Managing a school’s online environment probably wasn’t the first thing that came to mind when you thought about becoming a school leader. But with more devices in students’ hands, the rise of digital learning, increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks and growing expectations around online safety and access, it’s become a much bigger part of the picture. These days, you might find yourself wearing your IT hat almost as much as your Principal one.
But what if you could get a clearer view of what’s happening online, without needing to become an IT expert to make sense of it all?
That’s the idea behind MyN4L – a self-service platform that gives you greater oversight of your school network and allows you to make changes in just a few clicks.
It’s already making a difference for schools like Te Maire St Francis of Assisi Catholic School in Canterbury.
“It’s simple, and it gives us more control.”
“The MyN4L interface is really easy to use; it’s simple. l would definitely encourage other schools to take up MyN4L, as you get more control over what’s happening.”
That’s how Principal Jo Earl described her experience with MyN4L. At St Francis, they’re now managing guest Wi-Fi access in a safer, smarter way within the platform.
“In the past, we’d handed out our Wi-Fi credentials to anyone who needed them, and we had no control. Now, we’re able to create unique Wi-Fi keys for our guests to use the school internet. We can also manage the duration of access and multiple devices for each guest.”
Fixing problems faster
MyN4L enhances your IT support too. Instead of waiting for a technician to arrive and investigate an issue, you or your team can bring up MyN4L and spot the problem yourselves, giving your IT provider a head start. This means less downtime, fewer disruptions, and more time spent on teaching and learning.
In the case of St Francis, this has streamlined troubleshooting for their IT provider, Fusion Networks. Here’s how Michael Walding, System Engineer and Team Leader at Fusion Networks, puts it:
“If a network or Wi-Fi access point is offline, the school can check those details, call us, and we can see the same information they’re seeing. This saves us time and enables us to take action and quickly fix the problem.”
IT providers can also manage multiple schools at once, switching between schools using a dropdown menu – a gamechanger for Fusion Networks who works with 16 schools across Christchurch!
How else can MyN4L help schools?
Depending on your stage in the Te Mana Tūhono programme and the current N4L services your school has, within MyN4L you can:
- Check your Wi-Fi equipment is working as it should – and help quickly identify the problem if it’s not.
- Add third-party and shared devices like printers or CCTV to your Wi-Fi network and ensure they’re properly authenticated and encrypted.
- Keep track of browsing activity on your network down to the individual user, helping you to spot inappropriate searches and take action, such as reinforcing online safety education or pastoral care support.
- Control which websites can and can’t be accessed on your school network
- Give guests Wi-Fi access with control over what they can use it for and how long they stay connected.
- View emails quarantined by our Email Protection service*, and safely release legitimate ones, so no important messages slip through the cracks.
This isn’t just another tool for tech teams, it’s built with principals and school leaders in mind. You decide who sees what and who has access to make changes.
But just like on school grounds, it’s a team effort, and you can give staff members and external IT providers different levels of access depending on their role and what they need to do.
When can you get it?
MyN4L is fully funded for all state and state-integrated schools. We’re rolling it out in stages and will get in touch when it’s your school’s time to get started.
Want to know more?
In the meantime, if you’re curious, you can find out more about MyN4L here.
*If you don’t already use Email Protection, and are keen to try it out, get in touch with our Customer Support team on 0800 532 764 or [email protected] and we can get you set up.
If you’d like to hear more from N4L, or see more blogs like this, why not subscribe?