Edtech planning and digital strategy is a balance between understanding where your school has been, where you are now and what your aspirations are for the future.
Many schools I work with don’t quite get this balance right and make decisions based on where they were five years ago, rather than where they need to be now or - even better - where they need to be in three to five years’ time.
Take the school I spoke to recently that was exploring upgrading its interactive whiteboards.
Teachers needed to use their old resources on the upgraded whiteboards, it explained, in spite of them being in obsolete format stored on the local PC rather than the latest format in the cloud. These lessons were also not designed with pupil devices in mind, so both teachers and pupils would miss out - on self-paced learning, formative assessment, storing and sharing and so on.
The new whiteboards also needed to have VGA ports as some teachers’ laptops had VGA, the school advised. VGA is already long-obsolete, superseded by HDMI and, more recently, USB-C.
So by shackling new technology to old, in five years’ time their new whiteboards would be at least 10 years out of date.
A long-term edtech strategy
A large part of why schools don’t buy with a long-term strategy is because they see purchasing technology as gobbling up two of their most valuable commodities: time and money. It’s often quick and cheap to buy what’s worked in the past.
We’ll all still be here in 2026 or 2028, though, and it’s on this timeline that costs, savings and benefits should be measured.
The value of longevity is core to this. Will my technology stand the test of time in terms of compatibility, cyber security, physical durability and warranty? What will be current in 2026 and, therefore, what do I need to consider now?
Cyber security
One example of this: most whiteboards now include an on-board PC, usually one with an Android operating system. This allows teachers to use it as a standalone device, without plugging it into a laptop, for things like browsing the web, using apps and sharing the screen of a pupil device.
Doing so means it’s connected to wi-fi, and connecting to wi-fi with an obsolete version of Android, which, in turn, is connected to the school network, is a cyber security vulnerability.
The Android PC on some whiteboards is upgradeable - some automatically and others manually. Others are not upgradeable, meaning that what you buy now is what you have in five years’ time. You can quickly see the problem.
Choosing a printer, investing in CCTV, buying a new server, renewing some software, buying a replacement screen for reception signage and many other decisions have the same pitfall - buying based on criteria from the past.
Sustainability issues
This legacy mindset, rather than opportunity mindset, can also distract from the need for sustainability, which is more important than ever with technology. How can the choices we make now reduce the environmental impact we will have in future?
This is a significant concern for all schools, not least due to the requirement to produce a Climate Action Plan by 2025.
The Department for Education explains that this will be “a detailed plan to enable your education setting, or trust, to progress or commence sustainability initiatives”.
A written policy that considers biodiversity, pupil and staff understanding, carbon emissions and lots more will be needed, overseen by your school’s designated sustainability lead.
Reducing your energy use (and thereby reducing your energy costs) will be an essential part of this plan, and so the energy consumption of your new technology is an essential consideration.
This was particularly true for the school mentioned above that was considering new whiteboards across 25 classrooms, each switched on for 30 hours per week across 40 weeks of the year over their life-span of five years or more.
Stretching the life of an old asset might appear cost-effective, but hidden long-term realities mean it can be anything but.
Reaping the rewards
Getting to grips with all of this is not so easy - the school cited above will be one of many that does not consider the long-term picture when addressing its technology.
Unconscious ignorance, where we don’t know what we don’t know, is a big thing here. How is a busy school to know what the future holds with technology? The past is easy criteria to base a decision on - we’ve all been there.
Longevity, long-term value and understanding what the future holds are essential considerations, though. Schools need to think long and hard when making any buying decisions in this area, and if they’re not sure, they should ask challenging questions of their suppliers. Seek advice, speak to peers, look for evidence of success, and so on.
Ultimately, the key is to avoid investing time and money in what’s no longer current. Instead, invest in technology for the future of your school.
Ed Fairfield is vice-chair of Naace: The Educational Technology Association. He tweets @mreddtech
