international school websites: hot topics
going recruiting: how your website can attract better candidates...read more
pride or privacy: photos of kids on your website, some issues ...read more
on campus or out there: website or intranet ...read more
getting content: student involvement ...read more
content management systems ...read more
good design: preventing slow downloads...read more
What goes on a website and what goes on an intranet?
With increased access to the web from people’s homes your website may become an extension of a school intranet (or vice-versa). Intranets allow the use of web technologies to browse resources within an organization, usually on a private network. So a school intranet could include schemes of work, lesson plans, medical records, school reports etc. The first decision to make is how much of this information do you want in the public domain. A website should be thought of as public domain and information on it is potentially open to anyone. You may decide that the school website should be for public information only – rather like a prospectus. The private or internal intranet may be kept separate or it may be available externally using password and other security checks. Once you decide to put information on the public web it needs to be on a web server rather than a network server. We can advise on intranet and website compatibility.
Developing on line resources
You may decide to develop on line resources that students can access from both school and home. (For example Moodle external link) These can be of benefit to students who miss school through extended travel, illness or in exceptional cases - such as conflict. These resources can also provide motivation in less demanding circumstances.
The importance of planning
In the end it comes down to planning your website: decide what you want to publish, why you want to publish and for whom do you want to publish information.
...read more about planning your website
