Storing pupil data in the cloud

[outreach]

I work for an outreach service, As a service we visit lots of schools and support SEN pupils. At the moment the service (team of 5) are working with paper files. We would like to move to a paperless system and we have decided to use Microsofts onenote to organise the paperwork ( personal info about pupils, reports etc). We are also looking to get tablets/Ipads or note books so that we can type our notes as we go and access all the pupil records all in one place, rather than carrying heavy files and typing and printing everything when we get home. We would also like to be able to access the records at the office, on the move, at different schools and at home, we feel storing info in the cloud might also be the way forward.

 

So the questions I have are

 

- Can anyone recommend a particular cloud?

- Where would we be on data protection storing personal, sensitive and confidential pupil info? ( I have read ICO guidance but it is not specific enough) or how can we keep it safe?

- Can anyone recommend tablet/ notebook that would work well with onenote and cloud?

 

I would be very grateful of any advice, links or guidance that could be offered. Thanks

[robjduk]

-Microsoft's Onedrive is great as is Google and dropbox. Onedrive may be top for you as you plan on using onenote and should just work out the box.

-I believe any sensitive data should be kept within the EU. I know cloud solutions are starting to allow you to choose a data centre but no doubt someone else will have the complete guide on that.

-Don't think you can do much better than an iPad for onenote and cloud however the surface pro would allow you to use a pen to jot down ideas which may be a plus. The surface 2 or 3 (out in about a month) would do you very well.

[Jasbo]

Onenote uses onedrive for file storage so it kind of sounds like your decision of what cloud is already made if your hooked on using Onenote, It can connect to the consumer and the "pro" onedrive, so in theory you could all sign up for a free onedrive account, connect it to Onenote and your done.

 

But your organisation may want to look at office 365 to give you a mobile\cloud office package and a more professional image, with matching email accounts, and possibly Internet and web pages etc.

[SYNACK]

Look at the surface 3, decent battery life, you can get a nice snap on keyboard and it comes with office too along with 200gb of one drive space - well ours did.

[Marshall_IT]

A personal OneDrive doesn't allow you to choose your data centre, whereas the education version of office 365 is hosted on Dublin and Amsterdam only.

 

An iPad or surface pro would do you well.

[SYNACK]

A personal OneDrive doesn't allow you to choose your data centre, whereas the education version of office 365 is hosted on Dublin and Amsterdam only.

 

An iPad or surface pro would do you well.

 

For just onedrive and office with battery life don't discount the Surface 2 RT version

Edited July 17, 2014 by SYNACK

[Marshall_IT]

For just oneone and office with battery life don't discount the Surface 2 RT version

 

True...

[jamesbmarshall]

We are also looking to get tablets/Ipads or note books so that we can type our notes as we go and access all the pupil records all in one place, rather than carrying heavy files and typing and printing everything when we get home. We would also like to be able to access the records at the office, on the move, at different schools and at home, we feel storing info in the cloud might also be the way forward.

 

As others have said, the great combo here is Office 365 + Surface 2, or Surface Pro 3. iPads are great for consuming information, and you can now get Office for iPad which is pretty cool, but it's not always the best experience to enter lots of data; however, if you're looking for data entry, handwriting notes, etc. the Surface Pro 3 would be my weapon of choice. I got my hands on one earlier this week for the first time and was genuinely blown away with how much better it is compared with my Surface Pro (which I still love and use every day as my main device, but y'know, I'm a sucker for new gadgets!).

 

- Can anyone recommend a particular cloud?

- Where would we be on data protection storing personal, sensitive and confidential pupil info? ( I have read ICO guidance but it is not specific enough) or how can we keep it safe?

- Can anyone recommend tablet/ notebook that would work well with onenote and cloud?

 

1. Depending on your eligibility you might be able to get Office 365 Education for free.

2. Office 365 is accredited for UK government OFFICIAL data which probably covers the vast amount, if not all, the data you work with.

