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Issue 57 - 2020 │T1 │W3

 

Link - access past issues in the archive




Click to check out all the great events the T4L team are running in Term 1!

 

 

 

 

Make 2020 your year of EdTech News item

Welcome to 2020! Is this going to be a year of EdTech for your school? One of our goals this year is to help you create the most innovative school environment possible and to grow and support your own professional development. The T4L team has been hard at work over the holidays, planning more professional learning events, developing more resources, exploring classroom rollouts, as well as keeping up with the latest news and views on technology. There are plenty of great events to add to your calendar to help you learn more, enhance your networks and get information straight from our experts and your peers in other schools! Finally, if something really exciting is happening in your classrooms, keep an eye out for our third annual T4L awards (entries open early March) or check out the other upcoming opportunities listed in your first issue of news.T4L for the year!

Make 2020 your year of EdTech

T4L face-to-face events in Term 1 PL item

The T4L team is heading out across the state again in Week 5 and beyond. Do you need a dose of inspiration or some practical tech tips? Are you on the south coast, north coast or in western Sydney? Our T4L events are registered professional learning opportunities involving vendor partners at Microsoft, Google and Apple – and the T4L team of experts, of course!
PowerUps are great days for beginners – get started with simple tech tips and tools
InteractED is a great day of learning with keynotes, interactive workshops and an expo for all levels. Register your place now in one of these sessions!

T4L face-to-face events in Term 1

DoE password-reset self-service Tip item

It's a common part of the human condition. People sometimes forget their password. To make it easier for NSW DoE staff to rectify this themselves, we've introduced a new option. In the past, secret questions and answers were the only way to self-remediate a forgotton DoE password. Now, it's possible to register a private email address in your user profile. Then, on the off-chance that you've forgotten your password, you can choose "Forgot your password?" from the DoE sign-on screen and then click the "via Email" button to get the password reset instructions at your private email account. The quick guide below explains the process. Click the image for a larger view.

Click for a larger view of this guide.

Sign-On using DoE accounts Info item

Some users have recently reported that signing up to online services using their DoE Office 365 account no longer works. When trying to do so, a pop-up appears stating "Admin approval required". Services affected have included Edmodo, Kahoot and SMART Learning Suite Online. In January, the option to sign up to third-party online services using DoE Office 365 accounts was disabled. This was in response to a Microsoft security alert which advises Office 365 tenant owners to restrict this access for users, due to an increase in malicious cyber activity. The department advises staff and students to sign up to desired online services using their DoE Google account rather than their Office 365 account.

Sign up using Google rather than Microsoft for the time being.

Where has Acrobat DC gone? Tip item

In September, we launched Windows 10 v1809 for all new school devices built for eT4L, including the new T4L Rollout. Any old computers rebuilt via F12 are also updated to v1809. The build includes MS Office 2019 and Adobe Acrobat Reader. This version of Acrobat CANNOT edit PDF files. If there are specific users at your school that need to edit PDF files, please make sure you separately deploy Adobe Acrobat DC to their Windows computer via UDM.

Push Acrobat DC from UDM to those computers that need it in your school

Microsoft Surface Pro 7 on EdBuy News item

The Surface Pro 6 has been removed by Microsoft from the DoE catalogue, replaced by the new Surface Pro 7. These models have been tested successfully with eT4L services. NOTE that accessories such as the keyboard cover, Surface Pen, dock and USB Ethernet adaptor are sold separately. All prices can be found in EdBuy.

Microsoft Surface Pro 7

SketchUp Pro 2019 via UDM News item

NSW DoE has a state wide agreement to use SketchUp Pro in NSW public schools. The software is available for both Windows and Mac and can be used in the school on school-owned computers used by students and/or staff.

  • The Windows version of SketchUp Pro 2019 is available now for deployment via UDM after REQUESTING and approving the package from the eT4L Software Catalogue. Once deployed in your school, the package is licensed and activated as part of the installation
  • Non-eT4L schools and those requiring a Mac version will need to access the installer from the FTP share. Your local field support team can assist if required
  • Students can access the free version of SketchUp Free for home and BYOD use
  • Schools also have access to the Chrome browser-based SketchUp for Schools - through the DoE G Suite service
  • Staff can obtain an Educator Subscription for their personal computers from the Australian distributor.

SketchUp Pro 2019

Apple Tech Tour workshops PL item

Kick start your year of EdTech by jumping into Apple’s Tech Tours! With this free three hour hands-on workshop, Apple’s staff will take you through the technical components of getting Apple iPad successfully and optimally running in your school environment. The workshops are aimed at Computer Coordinators and technology support staff. Get helpful troubleshooting tips to support teachers and students with Apple devices in their learning environments. Register a spot now!

  • 18th Feb, 9am-12pm – Elderslie Public School
  • 25th Feb, 9am-12pm - Apple Training Centre, Sydney
  • 10th Mar, 10am-1pm - Canberra
  • 17th Mar, 9am-12pm - Carlingford West Public School
  • 31st Mar, 10am-1pm - Dubbo

Apple Tech Tour workshops

ICT Thought of the day Fun item

ICT Thought - People stopped wearing watches because of smartphones. But now, because of smartphones, people are wearing watches again.

