Student Teachers in School..

[soveryapt]

Right, interesting one so interested on feedback for what other people do in this situation.

 

One of my schools has student teachers (and NQTs and all that jazz) come in as part of their training. Now, they obviously need access to ICT kit, which isn't a problem as I can give them logins and allow them access that way, but hardware for classrooms is the issue ...

 

The school in question, like many others I'm sure, has laptops for teachers which they plug into the whiteboard and then they have the option of doing prep at home and just bringing it in and all that. With the student teachers, etc, we don't have an allocation of hardware for them but I'm expected to magic up a solution to their hardward/software requirements.

 

We have some old Acers (I say old, they're only Aspire 3680, which is a few years but they still function) so I'm flattening them back to basic XP, shoving on OpenOffice for an office suite, putting on the IWB Software and Drivers (as we hold site license so that fits in ok) and giving them for them to make use of in school.

 

The problem I'm getting is that I'm being asked to install OUR software on THEIR laptops (i.e. not the Acers) which as far as I'm concerned is in direct violation of the license as they are not machines that we as a school own, and even though you can say "bring it to me before you finish your placement to have all the software removed" it still sits outside of the license..

 

So, there it is, what do the rest of you do? Install the software, hope they come back and turn a blind eye if they don't, have (as another school I work in) fixed IWB stations for each IWB and then teachers use those or their laptops or suite machines to prepare lessons and connect to the planned lessons over the network, have dedicate hardward in place for loaning in such circumstances etc?

 

I'm getting complaints and want to have a good solution to the problem to offer to the head, even if it means pleading for a few hundred to buy some new basic laptops for loan purposes.

 

Thanks in advance guys

Andy

[Vegas]

We have laptops that we hand out for the duration of their time with us. When they ask for software on their personal equipment they get the same response that we give all staff 'Sorry but we are not licensed'

[Pottsey]

We just have a pool of laptops that are used both for things like this and for when a teacher needs an extra machine in there room.

[soveryapt]

We have laptops that we hand out for the duration of their time with us. When they ask for software on their personal equipment they get the same response that we give all staff 'Sorry but we are not licensed'

 

Which is what I'm trying to do with these Acers, but our staff moan soooo much ..

 

I think that I'll probably go to the head and say 'look, here it is, we have these machines which we can install software on and license under our existing school licenses. If the student teachers need newer machines then we'll have to buy some or look to upgrade components in these'

 

Any other solutions out there?

[CyberNerd]

terminal server

[localzuk]

We don't issue them laptops at all - they have to provide their own and their own software. We don't install anything of ours on their machines, other than the smartboard software (which is allowed by the license last I checked).

 

Not had any complaints with that system here.

[soveryapt]

We don't issue them laptops at all - they have to provide their own and their own software. We don't install anything of ours on their machines, other than the smartboard software (which is allowed by the license last I checked).

 

Not had any complaints with that system here.

 

Ah, we're promethean in this particular school, but that is another idea to look at .. thanks )

[soveryapt]

terminal server

 

Sorry, we only have a barebones server to allow the head remote access to CPP data from home, so we're technically workstation driven at this school (for now .. server is top of my wish list .. lol) thanks though ..

[powdarrmonkey]

So, there it is, what do the rest of you do? Install the software, hope they come back and turn a blind eye if they don't, have (as another school I work in) fixed IWB stations for each IWB and then teachers use those or their laptops or suite machines to prepare lessons and connect to the planned lessons over the network, have dedicate hardward in place for loaning in such circumstances etc?

 

Tell them no? If they are really struggling to acquire their own licenses, they need to speak to their sponsoring institution (probably university) and get a work-at-home license thing for the duration of their course. I'm yet to hear of a uni that doesn't have the right MS scheme (possibly Open licensing) to do this with, even my tiny college did.

[webman]

Each teaching room has a dedicated IWB computer for use by anyone with a school network account.

 

If our software licenses allow us to install it on their laptops, we do. Otherwise, we don't.

[StewartKnight]

you've got to remember that student teachers and NQT's are probably a bit nervous.... cut them some slack! Whilst they are at the school, they ARE members of staff, and the school has a responsibility to look after their interests

[localzuk]

you've got to remember that student teachers and NQT's are probably a bit nervous.... cut them some slack! Whilst they are at the school, they ARE members of staff, and the school has a responsibility to look after their interests

 

No, they aren't. They don't have a contract, therefore they are not employees in the eyes of the law - and same with software licenses.

[mb2k01]

This is one of the many reasons I forced fixed-point computing in normal classrooms. The computer and projector/iwb is always connect, and they can always log on as it is on the network. It makes things a whole lot easier!

[powdarrmonkey]

you've got to remember that student teachers and NQT's are probably a bit nervous.... cut them some slack! Whilst they are at the school, they ARE members of staff, and the school has a responsibility to look after their interests

 

No they're not, they are students of their institution. They (or the government) are paying good money for their qualification and should get the resources they need in return. It's not the school's responsibility to provide software licenses beyond their normal level of service, i.e. what would already be provided anyway.

