Digital transformation (DX) has the power to help educational institutions modify their processes to redefine learning and create new opportunities for educators and students alike.
If you’re looking to implement digital transformation in your school, you will need a roadmap so you can maintain a clear direction for your DX strategy.
In this guide, we’re going to be explaining how you can create a digital transformation roadmap for your school or other educational institution.
What is Digital Transformation?
To begin with, let’s take a look at what exactly digital transformation is. DX often looks different for every organisation, however it generally describes the implementation of digital technology into each area of your school.
Why is Digital Transformation Essential?
In recent decades, technology has become indispensable in improving the quality of education, supporting student progression, and enhancing the overall student experience.
It's worth noting that digital transformation (DX) isn't solely about upgrading current technology, but also involves integrating technology into processes for optimal outcomes. After all, implementing the latest technology is pointless if it doesn't serve a purpose.
For instance, incorporating new technology can aid teaching methods, decrease teacher workload, boost achievement, or provide a superior experience for both the student and educational institution.
How to Plan a DX Roadmap
Setting Aims and Objectives
In the pre-planning stage, you should begin by formulating your school’s ambitions and long term goals. This is the time to conceptualise what you want to achieve through digital transformation.
During this stage, you should analyse your school’s needs and set out a clear direction with an understanding of the prospective impact and the size of the project. You should ask yourself what exactly it is you want and why you want it.
In order to see the bigger picture of your school’s needs, you should form a working group including representatives from various perspectives. This could include students, parents and teachers and will help you set achievable goals and determine priorities.
It is also worth carrying out staff surveys to gauge how your employees are feeling about using new technology so you can work out who may require more support and identify those who are proficient enough to offer it.
This stage is also the time to review your current contracts and audit existing hardware, software and subscriptions to find out what is and isn’t working. By eliminating ineffective and costly contracts, you free up more of your budget to be better spent elsewhere.
Design
The design stage involves exploring a variety of options and analysing the potential impact of all stages of your developments. You should think about resource availability, ownership and outsourcing partners to help you make more informed decisions.
When working in a sector such as education, it is often wise to use KCS frameworks to help you choose a digital transformation partner. You should also consider the following to help you find a top DX partner:
- Are they proactive?
- Who are their partners and vendors?
- Would they add value to your school?
- What are their prices?
- How do they intend to communicate?
- Are they accredited?
Choosing the right partner is incredibly important, as you will typically be working alongside them for 3-5 years. You need to ensure that their plans align with your school’s goals.
The DMS Digital Group has been awarded a place on the KCS Y21028 IT Hardware Framework, making it a recognised and approved professional supplier for a range of public sector organisations including schools and academies.
Implementation
Prior to launching your digital roadmap, you should plan the delivery and implementation in advance to ensure there is no room for ambiguity or disruptions. All of your decisions should be defined and your plan should be clear, with responsibilities set out and assigned to the right people.
Launch
Once you have completed the above stages, it’s time to launch your digital transformation. While this should run smoothly for the most part, there may be some smaller issues which crop up. However, if you were thorough in the planning stages, these should be easy to overcome.
Planning Your Digital Transformation Roadmap with DMS
At DMS, we understand that schools and other educational institutions are constantly trying to keep up with the latest trends and technology to promote innovation, greater creativity and foster new skills within learning.
We also appreciate the pressure schools are under with such limited budgets due to stringent government cutbacks, making IT equipment funding more difficult than ever.
That’s why we offer tailored lease packages that meet all your school, college or university’s needs, helping you to spread the budget over a longer period of time whilst benefiting from the latest technology.
- Laptops
- Tablets
- Interactive Screens
- Cloud Services
- Audio Visual Solutions
For more information on how the DMS Group can help your school, college, university or other educational organisation, get in touch with our team today.
