Click here to receive your FREE subscription to Education Channel Partner

Case Study

Partnering for Success in K-12 Security

By: Bridget McCrea

6/17/2008


"I can even set up the class into groups and distribute tests or assignments that way," said Zainea. "If a group or individual is lagging behind, I can use the chat function or take over their computer to get them up to speed without the stigma of constantly walking up to their station."

In upgrading to the latest version of NetOp School, Van Dyke Public Schools gained access to features like a recording function and "offline" capabilities. The "offline" mode of NetOp School enables teachers to take the software home to prepare class materials and lesson plans. Instructors can discuss class activity with students, remind them about computer lab policies, and deter them from improper computer use in the future.

According to David Auwarter, education sales manager for Chicago-based NetOp Tech, the school system came to the vendor two years ago in search of a better way to interact with its students. "They wanted a way to be able to control things that were being done in the classroom and provide more interactive and collaborative instruction," says Auwarter. "They realized they could do this through technology."

During the update process, the school system also added several new licenses, according to Auwarter, who classifies Van Dyke Public Schools as a "super-user" in terms of its user volume (4,000 by this summer) and the wide range of functionalities that it's currently taking advantage of.

"This school district uses all of the features, even the offline capability, which enables individual teachers to download future applications onto a memory stick and create tests," says Auwarter. "When they arrive at school the next day they can upload the data and get to work."


Bridget McCrea is a business and technology writer in Clearwater, FL. She can be reached at bridgetmc@earthlink.net.