Driven by the pandemic and a world that’s starting to appreciate digital learning, education now takes place outside the four walls of a classroom. This award goes to the institution that uses Slack to improve the learning experience and successfully serve students, teachers and staff.
A fully accredited online school, N High School is receiving the Slack in Education in Japan Award for using Slack to innovate in the digital learning space and successfully serve its student population since 2016.
Established by Tokyo-based publisher KADOKAWA and video-sharing website operator Dwango, N High School aims to nurture tech-savvy, creative graduates. With 19 commuter campuses and more than 15,000 students, the organisation has used Slack since its founding to facilitate communication between students, teachers and staff.
During the school year, more than 8,500 public Slack channels are used for homerooms, after-school activities and more. The Google Calendar app alerts students and staff of upcoming meetings and classes, while a birthday notification bot ensures that teachers don’t miss a chance to celebrate. In lieu of breakroom camaraderie, the Donut app for Slack automatically pairs up faculty and staff every Friday: Participants introduce themselves and enjoy a digital lunch together.
To encourage a supportive and fun atmosphere, custom-built Slack bots count and praise ‘likes’ and welcome new channel participants with auto-messages. While teachers generally give students some independence, certain channels have specific rules and policies, and faculty and staff are empowered to report cyberbullying.
Traditional high school clubs, and their corresponding activities, take place in Slack channels, from entrepreneurship and investment to e-sports and music. At 990 members, the art club is the most popular and home to both dabblers and those looking to pursue art as a profession after they graduate. A facilitator shares tips and insights and encourages everyone to post illustrations and interact just as they would in a physical art studio.
N High School students prefer Slack for its secure environment, whether they’re talking to each other, requesting support from counsellors or asking teachers questions. To make everyone as comfortable as possible, students are allowed to work under a pseudonym, and ‘speaking’, or typing in Slack, is not required. Most students thrive in the digital classroom, and graduates often say they don’t want to leave Slack.
