Prospectuses at all levels for education institutions can be accessed and published in two ways. Firstly there is the much trusted and conventional way of physical copies presenting the College in this instance as a brochure type document commonly seen with all prospectuses nowadays.

The advantage of physical copies is the reader can see the aesthetics of the institution which are brought to life physically rather than digitally on screen. Also the information regarding the college is bundled into one so the information can be accessed in the same prospectus. There are flaws with physical copies though and physical copies are substantially much more expensive to produce  than digital prospectuses.

Interactive/digital prospectuses are fast becoming the norm in the way prospectuses can be distributed nowadays. On the official site of a college for example, the prospectus more likely than not will be available for viewing or download from there. There is also the option to order a prospectus generally for free from the site more often than not. Interactive prospectuses can be interacted in much easier ways than physical copies as at the click of the mouse; readers can flick through pages to what he/she wants to see.

The     sell what is on offer ultimately whether digital or physical, the benefit of having both is that colleges can cater universally for people who want to interact in either fashion. Having this flexibility and also employing both means that readers can gain prospectuses easily.

As any of you will be motivated to do, as the father, I will not go behind in any way to check the kind of institution I should admit my son. This is a crucial decision of all the parents. Human mind has won over many hurdles and will continue to do so.  While thinking of their own sons and daughters, the same human mind looks for best of anything and everything as education is the base of bright future.  As such, there can be no comprises in case of selecting schools. What you or I will do is accessing school websites for gathering information.

Right from the beginning, selection of school means for a number of positive images we have in mind as standards to look for. The first objective of school website design is creating a positive impact about quality. A beautiful design obviously draws keen attention of the visitors. The ease of navigation from page to page reveals all the departments - administrative, staff, facilities and resources. The first impression establishes an attraction to get deeper into the host of other features, neatly arranged without causing a clutter or missed out points.   

The education system has been undergoing changes to match with emerging human needs. Much of the process of teaching and learning is supported with technology; the location and proximity do not come much in the process of learning.  Much of this information you can find featuring in the school website to see whether all what you hear are available.  It will be also quite beneficial for you to establish a communication right from the website to seek clarification.    

As the school authority, I would like to involve the local community more by posting news and happenings of the school for social developments. The important thing is letting the          do the talking in order to communicate the right message to the parents.  

Will I be wrong to say that we have to use 21st century technology in schools? It can’t be, living in the times of most rapid technological advancements while following the ways of the 20th century. That kind of thinking and attitude will push us back, especially for the issues and supports related to the schools which are formative places for the children who will take the charge tomorrow.

School websites are the first access for parents and students or the community to collect information from schools. You do it before deciding to visit a school or make a phone call like everybody else. In this kind of situation it will be grossly unimaginable to see school websites lacking in modern updated technology. A school website design truly symbolises the kind of outlook school administration has. The community will be swayed with an impression of the kind and quality of learning children can have.  

In the modern teaching methods, children learn a lot of things from the school website, like articles,  images, a series of learning through audio, videos and other e-files capsuled as podcasts as the means of quick learning and from any place. The school website can make use of many open source materials like articles and blogs or post happenings in the classroom to benefit of the students. Many school websites are now featured with social media like Facebook, Twitter, Flicker and Google+ etc.

It is now easy to design dynamic websites to make them attractive, easy to incorporate up-to-date features and better usability above all. Many schools’ adopt the latest technological support to advance their teaching methodology. You will often find such advanced facilities incorporated in the websites. I have seen a number of good websites of the schools that welcome you get readily absorbed within the school system with much to interact.

The fact of going with time applies to all; nobody can afford to continue merely with emotional feeling towards what has been there for years. Practical viewpoint is necessary in every aspect of the life; so is the situation with school websites like any other.

Your purpose behind having a school website is to let the school have a virtual presence for access anytime. The objective is convenience of all – school authorities, students and parents. Basic considerations behind putting up the website are up-to-date information for the users, convenience of using and visual appeal. The administrative mechanism also supports having proper school websites with successive amendments to School Information Regulations 2008. Things keep changing fast; you have to adjust to the changes for your school website to meet changing requirements.

