If you spend all day addressing login-related support cases, how do you have time to solve other technical issues? Doddridge County Schools faced this challenge as time-consuming login processes, and an overabundance of student usernames and passwords took away crucial time from teachers and IT staff.
ClassLink transformed Doddridge’s ability to support their 1:1 digital learning initiative—improving student access, saving time, and allowing IT staff to focus on issues like student data security and rostering applications instead of logins.
Challenge
Serving approximately 1,100 students in West Virginia, Doddridge County Schools needed a secure and sustainable way to support the 1:1 digital learning initiative that provides their students with devices to use at home and school. Educators spent countless hours of instructional time helping students track down their usernames, log in to various sites, and access new resources, taking away from crucial learning time.
The amount of time it took to connect students with applications “made a lot of teachers shy away from a lot of great programs out there,” says Elizabeth Hastings, a 3rd Grade Teacher at Doddridge County Elementary School.
This impact was felt outside the classroom, too, as IT staff spent more time resetting logins and helping connect students and teachers with resources than addressing other technical issues, opening district schools up to potential security risks. “I had their usernames and passwords written down on post-it notes and on paper, and those get lost all the time.” Doddridge County High School Technical Integration Specialist Libby Jarom says.
Solution
Relying on ClassLink for single sign-on and rostering, Doddridge quickly noticed a reduction in the time teachers spent logging students into applications. District tech teams also noted a difference in time spent fielding login-related support cases and identity management as they set up student and teacher access to existing applications and resources.
Using ClassLink as their “one-stop shop” increased flexibility for Doddridge teachers and tech teams. “Instead of having to explain ‘you need to go to this website and do this and do this,’ I say, ‘it’s in ClassLink,’ explains Jarom. “I probably say that twenty times a day, and it has made it so much easier for everyone involved.” Doddridge County High School Spanish Teacher Jessica Berkey adds, “The ease of students being able to get to all of the applications, it really does save a lot of time and stress for teachers.”
Results
Teachers and students noticed an immediate improvement in the once time-consuming process of logging into each resource needed access to individually.
Faith, a 12th-grade student at Doddridge County High School, says, “Using Classlink, when I click an application, I don’t have to log in. It’s a one-and-done thing for class. It makes it more accessible for me to get my homework and school work done no matter where I am.”
Even young learners notice a difference in how easy it is to access applications. Caleb, a third-grade Doddridge County Elementary School student, notes, “I just log into my ClassLink, and I see Seesaw, PBIS, and a lot of apps.”
Empowering students of all ages with the ability to log in to each resource they need as soon as they need it is a welcome relief for all involved, says Jarom. “I've been in technology for 20 years, it’s a relief to not have to print out passwords and usernames for teachers. With ClassLink I don’t have to remember anything and the kids don’t have to remember anything they don’t already know. It’s taken a lot off of teachers’ plates on the classroom level.”
As Jarom explains, ClassLink has simplified technology use for the entire district.“ClassLink made my life a whole lot easier. And I know teachers–and even students–would say the same.”
“ClassLink is a great solution to provide more classroom instruction time instead of time logging into individual software platforms. ClassLink provides great support and follows through with the implementation years after using the program.”