Information Technology

Techonology is an integral part of modern life, and so supporting our students to become confident uses of technology is an essential part of the curriculum. At Bromsgrove we are committed to providing a well considered programme that supports the development of IT skills, while also teaching coding, and safer internet practices.

In addition we seek to use technology as a tool for promoting learning, and therefore all classrooms at Bromsgrove have Internet access and mounted data projectors. Many of the classrooms also have interactive whiteboards (including all primary classrooms at Windsor Park). The school has a professional business standard wireless network system throughout the Windsor Park campus (including the boarding school) that enables staff and pupils to work online anywhere within school. The Windsor Park Campus also has two first class computer suites for student use with a range of software to support and develop learning for all ages. The Early Years School has a new ICT suite with appropriate software to support learning in a variety of subjects.

In the Secondary School students studying exam courses from Year 10 onwards are encouraged to bring their own laptop computers to support their learning in all subjects.

The IT infrastructure in the school consists of a comprehensive network supporting Windows based desktops and laptops in all rooms used by the school. The school desktops are replaced every five years. The Windsor Park campus has standardized high performance Cisco switches with fibre optic connectors throughout the school offering the very best internet speeds and connections.

The school also boasts a state of the art firewall and managed network system. This system can manage and track all users on the school network making sure only appropriate sites are viewed during school hours and prep time, while allowing pupils in boarding to use the internet for communication and entertainment during their free time.

The school runs a number of systems on the network including a comprehensive management information system (Schoolbase) for student details, curriculum and timetabling, reporting and assessment, pastoral information and medical information. Staff can access this system via the network or the staff portal on the web.

All Primary classes have a blog site which is used to show what students have been learning at school and to post homework and activities for completion at home. Parents can access this and leave comments about their child’s work. They also use an online program to support learning in Mathematics.

The school is increasingly committed to providing professional development opportunities in ICT for academic staff to ensure they are kept up to date with developments and opportunities. This includes attending various technology conferences, INSET and sharing of best technology practice amongst staff via a shared web space. Members of the school are also active members of the International School Technology Exchange Committee (ISTEC) enabling us to make sure Bromsgrove is at the forefront of the use of IT in education.