Many of our customers are incredibly lucky to have the support system and strategy in place to get everyone behind a 1:1 device programme and seamlessly transition from project plan to roll-out. Occasionally though, there will be a specific driver of the 1:1 agenda who can come up against some opposition internally from people who have a limited understanding of how the programmes work and can deliver value to the school or trust.
With that in mind, here are 3 common objections to 1:1 device programmes and how to head them off at the pass.
Additional resource ask
A common question you may hear when it comes to 1:1 is “who’s going to manage it?”. The prospect of bringing hundreds, maybe even thousands of devices into your school and distributing them to each student needs management, and it can seem like this is going to be unwieldy and unachievable with the resource you’ve got. Here’s the first point where you can reduce doubt – if you select the right programme provider, they will manage everything for you. That’s right – from initial parental engagement, through to enabling the selection of devices, distributing to students and collecting payments – you don’t need to manage one bit. The only thing you’ll be responsible for is making sure you can support these devices, which we’ve put together some guidance on here. Removing this admin burden immediately removes one barrier towards successfully launching a 1:1 programme in your school or trust.
Assumed risk
To someone who hasn’t rolled out or considered a 1:1 programme before, making parents responsible for keeping up regular payments for a device sounds a bit, well risky. What happens if the parent stops paying? Where does this leave you, the school? Again, if you select the right 1:1 provider, chances are they’ll have this covered too. Some providers offer misappropriation insurance, which completely covers the institution in the event that a parent stops payment. As we’ve mentioned before, the only drawback to this approach is that it requires you to obtain a crime reference number, classifying the non-payment as theft. Everyone involved ultimately wants what’s best for the student, and this route isn’t particularly productive or helpful in enabling truly inclusive 1:1 learning. Freedom Tech handle this by covering the institution no matter what – no need to declare a theft or obtain a crime reference number. If payments stop, whether the device is returned or not, we will pay out the remaining balance owed in full. Also, as we’re completely responsible for obtaining and managing parent payments, we help keep the likelihood of this happening as low as possible.
Ensuring adoption
How can you be sure that once you’ve spent the time selecting and arranging a programme, that it’s going to be a success? This means ensuring as much take-up among parents as possible. The first step is selecting the right provider – one who will support you through the initial parental engagement process and make it as seamless and easy as possible to encourage more take-up. To look at the wider picture in terms of students and staff using the devices to their full potential, you can look to some of our customers, such as Ribblesdale High School and Denbigh High School, who have impressively high take-up rates and have made a real impact on teaching and learning through 1:1. They combine teacher-led strategy with inclusive and excellent parental engagement to ensure that the devices are being used to truly enhance the students’ learning experience.
Push forward
With 1:1, the benefits speak for themselves – but sometimes stakeholders need that additional peace of mind going in. Freedom Tech are a financially strong company backed by CSI Leasing, one of the world’s biggest equipment leasing companies with over $5 billion in assets. We’re also the only provider which holds the ISO 27001 accreditation for Information Security Management, are FLA registered, and offer GAP insurance. We can offer complete peace of mind and end-to-end management for your 1:1 programme. If you’d like to find out more, get in touch.