[pete]

...not that the institutions the student teachers come from would ever set their expectations absurdly high or anything....

 

Me: no we're not providing you with $foo

Them: but $institution said you would.

Me: then I suggest you take the matter up with them.

 

We have students turning up who believe an IWB and a shiny new laptop is a basic human right because their college have promised them the moon on a stick, it's getting tiresome. I know it's not the students fault, but grrrr.....

[soveryapt]

you've got to remember that student teachers and NQT's are probably a bit nervous.... cut them some slack! Whilst they are at the school, they ARE members of staff, and the school has a responsibility to look after their interests

 

Nervous yes.. the issue is though that there isn't any requirement to provide them with the equipment and if they need equipment for their course then either they or their college/uni should be providing them with it, which on campus I'm sure they probably do, but out in the field..

 

I suppose the ideal solution is to treat them as you treat staff and that is what I'm asking the questions for .. currently, ok they're not all singing dancing shiny sub 3 year old machines they are the 3+ year old machines that I've just had replaced but bought keyboards to ensure the missing key problem isn't there.

 

Personally, I think that I'm going above and beyond my role by getting these machines back into working circulation and I guess, end of the day, this is something that I need to take to SLT/SMT and put it across as "if this need exists to provide them with kit as per teachers then we need to spend some money on new machines"

 

Under no circumstances would I install something that is outside of the licensed situation in the school. Obviously, if the SLT/SMT come to me and say "yes you will install all this software on their own machines" then I will ask for something in writing sanctioning the breaking of the law and that they will take all legal responsibility for such activity should the school be inspected, at which point they would probably change their minds .. lol ..

 

Anyway, thanks for the input so far, I think that I will keep going with the provision of the older laptops but speak with the SLT/SMT and see what they feel they want to do as an organisation to support these ST/NQT.

 

[timzim]

If they're doing PGCE or GTP then your school gets paid for each student teacher they train. Ask the Head for some of this money to put towards laptops for them - otherwise what else is the money for? I bet the staff who mentor them don't get to see any of it, that's for sure.

 

As far as putting your licenced software on their personal laptops - tell them to get real: it doesn't happen in the corporate world, only in student-lala-land (I bet not one of them has ever paid for a single piece of software for their own personal use). Tell them you'd get fired if you dished out unlicenced software to all and sundry (in truth you wouldn't, but the Head would...ooh, now there's an idea...).

[Linfit]

I would echo Timzins' view on this one. We do not currently provide laptops for our student teachers, but we have fixed workstations in classrooms for IWB's and registers so it's less of an issue anyway.

 

If I were asked to provide them, I would expect the funding for them to come from the monies the school recieves from the training institution for having the students. I suspect that in most schools this money is simply subsumed into the general school pot, and is rarely all spent on actually supporting the students, (or even given to the departments that host them).

[Sylv3r]

Each teaching room has a dedicated IWB computer for use by anyone with a school network account.

 

If our software licenses allow us to install it on their laptops, we do. Otherwise, we don't.

 

Same here as webman's school.

[Sylv3r]

If they're doing PGCE or GTP then your school gets paid for each student teacher they train. Ask the Head for some of this money to put towards laptops for them - otherwise what else is the money for? I bet the staff who mentor them don't get to see any of it, that's for sure.

 

As far as putting your licenced software on their personal laptops - tell them to get real: it doesn't happen in the corporate world, only in student-lala-land (I bet not one of them has ever paid for a single piece of software for their own personal use). Tell them you'd get fired if you dished out unlicenced software to all and sundry (in truth you wouldn't, but the Head would...ooh, now there's an idea...).

 

I think its about £500 per student we get here which is devolved back into department capitations.

[RinSewand]

Same as webman as well. As far as I remember - they all have their own laptops anyway, and I don't think we've had a daft request for software yet either... only time will tell!

 

RwD

[enjay]

Isn't it irrelevant who pays the student teachers? If the computer was bought by the school, school licences can be used; if it wasn't, they can't (Smart Notebook excepted, of course)

[featured_spectre]

We only allow the staff laptops on our network, any unknown MAC address that appears in our DHCP automatically gets disconnected (Including phones, ipods, netbooks and laptops), and it annoys the staff.

 

In terms of software, they get given a standard set when they get a laptop, and thats it. Anything else has to get vetted by myself, and if I dont like it, they dont have it. As for software on personal laptops, thats a big no no aside from Our AV Suite (which is county run and can go on any machine used by a member of staff, home or work) and Open Office.

[soveryapt]

All good responses and glad to know that I'm not alone in thinking the way I do about it .. I shall approach the head if she's in today and get her backing on what I'm doing then it's tough for whatever the teachers say (I think there was a previous tech who was "yeah, I'll install what you want on anything, it's not my money" where as I'm more "it might not be my money, but I have a responsibility to the school to ensure that we work within our purchased license agreements"

 

[Potato-Peeler]

We get asked this every year. Also we get the student teachers saying i have so and so on my laptop, lets say smartboard, why dont you have it here!

Our view is only school laptops get software, nothing else.