How to get more out of your education technology

Year after year, schools and districts are under increasing pressure to meet higher educational expectations on a lower budget.

Education technology has the power to completely transform teaching and learning—while also saving money. The challenge is to ensure those investments genuinely deliver results.

How can schools measure the ROI of education technology?

Their best bet to increase edtech ROI is to start with Apple. A recent Forrester study showed that simply using Apple in schools improves the ROI of school technology by 48%.

Schools making the switch to Apple devices discovered that:

• Teachers saved 30 hours per year
• IT departments reduced the time it took to maintain and manage Apple devices by 35%
• Apple devices held high residual value after their four-year lifecycle: 20% on iPad and 25% on MacBook Air.

However, getting the most out of education technology goes beyond money. Yes, schools operate with limited budgets. But they also have ambitious educational goals.

A recent systematic literature review found that using the right digital learning tools and approaches can increase learning outcomes and student involvement in classrooms, such as:

• Game-based learning systems can improve student engagement, topic mastery, and knowledge acquisition.
• The ability to continually track academic process helps teachers to make data-driven decisions on the best learning approach for their students.
• Student-centered methods made possible by technology promote deeper learning and more student connection, which leads to better academic achievements.

The promise—and pitfalls—of education technology

Most educators and administrators share a clear goal: they want to provide the best learning experience possible. Investing in the right devices and educational apps is a great start. But while technology has great potential, it also has challenges.

• Underutilized devices and apps: Many schools purchase devices and subscriptions. However, without a clear strategy or useful personalization, these tools can be underused or misaligned with learning goals and student strengths.
• One-size-fits-all limitations: If your school chooses technology originally built for a system other than Apple, your students and teachers can miss out of some of the most innovative educational experiences Apple has to offer.
• IT overload: Managing fleets of devices, apps, and configurations across classrooms and schools without the right tools can stretch IT teams thin. This can lead to delays, errors, and frustration.

Which MDM solutions are best for education?

Schools and districts that depend on Apple's unique education offerings have discovered that the best MDM solutions are those built specifically for Apple. While other MDM solutions often retrofit Apple devices into their existing MDM built for other platforms, these often fall short.

Jamf device management offers two powerful MDMs: Jamf Pro and Jamf School. Both can manage the personalized learning tools available within the Apple platform; other solutions cannot manage these tools on a granular level.

Streamlining workflows with Jamf Pro and Jamf School

Jamf doesn’t just benefit the classroom—it transforms IT operations, too. With Jamf Pro and Jamf School, administrators can manage thousands of devices from a single dashboard, automate routine tasks, and ensure compliance with school policies and safety protocols.

And while hybrid learning may not dominate headlines like it once did, the ability for students and teachers to collaborate seamlessly—whether in-class, at home or on a field trip—can make an enormous difference in student involvement.

What tools help schools get the most out of their devices?

Jamf offers powerful tools designed specifically for the classroom. Here's how schools can use Jamf to overcome those challenges and unlock the true potential of their digital investments with classroom technology optimization.

Personalize learning and increase communication with Jamf School

Jamf Pro and Jamf School allow administrators to configure devices for the needs of specific students or groups of students. Dynamically updated Smart Groups can group students by grade, type of device, program and other attributes.

Jamf School offers even more: teachers can offer individualized learning opportunities to students in the same class with just a few taps on an iPad screen. They can also create, share and implement lesson plans that can be re-used and modified.

Boost engagement and save teacher time with app configurations

Using Jamf Pro or Jamf School, IT admins can set up pre-configured app bundles based on subjects, grade levels, or learning objectives. This means students launch into a focused, engaging experience as soon as they power on and teachers have access to everything they need for each lesson.

Jamf School apps aid communication

• Jamf Teacher is a free app that teachers can use to manage student devices in the classroom as well as to communicate more closely with students and parents.
• Jamf Student is a free app that students can use to access apps, materials and documents that are assigned to them. They can also send and receive messages from their teacher and even electronically "raise a hand" during class time.
• Jamf Parent is a free app that allows parents to manage their children's school-issued devices: allowing and restricting apps and functionality, turning on or off iPad access based on location and more.

Jamf School integrations

Thanks to Jamf's strong relationships with some of the best-known educational vendors, teachers and students can use outside apps they already love directly from Jamf's interface.

Our seamless integrations include LingoKids, Writey, Showbie, Explain Everything, Desmos and many more. Our partnerships include Apple School Manager, Google Classroom, and more.

Zero-touch deployment and Self Service

Zero-touch deployment allows IT to deliver devices that arrive pre-configured and ready for students and teachers to use from day one. They can also push updates, enforce compliance with safety protocols and manage apps and OS's from a central location.

Self Service allows students and teachers to download pre-approved apps and resources whenever they need them. This empowers them to take control of their own learning or teaching experiences.

Key benefits of optimizing education technology

When schools harness technology effectively, the results are hard to miss.

• Improved student outcomes: Personalized experiences and engaging content can lead to better understanding, retention and academic performance.
• Reduced teacher workload: With intuitive tools for managing lessons, apps and classroom control educators can focus more on teaching and less on troubleshooting tech.
• Increased IT efficiency: Streamlined management tools offer centralized control, reduced manual workload and consistent, secure, and scalable device usage across the district.

Secure device management for education

The best tools for optimizing education are the safest tools. Ensure that whatever tools you choose have powerful security and privacy features built for Apple.

Jamf Safe Internet offers internet security and content filtering that protects student privacy. Robust telemetry, threat hunting and prevention, compliance controls and remediation capabilities make Jamf Protect best-in-class for Apple device security.

With Jamf Connect providing encrypted connections and cloud ID management, schools and districts can be sure that their parents', students' and teachers' sensitive data stays out of the hands of cyber criminals.

How to maximize your school’s technology today

1. Audit your current setup and stack: Identify what’s working, what’s underused and where gaps exist.
2. Leverage Jamf tools: Use apps like Jamf Teacher and management tools like Jamf School to tailor experiences to your students and teachers.
3. Invest in training: Equip your educators and IT staff with the knowledge that will get the most from your tech. While Jamf School simplifies school device management, there is always more to learn. That's why Jamf offers Jamf Educator: training and continuing education in how to get the most from Jamf School for educators.
4. Measure success: Track metrics like student engagement, device usage, and IT resolution times to continually improve educational offerings.

Jamf for education

To truly transform learning, schools must go beyond buying devices and apps. With Jamf, districts can personalize education, reduce friction and empower every student, teacher, and Apple admin to thrive.