So you should not take a facelift merely as fanciful desire, but a necessity to improve the drawbacks your school website has in relation to current needs. Most of the identified reasons are technical in nature; some of it of course goes for improving the appeal of it.

Parents and students can’t have the patience or wait indefinitely for website pages to load. Nobody and you too just leave the site if it does not load within a few seconds. Long loading time indicates need of a facelift.

Your website pages may be cluttered up with images, links, buttons and text. If so, it is surely giving a hell lot of a time to the users to find information they are looking for and a good probability of missing out vital points.

Your school website needs to be consistent with proper page to page navigational links and a discrete combination of fonts, size and colour used instant differentiation and recognition.

The appeal is a big factor to make things interesting, think of a facelift of the school website design if it deserves.    

Is it really important for schools to own a website? Can they manage without it? Does a website make any big difference? These are some unavoidable questions that come to mind. Go through the rest of the blog to know the answers.

Website making is a good idea for every academic institution, even for a kindergarten. Having a school website means less paperwork and instant release of information.

Another attractive point is the students can contribute their poems, short stories, paintings and photographs to the blog of their school website.  Not all school websites feature ‘blog’, but if it is integrated, students can have a global platform to showcase their creativity pursuits. Everyone is allowed to participate if he/she fulfils some criteria and comply with the online behaviour regulations, implemented by the school authorities. Unlike print school magazines, these online platforms take little time to publish the contributions made by students and recognize their efforts. Is a great benefit of school website? 

Websites can be quickly updated in real time. Schools can inform the students and parents about the changes in the scheduled date of meetings, functions or upcoming events, and disseminate other details in real time, instead of waiting long for the printing of notice and sticking it onto the notice board. But with websites, updating the details and pressing the ‘Save’ button are the only requirements. 

Both students and parents can visit the websites to check exam schedules, book lists for the new academic session, the syllabuses of upcoming examinations and the results. With all these necessary information thrown in, a school website helps the parents know what is going on in schools and how their children are doing. The nicer point is they get to know all these without visiting the schools and meeting the teachers in person, but just by means of a few ‘Clicks’.

Print magic has its own charm but that can’t be a match for the utility a school website provides. People have no luxury of time to flip through the school diary or crane their necks to see what is written on the notice board for important information; they have got easy shortcuts like Ctrl+F to find what they actually need on websites. 

How often do you search the internet for a particular business or service, in the hopes that all the information you need will be found online? Well, it’s no different when searching for schools. We are living in a fast paced, technology advanced world; and when a parent is trying to find information about a school, the first place they will look is the internet.

Quality Means Everything
Most schools  have a school website However the quality of these websites can vary greatly. Having a well designed, interactive and accessible website is crucial for any educational institute. The fact of the matter is, there are some school websites that  fail to deliver the marketing message or the right impression for the school by a poor quality website – whether it be issues of content, imagery, or accessibility.  Where a decision on which school to attend needs to be made this may be a deciding factor in choosing or not choosing a particular school. Especially if the parents and/or students  do not know that much about the school in the first place.

A school website needs to be a place where students, potential students and their families can go to learn anything and everything they need to know about that school. The website should act as constant representative where potential students can gain first-hand information about the way a school works and where current students can go to find everything from the teachers, or breakfast clubs or trip information. This is why it is crucial that a school website is not only eye catching, but also constantly updated and easy for the student or parent to use.

Contact a Professional
To get the best from a website, it’s highly advisable to contact an experienced web-designer who has knowledge and expertise in creating  school websites. This way you can request to see their previous work, so you’re safe in the knowledge that the website is in good hands. Not only will a good designer creates a beautifully designed site, but they can also ensure (if requested) that it is interactive, has a high level of usability, is search engine friendly and is integrated with a powerful content management system.

By applying all of the above to a school website, you are one step closer to showing potential students and parents the true essence of a school. The last thing you want to do is give them the wrong impression of what a school is about, by having a poor school website. Don’t settle for any less than.