3. Surface Pro 3 when it becomes available in the UK would be a fine choice, and certain the one to go for if you like scrawling all over documents and making notes. There are lots of other OEM devices that would be equally portable, lightweight and powerful but it really depends on the scenarios you'd be using the tech.

 

Food for thought: do you want a companion device to sit alongside an existing laptop or desktop PC, or do you want to simplify things and just have one device. Devices like the 8" Dell Venue 8 Pro, the iPad, Android tablets, etc. all fit neatly into the companion device category where you can gets apps to supplement your "main" machine; however, devices like the Surface Pro, Dell Venue 11 Pro, Lenovo ThinkPad 10, etc. can be full laptop replacements.

[outreach]

Dear All,

 

Many thanks for all the responses. It has given me plenty of food for thought. I will be doing a little more research based on all your suggestions. I was reading some documents on Encryption when saving data in a cloud. Can someone explain more about that. Thanks.

 

 

To JamesBMarshall,

 

We are on a network when we work at the office and we usually work on those on our admin days. It is useful when typing long reports over a period of time to be on a lap top or desk top. But when we are out visiting schools it doesn't need to be that large ( although a portable key board is useful ) so I guess we want something to run alongside. Although there is a possibility that we would not necessarily need this based on what you are saying.

[jamesbmarshall]

I was reading some documents on Encryption when saving data in a cloud. Can someone explain more about that.

 

This is a big topic. Do you want encryption of data in transit, at rest, individual encryption of files, information rights management, etc.?

 

In a service like Office 365, data is encrypted both at rest and in transit (i.e. the disks in the datacentre are encrypted); however, individual files are not unless you have a solution to do so. There are lots of options here, like I say, so it'd be worth understanding what your requirements are before trying to explain it all!

 

We are on a network when we work at the office and we usually work on those on our admin days. It is useful when typing long reports over a period of time to be on a lap top or desk top. But when we are out visiting schools it doesn't need to be that large ( although a portable key board is useful ) so I guess we want something to run alongside. Although there is a possibility that we would not necessarily need this based on what you are saying.

 

There are lots of things that go into making these sorts of decisions - things like total cost of ownership, ease of management, etc. Many of the laptop-replacement style devices like the Surface Pro 3 have keyboards but many also have the option of a tailor-made dock, and almost certainly all support USB 3.0 and therefore any number of third party docks.

 

For example, at my desk at work I have a Surface Pro connected up using a single USB 3.0 cable to a "Targus USB 3.0 Superspeed" dock that drives my two monitors, full-size keyboard, mouse, etc. It's awesome for when I'm doing my day-to-day work, but when I need to go to a customer site, meeting, whatever, I just disconnected the USB cable and off I go with just the Surface Pro and its Type Cover keyboard.

 

The benefits to me are that I have a single device, and I store all my files either in OneDrive for Business (i.e. Office 365), or using the Work Folders feature. I don't have to worry about flipping between two and worrying about what's sync'd where, and which apps are on which devices, etc. Personally, I also feel a great deal of attachment to my Surface Pro - it comes with my everywhere, which means I look after it.

 

The cons, since I'd be a fraud if I wasn't honest, I don't get much hardware flexibility. The Surface Pro has a Core i5 processor and 4GB of RAM. That's plenty for most people, but sometimes I process some hefty spreadsheets and other bits and pieces. Whilst it's never caused a problem or let me down, I'd love something more powerful on those (very infrequent) occasions where I need bursts of power, but apart from that it's great. Other niggles (which are addressed in both the Surface Pro 2, and Surface Pro 3) are that I wish I had more variety of angles on the kick-stand, and since I enjoy scrawling notes on things I wish it had a bigger screen, but like I say both of those are more than adequately remedied in the Surface Pro 3 - don't forget that I'm using the original.

 

Edited July 18, 2014 by jamesbmarshall