Mana College is embracing technology to expand learning opportunities for ākonga, from creative design and digital arts to coding and 3D printing. Behind the scenes, support from Network for Learning is helping provide the reliable connectivity needed to make that possible.
Step into the smart new technology block at Mana College and you’ll find a vibrant hub of modern learning. In one corner, ākonga might be fine-tuning architectural designs using computer-aided design (CAD) software. In another, a 3D printer hums to life, turning a student’s digital blueprint into a physical model. Nearby, young creators are busy with photography, laser cutters and building design.
For the educators at this Porirua kura, which has been serving its community since 1957, these cutting-edge tools represent the future of education. But bringing their digital learning journey to life required sorting out a few connectivity challenges – and getting some support from Network for Learning (N4L).
To see a video about Mana College’s digital journey, watch below.
Overcoming connectivity challenges
Mana College has a diverse student body, with a roll that comprises approximately 60% Māori and 20–25% Pasifika. While the school embraced a bring-your-own device (BYOD) model a number of years ago, internet connectivity was presenting a challenge for Principal Jeff Chapman and his teaching staff.
“Some of the areas of the school weren’t getting reliable Wi-Fi, mainly in our marae space, as that’s an older part of the school,” Jeff explains. “So, the kids in E Tipu E Rea (our special immersion space in the school), were missing out on technology.”
This lack of reliable connection was placing an administrative burden on the school’s leadership team. Deputy Principal Joanne Te Morenga often found herself troubleshooting technical glitches rather than focusing on learning outcomes.
Issues like occasional digital dropouts were also having a tangible impact on student engagement, particularly in creative subjects.
“Our graphic design students use the digital art and illustration app Procreate, and this became really difficult when things were lagging or dropping out, and we even had some students losing their work,” Joanne says.
A partner on the digital journey
Teachers need to be empowered to teach without fighting technology. We worked closely with Mana College to troubleshoot the technology issues they were experiencing, understand their needs, establish the proposed solution and be flexible with some timely hardware replacement.
By upgrading Mana College’s Wi-Fi as part of the Equipment Replacement phase of the Ministry of Education’s Te Mana Tūhono programme, we helped the school resolve their coverage issues in the older parts of the campus and provided new equipment for their brand-new building block. For Jeff, having the expertise of N4L on hand made all the difference in managing the complex transition.
“With bringing in new devices, bringing in new technology, making sure that all works, it’s exciting, but there’s a lot of stuff that comes in behind that,” says Jeff. “Having staff on board who are able to facilitate, and having IT providers that can communicate really well, is really important. With N4L in particular, they’ve been fantastic to work with and are really helpful in trying to work through different problems.”
Equity at the heart of learning
With a reliable network foundation in place, the school has been able to help close the digital divide and ensure their E Tipu E Rea students have access to the same technical opportunities as others.
“Equity for our Māori students here is really important to us,” says Joanne. “If we can give them the opportunities to use technology, I think we could have some pretty cool Māori and Pasifika innovators in the future. Having the network work better now, they’re also able to receive the same connectivity as the rest of the school. That’s been really important for them to feel valued.”
The robust connection has allowed the school to expand its curriculum and invest in new learning tools with confidence. The school has also introduced a Toi Māori design option, purchasing iPads and Apple Pencils for students to use in their creative work.
A transformed classroom experience
Today, the frustrations of dropped connections and lost work are a thing of the past, allowing kaiako and ākonga at Mana College to focus on what’s most important: teaching and learning.
“Now we’ve got our technology block up and running, we’ve got lots of different, exciting things that are happening in there – creative design, particularly using the iPads all the time and the 3D printers,” says Jeff. “But that’s also happening in our building schools; they’re using technology to do that, using iPads. It’s a digital world, so we still need to develop our kids in that space.”
The stability of their Wi-Fi connections has also allowed the school to reintroduce junior digital classes, where students use Grok Academy to learn coding, while art students seamlessly research global art movements.
As Joanne puts it: “Everything is just happening as it should be.”
How we can help
To find out how N4L can support your school or kura with reliable connectivity, contact our Customer Support team by emailing [email protected] or calling 0800 532 764. You can also check out n4l.co.nz