Author: Alison McCook

Google Jamboard is winding down

Google Jamboard will no longer be available after 31st December 2024.  This will be across across Web, iOS, Android, and Google Meet devices, internationally, and is not Glow specific.  Google have made this decision following feedback from customers that other whiteboarding tools have grown in capability and they have chosen to focus their resources on core content collaboration across Docs, Sheets, and Slides.

Timeline for the Jamboard wind down:

Until 1st October 2024 – Your Jamboard device and application will continue to function normally.

Starting 1st October 2024 – The Jamboard app will become view-only. You’ll no longer be able to create new or edit existing Jams on any platform, including the web, iPhone, iPad and Android.

After 31st December 2024 – You’ll no longer be able to access the Jamboard app or your Jam files.

Google will be working with other digital whiteboard suppliers on the migration of existing Jams onto these alternative platforms; however currently these platforms are subscription based.  Google have suggested Google Slides or Google Drawings may be an alternative option to Jamboard in some situations

More details and a timeline can be found on the Glow connect website – HERE.

Please note that some of the products list on the Glow Connect or Google support pages are not approved for use in Moray and a DPIA would be required prior to use/account creation.

National Glow Password Reset for Learners – 9th August

From 9th August all learners in Scotland will be required to change their Glow password. This is an annual process to ensure the security of Glow accounts. 

The process will start from Friday 9th August to ensure that all learners returning to school after the summer holidays will be required to update their Glow password.  In Moray the national password reset will fall a few days before learners return to school.  Learners logging into Glow following the reset will be asked to create a new password.

We would like to encourage everyone when they are updating their password to review  the Glow Community Rules .

When setting up a new password it is vital to remember – Be secure: always keep your Glow password to yourself and remember to log out of Glow when you are no longer using it. 

The Digital Learning Team recommend using the Three Random Words method to select a new password.  You can find Password Guidance on Glow Connect to help stay safer online and to find out what makes a strong password when using Glow.   

Staff should be aware that if they are supporting learners in the classroom to choose a strong/new password that the password should be unique to each learner.   We would encourage learners to change their password in school, however we are aware that some learners may be at home, with the password change being supported by parents/carers. We would ask that parents/carers do not access Glow directly. 

The use of password grids like the one below could be helpful in assisting younger learners to chose a password.

When prompted to choose a new password there is a minimum requirement and a password rating is displayed to reflect this. The Change Password button will only be enabled when the minimum requirement for this account type is met.  A full guide on how to change your Glow password can be accessed here-  Glow Password Change Guidance

Any issues with changing passwords should be directed in the first instance to your schools Glow Administrator.

The national staff account password reset is currently scheduled to take place on 28th August, with further details being provided nearer the time.

Safer School Scotland App – Summer Reminder

As the summer holidays approach the Digital Learning Team would like to remind all our educators and learners in Moray about the brilliant resources available to them through the Safer Schools Scotland app.  While we have our fingers crossed for good weather so everyone can get out and enjoy everything Moray has to offer, we know that for some the holidays mean they may be spending more time online and need some support and guidance to make their online experience as positive as possible.

The Safer Schools Scotland App is a free app for mobile or tablet devices which provides school communities with up to date digital safeguarding and online safety information.  Each school has their own bespoke version of the app with their own school’s details and join codes.  The version of the app a user sees is based on their role – Learners, Teacher, Safe Guarding Lead or Parent/Guardian and has appropriate content for each role.  Schools can contact the Digital Learning Team for details of their schools join codes and log in details if required.

In addition to the Safer Schools Scotland app the we also like to highlight two other free resources from Ineqe Safeguarding Group the which families can access for guidance and support –

    • Safety Centre – contains guides on popular app, reporting/blocking content and how to use safety and privacy setting on different types of devices.
    • Home Learning Hub – library of resources, articles and guides on how to help children and young people be safer online.

All the resources listed above are constantly monitored and updated to reflect changes in the online landscape, emerging trends and to highlight credible risks.

Microsoft Office Desktop Apps Downloads via Glow

If you have previously downloaded Microsoft 365 Pro to your personal laptop/computer via the ‘Download Office Now’ Tile in Glow and signed in with your Glow credential this change from Microsoft will impact you.

Glow’s Office A1 Plus licenses used to allow Glow users to download and/or activate the Microsoft Office suite for free; however Microsoft are implementing some license changes that will impact this functionality.

From the 28th October 2024 users will no longer be able to use download the desktop applications through their Glow account.  Access will be removed staring from the 28th Oct, but may take up to 3 weeks for all accounts to be updated.