 

 

 

 

Mobile devices in schools policy News item

The independent review into the non-educational use of mobile digital devices in NSW schools is complete and NSW has taken action to address its recommendations. A new Student Use of Digital Devices and Online Services policy is now available. It covers student use of smartphones, smart watches, tablets, laptops and any other device that allows connectivity to the internet and applications. It applies to both school owned and personal (BYO) devices. The policy builds upon the important work in schools, teaching young people to use digital technology in safe, responsible and respectful ways, as we prepare students for life beyond the classroom. Each school will work with their students and local communities to implement the new arrangements. Schools will be expected to update their existing school procedure, or develop a new one during 2020, to reflect the new requirements. An interactive form is available to assist schools with this process. The Department's Digital Citizenship platform provides further information and support for schools and has been updated to reflect the new policy, with new content. The full review, links to other useful supporting resources and contact details are at the department's review webpage.

Mobile devices in schools reviewManage Staff Access app News item

We have listened - In collaboration with Principals, Deputy Principals, Assistant Principals and other School Administration staff, and with a Human-Centred Design approach in mind, we are streamlining the tools that you use to manage system access. A new project is underway at ITD called Access Management Experience, to enhance user experience and to reduce the administrative burden on Principals/delegates in managing access for users. This will save them an average of 30 seconds per access request. The first phase of this project, the Manage Staff Access (MSA) mobile responsive app, was released to substantive Principals before Christmas. This delivers much of the regular Access Management Utility (AMU) functionality, with the convenience of anywhere, anytime access via smart phone or tablet. Principals can find the link to MSA in their My Essentials section of the staff portal. The next release will allow Principals to delegate ‘Manage staff access’ authority to staff at their school. Watch the quick video below and visit the link above for more information.

MS Office for home use. Confused? Tip item

DoE users can get Microsoft Office from two different places for their BYOD and/or home computer. But what's the difference? The On the Hub version of Microsoft Office is free for students and a once-off small fee for staff. You get an ACTIVATION code which doesn't expire - however, under the licence terms you must cease to use it if you leave NSW public education. This version will not UPDATE itself to newer versions of Office - eg. If you got it when it was 2016, it won't auto-update to 2019. You must separately get that from On the Hub. You do not need to sign in to use that Office and it can only be installed on one computer.

OnTheHub by Kivuto

The desktop copy of Office you can get from your DoE Office 365 portal is free for both staff and students and is tied to your DoE user account. It needs to be signed into to stay licenced. Therefore, when you leave and lose your DoE account, it will stop working and you will lose the access (and all your stuff in OneDrive). You can install this on up to 5 Windows and/or Mac devices and this version of Office WILL update to the latest available automatically.  

Install Office on desktop from Office 365

Google Drive File Stream fix Tip item

In December, schools that use the Google Drive File Stream client to provide easy access to their Google Drive cloud storage, started reporting problems. This related to versions 33 and 34 of the client. ITD quickly confirmed the issue and worked with Google to obtain a fix. This was tested and verified by the eT4L team and packaged for inclusion on the DoE Software Catalogue on 16 December, as version 35. To correct the issue if still affected, please request the title from the catalogue as normal and deploy to affected computers via UDM. The previous version does not need to be disassociated/uninstalled first.

Get the new Google Drive File Stream

Google Classroom - Originality News item

Google is releasing its new Originality reports and Rubrics features in the Google Classroom product. Originality reports check students' work for matches across billions of web pages and books. This can make it easier for teachers to evaluate the academic integrity of each student’s work. The new Rubrics feature offers a scoring framework for teachers to set clear expectations, evaluate work and provide actionable feedback. There are some restrictions to be aware of:

  • Originality reports are only available in English and for Google Docs initially. Students cannot use MS Word
  • Under the DoE licence, teachers can enable Originality reports on three assignments per class for free - so teachers will need to be selective about which assignments they apply it to.

Read more about both features that will be progressively rolled out across the world over the next two weeks.

Keep students' ideas authentic with originality reports

Getting started with technology PL item

New to the use of cloud-based technology in the classroom? It's never too late to learn how to use and apply these amazing educational tools. Here is a great new online resource produced by the department. It will help you get started with online tools and resources that are available across DoE, to assist you in your classroom teaching. The website materials can be used on their own, but we're also hosting a series of half-hour fortnightly Adobe Connect sessions. We'll cover the same individual topics, but in more detail - and you can join from your school or from home, using the link above. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and get feedback at these live sessions.

  • Thur 13 Feb - 3:45pm: Google Drive and G Suite
  • Thur 27 Feb - 3:45pm: Google Classroom
  • Thur 12 Mar - 3:45pm: OneDrive and Office 365
  • Wed 25 Mar - 3:45pm: Microsoft Teams
  • Thu 9 Apr - 3:45pm: Microsoft OneNote

Getting started with technology website and online sessions

Want to go in-depth with Teams? PL item

Since its launch in 2017, Microsoft Teams has taken the world by storm and now has more than 13 million daily users. Businesses, universities and organisations are using Teams as their hub for work and collaboration. Schools across the world now use Teams as the hub for their teaching and learning, thanks to its features designed specifically for the classroom. Starting in Term 1, Megan Townes from Microsoft will kick-off 2020 with a series of Teams Live Events exclusively for NSW DoE teachers and corporate staff. You can join live from your school, home or office and get hands-on with Microsoft Teams during these free full-day sessions. These events will set you and your school up for success with Teams in 2020. Check out all the workshops on offer and REGISTER your spot today!

Register for a Teams Live Event!

More news.T4L in Week 6!

Information Technology Directorate publishes three issues of news.T4L a term. Remember - share each issue with your staff!

 

What great ICT initiatives have been working at your school? Share you story with us at T4LNews@fdet.nsw.edu.au

NSW DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION - INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DIRECTORATE