Our next #FinnemoreFireside is with Pete Collison, the General Manager of Compass Education for the UK & Ireland, who shares his insights on the changing edtech market, highlighting significant shifts over the past two and a half years.
Founded in 2009, Compass Education provides schools with the tools to manage information and workflows efficiently, allowing staff to free up time and focus on the tasks that matter. They’ve developed their MIS in collaboration with partner schools and have grown to serve over 2,000 schools in Australia, Ireland and England.
It’s a fascinating chat, and topics Pete and Nick discuss include:
- The increase in choice and innovation: The market has seen a rise in the choices available to schools, fostering innovation. This allows schools to be more demanding and specific about their needs, leading to better solutions.
- Compass Education’s growth: Compass Education, though relatively new in the UK market, has grown significantly, now supporting over 200 schools across the UK and Ireland. Their journey has been about offering schools greater choice and innovative solutions.
- Challenges and solutions in the market: Schools face ongoing challenges such as teacher recruitment, budget constraints, and managing pupils with special educational needs. How does Compass to address these through their MIS and solutions?
- AI and automation in edtech: AI plays a role in automating administrative tasks, freeing up time for teachers. However, Pete is cautious about AI replacing teachers, believing it should support rather than take over teaching.
- Future trends and developments: Compass Education plans to continue focusing on behaviour management, wellbeing for both pupils and staff, and enhancing parental engagement. They also aim to support schools in generating additional revenue and managing supply teaching more efficiently.
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