DCG demonstrates tech expertise

Bondholder Derby College Group (DCG) has been chosen by the Government as one of a further 18 schools and colleges to become ‘edtech demonstrators’, being the only college in the East Midlands to be part of the second stage of the programme.

Melanie Lanser, Director of Teaching, Learning and Academic Research, said: “This is real recognition of the success of remote teaching and learning across DCG which has been embraced by staff and students alike.

“DCG has been at the forefront of embracing new technology to enhance teaching and learning, such as partnerships with Microsoft and Fujitsu and being part of national SEND and Teach Too programmes.”

DCG has been awarded £150,000 to develop support for, and share expertise with, other schools and college to also use technology to support remote learning.

DCG will support up to 25 schools and colleges with a wide range of technology for remote teaching and learning, as the impact of COVID-19 continues to affect education into next year, including best use of Microsoft Teams for teaching and Office 365, as well as guiding on digital well-being, inclusive technologies and e-safety.

Melanie Lanser added: “Taking all teaching and learning online from the beginning of lockdown has been a steep learning curve and our focus has been to find new ways of teaching of learning rather than purely trying to re-create the ‘magic’ of the classroom.

“We now look forward to sharing our experience and with other schools and colleges to help them emulate our achievements and we continue to develop remote teaching and learning across DCG to further break down barriers and make class learning, albeit it online, as enjoyable and effective as we can.”