IT Management - primary schools

[speckytecky]

I'm seeking pointers on management of ICT facilities in Primary Schools. My school for example has 2 servers plus a SIMS server and closing on 70 workstations. The role to keep on top of this is ever expanding.

 

Is there a document somewhere that lists roles and responsibilities? I have included a poll trying to gain a picture of who does what in primaries.

[SYNACK]

My schools usually have me for around the 10 hours a week mark both having 4 servers and around 150 stations + laptops each. This is not a full service agreement with teacher handholding etc though just technical stuff and whatever staff stuff I deam nessisary. I can also allocate large chunks of extra time when stuff needs doing pretty much at my own discression so that when stuff needs to be done I have the payed time to do it and do it properly.

[leco]

My school has a similar number of servers/computers. I am an ICT Tech working 29 HPW term time only. I have looked at the BECTA Primary FITS for roles and responsibilities, though these are perhaps ambitious given the number of staff members and the tasks they already undertake. I do all the tech stuff and teacher hand-holding and often their training.

[synaesthesia]

I deal with circa 15 primary schools alone, probably part of about 60 in this county dealt with by our company on a regular (between weekly and termly visit) basis. Most of these have between 30 and 100 systems on a curriculum basis and 2 to 10 on an admin basis.

[elsiegee40]

I'm not covered above: In house part-time circa 20 hours per week + some holiday hours

[witch]

I have one server and 35 workstations in one school: 15 hours term time only

 

One server and 100 workstations in the other: 15 hours term time only

[SimpleSi]

 

All of my schools (7) apart from one, have 1 morning OR one afternoon a week of my support with one extra afteroon/week allocated to whoever needs it.

 

By best school has 3 slots/week which equates to 10 hours/week but the other heads think this is a gross extravaganse

 

4 are single form entry, 3 are half that size (15 pupil intake/year)

 

 

regards

Simon

 

PS The admin system main computer using SIMS are primarly supported by LEA team but I still get called to fix things the little things like printers/email and I maintain all extra workstations for 2nd secretary/head teacher

[PiqueABoo]

...and no way to factor in the numbers e.g. figure out what proportion of schools are getting what amount of service from whom.

 

Around my bit of the country it's very common for a SFE Primary to get by on 1/2 day a week of external tech support. TFEs usually get more for obvious reasons.

[jamin100]

Network Manager - Standard Full Time

42 HPW but get paid for holidays but dont work them unless i need to.

 

2 form entry primary school

 

5 servers

50 workstations

90 laptops

[contink]

All of my schools (7) apart from one, have 1 morning OR one afternoon a week of my support with one extra afteroon/week allocated to whoever needs it.

 

By best school has 3 slots/week which equates to 10 hours/week but the other heads think this is a gross extravaganse

 

(snip)

 

PS The admin system main computer using SIMS are primarly supported by LEA team but I still get called to fix things the little things like printers/email and I maintain all extra workstations for 2nd secretary/head teacher

 

I'm in a similar situation to Si...

 

Four primary schools with between 3 and 1 server, workstations/laptops between 90 and 20 units and pupil numbers between 350 and 170.

 

SIMS and admin tech support is handled by the LEA although I regularly get asked to fix minor hardware problems.

 

Time wise I've recently changes from an "as and when" system to a morning or afternoon each week although there's a lot needed so the next few weeks will be one day per school each until the backlog gets fixed up.

[robins]

I have 3 servers and about 100 clients (4+ yr old boxes). I have support for some printers and SIMS helpdesk but apart from that its just me. I also teach all the ICT and I'm on SMT, so its all a bit of a blur (however I get teachers holidays!!). Personally I like the mix of technical / management / teaching - it helps me see the big picture and leaves me no one to get frustrated with - (usually).

[Kitkatninja]

We (a large secondary school) support 2 primary school (with a nursery school wanting us to support them also), technically wise while working closely with the ICT Co-ordinator who are primary school based.

 

-Ken

[LisaW]

I have 6 hours a week for 1 server 20 pcs and 16 laptops, all staff laptops, printers, IWBs, website and vle. I have an outside technician 1/2 a day per half term as well but shared with the office system which fully supported by outside technician (apart from the things they ask me about).

I try to follow the BECTA FITS recommendations but they don't always fit a very small school.

[ReverentCreature]

Im a netwokr manager on my own in the primary school. I work 44 weeks a year and 35 hours a week. We have A RM CC3 Server and a SIMS member server, 140workstations/laptops, 25 IWBs/Projectors and an assortment of equipment.

