tough durability decisions: a good problem to have - Amazon AWS

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Depending on how you buy and assign devices, you may be replacing devices originally purchased for older students or mor
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TOUGH DURABILITY DECISIONS: A GOOD PROBLEM TO HAVE THE COMPLICATED COST OF OLDER DEVICES Calculating the cost of older IT devices requires adding up two numbers. The first is the direct cost of supporting older devices, from hardware repairs to the patches and updates required to keep technology secure and productive. The second cost is indirect, invisible, and usually much higher. It’s the cost of lost opportunity, either through hardware failure or the eventual innovation gap that opens between state-of-the-art trends and older devices. The rise of touch computing is a perfect example, as new apps and opportunities are inaccessible to last-generation PCs.

Sponsored by Lenovo and Intel®

Getting every last dollar’s worth of value out of your IT assets used to be much simpler. Devices were purchased, used for three or four years (if they lasted that long), and then carted off for responsible disposal. The short shelf life of PCs inside education didn’t leave much room for planning for what to do with them once they were taken out of service. Now that PCs are lasting longer, districts and schools are left with more working technology at the end of the lifecycle. So now what? Now the challenge is a little different: What can you do with all this extra technology? This guide looks at ways schools are using older IT devices to drive important new priorities, leveraging longer device life to benefit students, districts, and communities. The end result is a steady flow of technology that can go where it is needed most, improving educational outcomes and ensuring maximum return on investment and innovation.

RE-PURPOSE OR RECYCLE? The longer usability of older assets makes endof-lifecycle decisions a little more complicated but also gives them more far-reaching impact. From redeployment on campus to helping build stronger learners across the community, those old devices now bring exciting new possibilities.

REFRESH: “NEW TO ME” IT Depending on how you buy and assign devices, you may be replacing devices originally purchased for older students or more advanced applications. These devices are often perfectly suited to supplement IT needs elsewhere in the school. In three years your latest hardware might not be state of the art, but chances are it will still be good enough for baseline computing needs, even with innovation moving as fast as it does. So where can these devices go?

DIGITAL ASSESSMENT DUTY As Common Core State Standards and other assessment requirements roll out, districts are working to find ways to comply with technology specifications. While the device standards aren’t particularly daunting, the idea of having enough devices simultaneously dedicated to testing might be. Using older devices gives you an easy way to expand your infrastructure to meet new assessment requirements without spending new dollars.

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Assessment requirements are about more than just endpoints.

Moving older devices out of classroom or 1:1 duty gives you two opportunities. The first is to bring the latest in performance and innovation to students where they need it most. Creating, sharing, and collaborating around new content and ideas are central to the technology-heavy focus of today’s curriculum standards, and access to state-of-the-art tools is essential to success in the classroom and after graduation. Once your classroom and student-facing technology is updated, the older devices can be shifted exclusively to digital assessment support. They can be distributed to labs or temporary testing sites or added to laptop carts. The same technology gap that makes older devices less than ideal for digital learning won’t typically impact assessment needs, which are driven by much lower technical requirements. Assessment requirements are about more than just end points. Schools must also assess other infrastructure needs such as bandwidth, security, and manageability, but having ready and reliable end points can significantly impact the cost and complication of readiness.

EARLY GRADES AND SPECIAL CLASSROOMS The technology-centered nature of learning requires students to have a strong foundation of hard and soft digital skills. This includes everything from appropriate use of the Internet, managing a lifelong digital footprint, and basic content research and analysis skills. Older devices allow you to push this potential out to more students across the campus and/ or district while also bringing new resources where they are needed most across campus. As schools integrate technology into daily learning and assessments, students’ needs to learn technology’s tremendous potential also create new risks and responsibilities. Giving students a comprehensive introduction to the digital universe, from basic safety and privacy to research and analysis skills, improves their success with technology long before 1:1 devices are deployed.

Sponsored by Lenovo and Intel®

Earlier access to IT can also broaden students’ perspectives on their own classroom and community by connecting them to students across town or around the world. Many schools are building reliable, cost-effective collaboration and distance-learning solutions with re-purposed IT — expanding the reach and impact of education inside the community.

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Today’s tech-heavy job market requires new hard and soft skills and exposure to realworld tools and problems.

Technology gaps can also impact programs designed for learners with special needs. Re-purposing older devices gives these teachers and learners equal access to a universe of specially focused tools and resources not available to traditional classrooms, helping bring the power of technology to diverse students and needs.

INTO THE HANDS OF STUDENTS: THE NEXT BIG IDEA? Chances are that students are already heavily involved in your IT, either formally or informally, but longer device lifecycles give students the opportunity to design, build, and run their own IT. Whether they want hands-on hardware experience or are looking to build the next big thing, they now have more technology to make it happen. Today’s tech-heavy job market requires new hard and soft skills and exposure to realworld tools and problems. Putting older technology into the hands of students creates new chances for skills-based learning that’s engaging and also has a practical, realworld upside. From network certification to software development, more technology means more training opportunities. Today’s students are raised in a world of digital media, allowing everyone to be a creator, collaborator, and consumer simultaneously. Students are already publishing digital media every day — a little extra technology can help schools formalize student efforts around everything from student news and publishing to media arts like film, music, and everything between. Students already have the ideas — they’re just waiting for the platform. Students need stronger real-world technology skills. Advanced device durability lets you give them more access to the basics and beyond.

