More UK schools receive online learning boost

Aerohive Networks is boosting the role of technology in education by providing 50 more schools in the UK with Wi-Fi and cloud-enabled enterprise networking services.The company - which is already supporting more than 250 institutions across the nation - is launching various e-learning schemes, tablet rollouts and bring your own device (BYOD) initiatives in order to improve standards of teaching.Among the establishments to benefit from the latest campaign are Harrogate Grammar School, Haileybury, Norwich School and Christ Church College at the University of Oxford.Mark Powley, UK director at Aerohive Networks, said Wi-Fi is crucial to 21st century network environments and it is an essential access medium."As students and staff look to harness smart devices and mobile apps for more collaborative learning, educational establishments must provide the infrastructure to support and enable these digital initiatives," he added.The same goes for employers looking to take on new starters from the next generation, as they will need to ensure their workplaces are equipped with the digital training tools young people are increasingly becoming used to.Given that more schools than ever are relying on tablet-aided learning and video resources in the classroom, there has to be continuity when students enter the world of work.Duncan Spooner-Wells, director of IT at independent boarding school Haileybury, said pupils at the institution have been increasingly bringing in their own devices and logging on to the school network - and introducing the right wireless local area network helped control this.He remarked: "We're now doing what we call 'self-service BYOD' to enable simple, secure access to resources that can enhance the learning experience."This means that student demands for mobility are being met, while schools themselves have better management over the sites pupils are visiting.It comes after Mark Pearce, director of channels and alliances for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at IT solutions company Enterasys, recently claimed all educational facilities across the UK need to embrace the BYOD trend and move away from traditional methods of teaching.