[ruggie_uk]

I'm network manager for 2 primary schools. One 22 hours per week term time with 2 servers and 70 workstations. Out of this time I support the other as and when required.

I look after obvious technical issues, development, staff training and hold everyones hand when needed. Also spill over into other areas such as admin, finance and premises when needed and assist with data management such as tracking and special needs analysis.

[christhack]

I am the Network Manager for a Primary school I work Full time 46 Weeks per year on the one site. We have 280 Pupils, 140 Clients, 4 Servers and Projectors and IWBs in all classrooms.

 

My role is to look after all of the purchasing and technical support plus advising senior management on development and future planning.

[apoth0r]

I'm very interested in this, so thanks for posting a poll.

My business (once fully functional) shall be targeting schools without provision (or very little) for technical support.

I however have done some research and have decided to undercut the county system by half and will provide more in the teaching and learning aspect. Trying to move primary schools along without stupid costs some larger companies charge. Adding a new pc to a domain should not be £60. I'm rather infuriated that schools have very little choice when there are few options with regard to primary tech support.

Yes some of it is worth £60 but being tied to a contract for all tech support is just rediculous. I've worked out I can save primary schools over £3000 a year, with the added addition of someone who will be willing to listen and help plan future developments, not only from a technical point of view.

8 hours a day once every 2 weeks with additional support available if a certain need arises. Schools shouldn't be made to pay for being forced into a system designed to bleed them of their budgets. Get the money back into the school, and provide the children with the technology and knowledge they deserve.

[pooley]

Full time Network Manager, shared between 2 Primaries.

 

1 school has 4 servers, 45+ Imac/Macbooks 60+ Windows machines, IWB's in every classroom

2nd School has 3 Servers 70+ pc's & 30+ laptops

[jamin100]

 

1 school has 4 servers, 45+ Imac/Macbooks 60+ Windows machines, IWB's in every classroom

 

i'd love to get macbooks for our school!

[pooley]

i'd love to get macbooks for our school!

 

They are well used, and I get to have a nice 24" Imac at home (School provided) for R&D

[jamin100]

They are well used, and I get to have a nice 24" Imac at home (School provided) for R&D

 

thats sooooo not fair!

we have 60 xp laptops - I just wish that i'd come and grab them out the trolley one day and they'd turned into macbooks sigh

[SimpleSi]

I am the Network Manager for a Primary school I work Full time 46 Weeks per year on the one site. We have 280 Pupils, 140 Clients, 4 Servers and Projectors and IWBs in all classrooms.

 

 

How on earth could a school afford such a luxury

 

Just one of my 210 pupils schools has me for 10 hours a week (and currently selling me on to another school for 3 hours so effectively only 7 hours/week)

 

And I do 2 hours as an ICT TA out of that time.

 

Surely you must be the school sec,cook and site supervisor as well in order to get that amount of hours

 

regards

 

Simon

[magicpatch]

I'm at Network Admin, like a lot here it seems shared between two schools, I currently work at 27.5 hours a week, plus inset days.

 

Both schools are large, one has a student population close on 500 the other around 430 (and this is an Infant & Junior school), not secondary. Both schools are 4 form entry.

 

One school just replaced their CC3 setup with a vanilla setup provided by the LEA, 1 server, 50 laptops and 60 odd desktops at present. There are projectors in each of the class rooms.

 

The other is still CC3, contemplating to move either to CC4 (but the horror stories put me off) or do a similar vanilla/LEA provided solution. They have 30 laptops, 30 netbooks, 40 desktops plus there is an admin server and 5 admin workstations. Projectors and IWBs in every classroom.

 

I have to support all that plus the other ICT equipment like digital cameras, digiblue camcorders, all audio/visual. I also do statistics and analysis for the SMT when necessary as well as basic support of SIMS.net. Plus anything else that the staff seem to think is ICT and can't be bothered to do theirselves!

 

--

Just realised this account was created in March'06 but this is the first post! Shows how busy I've been!

[Andie]

We have one curriculum server, 57 desktops and 9 staff laptops, 8 IWBs. Admin have one PC acting as a server, 3 desktops and one laptop. I'm in house, 15 hours per week with occasional extra hours as needed. I'm officially only in charge of curriculum (LEA do Admin) but help the office initially with any problems and pass up to LEA if necessary.

 

Up till now I was on my own completely (well, apart from edugeek!!), but we are in the process of getting an additional support contract of 1 hour a week from a local secondary school, which looks like it will be very helpful (and crucial as curriculum server warranty expires).

[Andie]

 

How on earth could a school afford such a luxury

 

 

Never mind the support luxury - they have 4 servers!!!!