Dell servers and laptops to make sure students could interact with their teachers and classmates, and to make sure administrators could continue to run the school. The school did not miss a single day of class. And while the classroom will likely never be the same, the school can once again focus on preparing students for the future.

Learn more about how Dell Technologies works with teachers and administrators around the world to provide them with the resources and technology they need to enable learning both inside and outside the classroom.