RE-PURPOSE: CONNECTING STRONGER COMMUNITIES Device refreshes are an ideal opportunity to spread innovation beyond your classrooms and campuses, bringing IT to the community in powerful new ways. This prepares the entire community for better digital citizenship, stronger engagement with new ideas in learning, and longer-term success in today’s technology-focused world. Sponsored by Lenovo and Intel®

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BUILDING A COMMUNITY OF LEARNERS Bryant University, in Providence, RI, assigns laptops to incoming students each year. Older devices are donated to a local elementary school in a special partnership designed to improve student engagement and outcomes.

SUPPORTING IMPORTANT COMMUNITY INSTITUTIONS The same budget cuts that impact your technology dollars have also cut into the ability of community institutions to invest in IT that can help them deliver better service while making the most of limited resources. Building IT partnerships with community institutions means your older assets can help make up for critical funding gaps across important needs and causes. • Donate to charity • Gift to other schools or learning organizations • Bring additional infrastructure to libraries and other institutions • Use to drive community-wide learning

BUILDING COMMUNITY TOGETHER

LENOVO RECYCLING Lenovo manages a worldwide network of asset recovery service providers who help keep millions of pounds of toxic materials out of landfills. For more information go to http://www.lenovo.com/ social_responsibility/us/en/ product_recycling_program/

Just as when you re-purpose IT inside your school or district, the connections you can make to your community can also be student driven. Give students a problem and the resources to solve it, or simply empower them to find their own causes and charities. It’s a nearly perfect solution, where students learn real-world skills while also building stronger bonds to their communities. • Practical skills from problem solving to project management • Student-led resale for school or community cause • Cause-focused collaboration Helping students connect to their communities while giving back is beneficial to learners and those they serve. Give them the power of the older technology and see what develops — just be sure sensitive student data is removed from older PCs before donation or re-purposing.

RECYCLE: A GREENER, SMARTER GOODBYE Ultimately, some devices have reached the end of their lifecycle without anywhere to go. With new rules and regulations surrounding costs and environmental challenges associated with device disposal, districts and schools must make sure their plans maximize asset value, meet environmental regulations, and keep student, school, and district data secure and protected no matter where the asset ends up.

Sponsored by Lenovo and Intel®

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UNDERSTANDING MIL-SPEC DURABILITY The Department of Defense uses Military Standard 810 testing to qualify products for use under hazardous conditions. Started by the United States Air Force in 1945, the requirements now include tests for humidity, dust, vibration, temperature, liquid, and other hazards that match the tough conditions and constant use of K-12 computing. Lenovo designs products with these challenges in mind, ensuring products will survive the long hours and tough tasks of student computing.

• Lenovo® secure drive-shredding services keep sensitive data protected. • Lenovo asset disposal services make sure environmental regulations are met while reducing the stress and workload on your IT staff.

DISRUPTIVE DURABILITY: THE LENOVO DIFFERENCE The advantage of long-term durability doesn’t just happen — it starts with choosing the right device. You’re tasked with simultaneously meeting the growing demands of users and new mandates, and it all takes patience, smart procurement, and the right technology partner. As the world’s leading provider of durable education technology, Lenovo is committed to helping you build tomorrow, one student at a time.

KEYBOARDS: LITTLE FINGERS, BIG PROBLEMS Whether it’s prying fingers, bits of this or that, or the occasional spilled milk, teachers and students put their keyboards through a lot. • ThinkPad® keyboards are designed to allow more liquid to quickly pass through the device, protecting components from accidental spills.

DISPLAYS: A VERY DELICATE ISSUE Laptop and tablet displays are other common sources of failure in and out of the classroom. • Crisp, engaging IPS and touch displays empower better collaboration and interaction. • Scratch-resistant glass displays stand up to tightly packed backpacks and lockers and still look like new.

HINGES AND PORTS: OPEN, CLOSE, CONNECT, DISCONNECT While students and teachers are busy creating, learning, and sharing, PC parts are quietly getting the job done, with device ports and hinges putting up with constant daily use, misuse, and abuse. • Reinforced corners guard against careless teachers and students. • Ports and hinges are reinforced for durability. Sponsored by Lenovo and Intel®

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LENOVO DURABILITY WINS THE DAY When they were evaluating a major purchase of nearly 2,500 laptops for 1:1 and student computing, Chicago Independent Schools were so concerned with durability that they commissioned an analysis by an outside insurance agency. The findings: Lenovo devices were predicted to last at least twice as long as the competition, making the district’s choice of Lenovo a very easy decision. Source: Sokolova, Daria. “Decision Postponed on How to Insure New Computers.” Chicago Tribune, 21 July 2014. Web.

FEATURES AND FUNCTIONS: LITTLE DETAILS, BIG IMPACT Modern learning often takes place in crowded places and tight spaces, and teachers and students aren’t always as careful as they should be. One drop too many doesn’t just mean lost money; it also impacts classroom IT readiness so critical for success. • Tough rubber bumper on cover protects from drops on campus and beyond. • Dustless fans lengthen component life for superior performance on precious IT dollars. • Active Protective System™ locks hard drives during falls, protecting data from loss.

Lenovo’s education-ready devices, powered by Intel®, are the foundation of a responsive, reliable digital learning ecosystem that starts in the classroom and continues with institutionwide innovation. We believe that our technology solutions and services, backed by dedicated education experts, can be the difference maker that turns big visions into proven results. Want your own tough durability decisions? Learn more about the built-to-last Lenovo products at www.lenovo.com/education or contact a Lenovo Education Rep at [email protected].

Sponsored by Lenovo and Intel®

© 2017 Lenovo. All rights reserved. Lenovo™ and the Lenovo Logo are trademarks of Lenovo in the United States, other countries, or both. Intel, the Intel logo, and Intel Inside are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. v3.00 March 2017.