Why should you be verified?

Does having a blue tick next to your name on Twitter really make a difference? In truth - no. It is mainly a status symbol, with those accounts that are Twitter Verified able to unlock certain features that the rest of us can’t get. It also shows whether the owner of the account is authentic and not a parody account. Music artists, journalists, politicians and those of significant interest to the public seek to get the iconic blue badge on their account and if you are reading this, you probably want it too.

We have included some steps below to show you how to get verified on Twitter, although this is not 100% guaranteed and we will explain why.

Many schools have been in touch with us about how to improve their marketing efforts in one simple step. The answer is simple: hire a Digital Storyteller. With digital storytelling still being a relatively new concept, you could be forgiven for being a little confused about what it is or how it could benefit your school and your pupils.

However, it has grown in significance as digital technologies have evolved at an incredible rate. Now, as social media impacts most facets of our lives, the ideals and desires of good digital storytelling are larger than ever. Hiring a Digital Storyteller (DS) is something to take under serious consideration.

Social media is an ever-changing world in which trends move on quickly. There is always a danger of being left behind if we do not keep up-to-date with the latest changes in the world of all things social. Make sure to sign up to our #SchoolBytes newsletter and follow us on Twitter to receive your weekly dose of school marketing tips straight to your inbox.

“Posting nice content on social media alone is outdated as the black and white TV, keying into current trends, trending hashtags, searchable keywords and share-ability are the new social currency” - Jerry Oche

Does your school make use of the mighty hashtag (#)? We wrote a blog on the power of the hashtag and are strong believers in this powerful symbol!

Not only do hashtags play a huge role in categorising content, but there are also mighty hashtags out there to include in your #ContentStrategy. These can easily be scheduled in for every day at the start of the week, allowing you to sit back and watch the engagement roll in!

Here are some of the top, easy hashtags to get your school involved with:

It goes without saying that everyone and their aunt has the ability to start taking good quality pictures, thanks to smartphones. The vast majority of recent smartphone models (for example: Apple iPhone Xs; Samsung Galaxy S9; Huawei Mate 20 Pro; Google Pixel 3 and many more) have fantastic, high quality cameras. Older models still have good cameras too!

This makes it very possible to capture great snaps on the go. Anyone can try their luck as an amateur photographer without the need to lug around an expensive digital camera and an array of lenses.

For schools this means great #SchoolStories can be recorded; to be shared with communities on social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, or on websites and parent comms.

But it takes a little knowhow and practice to turn the average pic into a great, highly engaging pic. Here are a few tips to take the perfect photo on your smartphone.

Welcome to a new academic year

August and September is an exciting time for many schools around the globe, as the gates open once more for another fantastic year of learning, growth and innovation. New pupils have joined your ranks, bringing their unique personalities and passions. What are you doing to spark these interests in your pupils?

It is easy to fall into familiar patterns; to stick to what feels safe. But, to be a truly forward thinking organisation, it is time to take stock and look to the future. What new paths can you take this year to adapt to a very fluid, tech-led world? Because the bottom-line is this: to be impactful we have to remain relevant and not stagnate.

Make way for the UX Agency

Practicing what we preach, we have recently gone through a total rebrand - looking to the future. We will continue to do what we have always done well, but continually adapt and roll with the times to do it even better!

We want to drive a forward-thinking, innovative approach to how schools not only market themselves but also how they can look to disrupt old-fashioned education models and adapt new principles relating to the #FutureSchool.

In the article, @SimonNoakes - our Founder and CEO - describes his vision to start the conversation. 

The #FutureSchool: Evolution or Transformation?

For hundreds of years pedagogy has formed the core to teaching and learning. 

Learning outcomes and academic results have become the focus for educators and the community around them - a narrow view that is having less and less to do with today's modern needs in education. While striving for educational greatness is not necessarily a bad thing, the single-mindedness desire to top league tables and churn out the best grades is failing our children. Schools need to be adaptable to new styles of education, otherwise the only losers will be those who are receiving an education.

"Schools tend to focus on buying technology, without considering the human impact."

Schools talk a lot about ‘educating the whole child’, and ‘giving them opportunities beyond the curriculum’ to thrive in what they are good at - but are we missing the point? 

The Reality

[1] Tech is redefining the game

It seems obvious to say but the gargantuan changes we have seen in technology, in the last 10 years alone, has completely changed the way we do many things. Education is no exception.

Some of these impactful tech changes include:

• mobile technology
• machine learning / artificial intelligence
• virtual / augmented reality
• cloud & data storage
• significant increases to internet speed (globally)

Tech evolution is not only redefining the ways we can teach but the actual curriculum of what should be learned. This is likely to continue, while we try to better clarify technology's place in the learning process.

[2] Mobile technology is opening new ways of learning

There have been ongoing arguments about pupils having mobile phones in school for many years now. The simply truth today though is that mobile tech has permeated into our lives so much that more people own a mobile phone than do not!

In fact, there is a slightly horrifying statistic that states more people in the world own a mobile phone than a toothbrush!

If we can accept the fact that mobile tech is here, perhaps we can begin to look at how it can be used in the classroom. Here are a few ways that mobile tech has positively affected learning:

• pupils can research topics online, explore subject content further and find inspiration for their work
• pupil engagement has been noted to increase in schools already integrating tech and mobile tech into their learning process
• different teaching styles are easier to implement with mobile tech - distant learning and collaborative learning for example
• consistent use of mobile tech provides more skills for pupils' futures, particularly around digital citizenship

[3] Remote learning is increasingly becoming simpler

We have all likely heard of (and maybe even tried) Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). These are courses (many of which are free) where you can learn remotely by watching videos, reading course content and self-assessing your understanding.

MOOCs give people the opportunity to learn skills in almost anything you can imagine without needing to attend classes. 

[4] Learning can be more focussed around collaboration

This may be one of the more impactful changes we see in education, collaboration:

• pupil / pupil collaboration enabled by tech can be a powerful (and equitable) thing. Pupils who are perhaps introverts may find it easier to collaborate with their peers over a digital platform
• pupil / teacher collaboration is also enabled with tech. We have already seen platforms like Pinterest enable this collaboration, but in reality this can be taken to exciting new heights as the power of tech grows

Collaboration is an essential life skill, so having tech as a tool to better instil it as a quality can only be a good thing.

[5] Digital games are finding a solid place in the learning process

Game based learning and gamification were hot topics a few years ago. Many educators agree that using digital games in the learning process can actually help improve pupil engagement and give teachers useful tools to help analyse their pupils engagement.

We have seen some great innovations in the digital game meets education technology industry, Minecraft: Education Edition for example. 

[6] Information is easier to come by, but application still needs the guidance of a teacher

While all of the above are very positive regarding the impact of technology in education, there is one essential thing to bear in mind. This is that while the availability of information has been vastly improved (a pupil could be said to have unlimited knowledge in their pocket with smart phones) the application of this knowledge still needs to be taught.

And this is why the teacher cannot really be replaced! We explore this exact topic in our analysis of Virtual Reality (is it a supplement for teachers, or their replacement) and the outcome very much remains this:

In Part 1 of 'Do children really care about privacy & data protection?' we explored how teachers and parents have a responsibility to ensure younger generations are safe online. Much of this responsibility stems from adults understanding these issues implicitly themselves - so they can champion good practice and safe use to children.

In this follow-up article we will look at these issues from a child's perspective. 

Digital Natives