This is a change in Microsoft licensing that affects all Glow users, both staff and learners, and may impact home devices as well if the user’s Glow account has been used to download or log into Microsoft applications.

This licensing change will not affect access to Microsoft 365 web applications, so you will still be able to access Word, Excel and PowerPoint through your web browser.  The Microsoft Team app or and and Microsoft 365 mobile apps you have downloaded will also not be affected.

For more details on the changes to our Glow licenses and the actions you can take please go to the Glow support page – HERE.

New Teams Default in Glow

From 26th February 2024, RM Unify are enabling New Teams as the default within Glow. This will allow users to continue to familiarise themselves with the New Teams interface in advance of the retiral of Classic Teams at the end of March 2024.

Users will still have the option to revert back to Classic Teams between 26th February 2024 and end of March 2024; however as Classic Teams will no longer be available after March 2024 we would encourage all Glow users to explore New Teams as it will be what all users will be utilising moving forward.

Click here for more details on New Teams read our previous Teams post.  Or to see the differences in functionality between Classic Teams and New Team click – here

New Teams rolling out in Glow from 7th Dec 2023

The new Teams experience will be rolling out in Glow from 7th December 2023 for all staff and learners to try before it becomes the default experience when Microsoft retire the current ‘classic Teams’ in mid May 2024.  The changes will be rolling out on the desktop app and for the web client (Edge and Chrome).  Users should start to see the option to switch to new Teams within a few days as a significant update rollout take time across the whole of Glow.

New Teams has many additional benefits including –

  • The ability to easily switch between Microsoft accounts (e.g. a local authority M365 account and a Glow account) allowing more seamless collaboration and less disruption. This is referred to by Microsoft as Multi Tenant Multi Account (MTMA)
  • Less resource intensive
  • Updates such as new channels and chat experience, ability to see raised hands and participants while presenting in a Teams meeting and a new look based on system settings e.g. dark mode or other high contrast settings

Switch to new Teams using the toggle in the top left area of the Teams App.

You can switch back to ‘classic Team’ up until mid May 2024 by visiting the three-dots menu in the top right corner of your Teams window, then toggle the New Teams switch to off. New Teams application will close the Teams classic will open.

For more information and to view a video run-through of all the new Teams functionality visit the Glow Connect help page – HERE

Changes to OneDrive storage in Glow

Microsoft recently announced changes in storage allocation on their A1 Education license, which is the license all users have through their Glow account. As of February 1st, 2024, users will be restricted to a maximum of 100Gb storage within their individual OneDrive.  This is a reduction from the 1TB currently available in Glow.  The vast majority of Moray users will be unaffected by this change as they are not using anywhere near 100Gb of storage.

Education Scotland have provided the Moray Digital Learning Team with a list of accounts whose OneDrive storage exceed these new limits, as well as users that are close to this limit (i.e. those with storage space of 90Gb and over).  We will be contacting these account holders individually.

All Glow users are encouraged to undertake regular housekeeping of their cloud storage to ensure they remain with the limits. These housekeeping tasks can range from, but are not limited to

  • Deleting unwanted / unused files
  • Delete unwanted / unused versions
  • Empty Recycle bin
  • If the material is still required, consider storing in an alternative location like G Drive
  • To learn how to review and delete large files in OneDrive, go to this site.

Tips For End Users

  • How to view your storage usage – Sign into OneDrive on the web. Review storage usage on the bottom left corner.
  • Clean up your files – Click the storage amount used and view the largest files in your OneDrive you may want to delete to free up space. After deleting the files, empty the recycle bin.

Following the licensing change in February 2024 users will receive warning notifications when approaching the storage limit. At 100% capacity, the user’s OneDrive will be limited to read-only access. Users won’t be able to upload, edit or sync new files to OneDrive but existing files will remain read-only

Computing Science Scotland Week – Nov 6th – Nov 10th 2023

Join Education Scotland and their partners to celebrate Computing Science Scotland Week – Monday 6th – Friday 10th November 2023 with a series of live lessons exploring different aspects of Computing Science.

During the week you and your learners can dive into Computing and learn new skills with practical code and create a long sessions as well as some unplugged activities broadly suitable for BGE levels 2/3.

Topics covered during this week include

  • Data Science
  • Coding
  • Design
  • Prototyping
  • Physical Computing

 Live Lesson Schedule

Most of the live lessons will take place via a Team in Glow; however if you are unable to join the Glow team then you can still access the live lesson via direct link but won’t have access to chat.

More information about the activities and partners contributing to #CSScotland23 can be found – HERE.

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