What a Centuries-Old Boarding School Can Teach You about Education Marketing
Founded by Henry VI, Eton College—England’s 574-year-old boarding school where George Orwell and Princes William and Henry once attended—is embracing technology. How do your efforts stack up?
At Eton College, uniformed boys between 13 and 18 years of age walk the school grounds much the same way as others have for almost 600 years. At first glance, it may appear as if little has changed, Eton College breathes history and tradition. But one glaring difference is palpable—students sit among the stacks of ancient library books with laptops out and headphones on. They text each other on mobile phones. Even the faculty has widely adopted technology—and why not? More than that, Eton itself has made it a point to invest in educational technology startups.
As reported by The Atlantic, there are two primary driving forces behind Eton’s adoption of technology: mobile device usage and the potential to use technology to help Eton’s student body deal with life’s ups and downs. While the rise of mobile devices is nothing new, the idea that technology can help round out a student’s education experience is more novel.
In any event, Eton’s devotion to adopting and even fostering educational technology is telling of the overall trend in education.
If you’re looking to better leverage technology to accomplish your institution’s mission and goals, an easy place to start is with an examination of your school’s website and digital properties. Are they mobile-ready? Are they working to help round out your student’s education? If you’ve already made some choices to incorporate technology, tell us how, in the comments below.
