Right in the middle of one of your Key Lessons to a group who are sitting public examinations at the end of term, appears the tediously familiar, but greatly annoying “no signal” prompt.

What is the machine saying? Everything has been connected correctly; it ran perfectly well last night at home, but apparently now is a good time to test your technological skills! You yearn for the lad who seems to have a knack with technology to return from the loo, resisting all the while the temptation to tap it gently on the top of the Computer, systematically running through all of the logical options.

Finally, as you are turning a nice shade of puce with embarrassment and frustration, the aforesaid lad returns. “Signal Problems, Sir” he enquires innocuously, gives the computer a smart tap on the top right hand side and your presentation springs back into life. Not knowing whether this smarty-pants with his extraordinary street-credibility of “The Fonz” is to be suspected of sabotage or congratulated for common-sense is lost as you feel an overwhelming wave of relief wash over you and the presentation finishes.

“Friendly, supportive” comments from the headteacher do not serve to cheer you up either.You wince inwardly as he confides in you,“That didn’t happen when I was a twenty-something teacher, oh no, I was always very prepared. Ofsted will be looking for such difficulties, what a good job that they weren’t here today!”

As images of the boy scouts run through your mind, it is difficult to stop musing that when he was twenty-something, he had to deal with re-splicing the movie that was running to show the advent of talkies in the remarkably educational “King Kong”.As for Ofsted, the closest that the Head came to them as a young teacher, was a jovial HMI who had a cup of tea and a chat after watching a standard lesson.

1. Click on various crosses and hope that the message does not persist
2. Close her eyes and look back at the screen, or
3. Stab wildly at Control S in the forlorn hope that her work will be saved.

Opting for 3 she is told that her work had been saved.Thinking,“Hurrah, I knew it” she does not notice that the analysis of her voice says 23% saved and thus is somewhat surprised when the readback facility inform her class that a “Dopian Jean” is how the book is written. Protesting that Dystopian Genre is what had been stated, she trails into the heads’ office to answer a complaint from Marie-Aude, that their lecture was racist against the French, the hapless woman resolves what is to happen to Voice Synthesis!

Driving past Glumtree Secondary School in the evening, after your Key Lesson, you wonder why all the staff are gathered in a huddle, looking – well glum.Your chum Dave who works there, rings you with the astounding news that they are being taken over by an Academy, who have decided to replace all ICT in school with a Zen Buddhist Harmony Chant.

This news at least makes you feel smug.You may not be the technological equivalent of Einstein, but you name isn’t Percy Vere for nothing...

…Now the technologically aware among you will know that such problems would not have occurred, had the school decided how they wanted their network and associated peripherals to behave. Indeed, had they been so enlightened as to give their staff training, who knows what levels of computer literacy would be possible?

An easy guide to planning your network

The decision needs to be taken whether a Peer to Peer Network is required or a Client Server Network. The Operating System is a Critical Factor to be decided:

• Are you going to run the Curriculum Hub separately or in collaboration with the Admin Hub?
• Do you want a cabled infrastructure or a wireless network? Are you going to need a fibre backbone?
• What speed do you need the network to run at?
• The peripherals that run on your network such as Interactive whiteboards, Laptops, desktops and printers – have you allocated part of your budget/time for training purposes?

When these factors are considered and implemented in association with your infrastructure system the result is reliable, hassle-free and consistent ICT service.

Anne Goodsall,
Principal of the Literacy Lounge and Education Consultant to Suna Communication,
provided this article.