Making the transition to remote learning

Microsoft is committed to providing guidance and resources for educators, administrators, and caregivers whose children who are shifting to online learning. Check out the latest resources and guidance, including professional development resources, IT support, and tools to promote student health and engagement.

Continuing to drive student engagement and focused learning can be a challenge, especially for those moving to remote learning for the first time. Educators and families need support to help make this work. To help families support students, we have created a Remote Learning Guide for students and parents.

We encourage schools to use the completely free Office 365 A1 offer which provides a customised hub for class teamwork with Microsoft Teams that includes video meetings, online versions of the Office 365 apps, as well as compliance tools and information protection.

There are a number of cloud-based applications in Office 365 Education that are great for remote learners.

• One of the most valuable collaboration tools we offer for classrooms is Microsoft Teams. In Microsoft Teams, teachers can connect with one another in online PLCs (professional learning communities) and they can connect with students–distributing and grading assignments, chatting with students to offer support as needed, and conducting video calls to ensure students still have valuable face time with their peers and instructors while out of the classroom.
• OneNote is also a great tool for remote learning, offering students the ability to record work in an online notebook, even when they are offline.
• In Flipgrid, students can have conversations about curriculum and share their voice via short videos online.

Schools and students are all eligible for free Office 365 with an EDU email address and can sign up here. If a school is already licensed for Office 365, the school officials should send parents the correct log in information for their child to access the necessary tools for online learning. See the Distance learning with Office 365: Guidance for parents and guardians.

Resources to help schools looking to quickly move to online learning:

• Sign up information to get Office 365 Education for free.
• A webinar that walks schools through best practices on Microsoft Teams, a digital hub for classroom coordination.
• A guide to help parents get up to speed on remote learning tools to support their children’s online learning.
• A Quick Start guide for Office 365.