09/02/2023
7 Practical Ideas for Promoting the Use of Edulink One to Parents
Author - David - Overnet Data Support
Having parents sign up to an engagement platform that the school provides and then getting parents to actually use it can be a challenge. David from our Support Team shares his practical advice for onboarding parents and improving parental engagement with Edulink One.
Promote
The number one obvious rule is to promote your use of Edulink One (or other platform) in every way you can. Not only does this remind parents to sign up if they have not already, it also makes them curious as to what they are missing out on.
But sometimes it’s hard to come up with ways to raise awareness of an engagement app when you’re strapped for time. Here are a few practical suggestions you may wish to consider to help increase take-up and usage of Edulink One.
School Website
Adding a login button to the home page of your website is a great place to start as it makes it easy for parents to access Edulink. Consequently, driving more parental traffic to your school website means visitors are more likely to engage with what else is going on in the school, especially if you have news or twitter feeds.
1. Create a school login link
Make sure you post a customised link to your school’s Edulink One account on your website so parents and carers no longer need to remember the code or postcode for your Edulink site.
Here’s an example of a customised link. Where the below address has SchoolCodeHere you would replace this with your school code. https://www.edulinkone.com/#!/login?code=SchoolCodeHere
This link can also be used by staff or students to quickly login to Edulink One. Read how to create a custom link.
We have buttons and logos to help you make the Edulink site stand out. You can download them here.
2. Have an Edulink One explainer on your site
If your school website has a parent section for showing information to parents, e.g. term times, school uniform, policies, etc, this section could be a good place to explain what Edulink One is about and what information can be accessed from Edulink One.
We have a Parent Overview article that can help you with the layout of this information.
Again, you could have the login button located on this page and if you can, give the page a specific link that helps parents find it e.g. www.yourschool.sch.uk/edulink
3. Share troubleshooting information
On your Edulink One explainer page we recommend you signpost parents to our Knowledge Hub for support: https://support.overnetdata.com/
It may also be worth sharing links to specific articles such as:
How do I reset my password?
Students: https://support.overnetdata.com/knowledge-base/how-do-i-reset-my-password-student/
Parents: https://support.overnetdata.com/knowledge-base/how-does-a-parent-reset-their-password-parent-accounts-only/
Why won’t the Edulink One app accept my password reset?
You need to delete your existing credentials. Read how to here. https://support.overnetdata.com/knowledge-base/why-wont-the-edulink-one-app-accept-my-password-reset/
We also have a range of videos on Knowledge Hub and YouTube that are aimed at parents, including how to book a parents evening slot which you may want to share. Take me to the parents’ evening video.
Other ways to advertise your school’s use of Edulink One
4. In school screens and noticeboards
Don’t forget that in-school advertisement can help. If you have digital signage or noticeboards in reception, try to utilise them. Perhaps have catchy pages pop up “Did you know you can report absences using Edulink One?”; “Did you know you can see your child’s Achievements or Rewards using Edulink One?” or “Did you know you can find out what homework your child has to complete using Edulink One?”
Maybe you could have your department heads provide space on their noticeboards or digital signage for an Edulink One information page?
Consider having notices outside parent waiting areas or meeting rooms explaining the benefits of using Edulink to communicate with the school.
5. Promote at school events
If you have on-site parents’ evenings or school performances, it’s a good opportunity to remind parents and carers about Edulink One. Make sure there are adverts in the entrance points and/or in the hall for parents to read.
You could consider creating a QR Code linking to information on how to get Edulink on their device.
You can download our logos to help you do this here.
6. On IT equipment
Many schools provide an Edulink One favourites link or start menu button for all staff and student logins, which helps improve usage. This in turn can then create “word of mouth” endorsement to parents:
Example 1: student pops home after school and tells mum they received 3 x achievement awards today, prompting the parent to login and see them.
Example 2: mum and dad are not native English Language speakers but their child could read their school report to them online via Edulink.
7. New intake
Give applicant parents information about Edulink One when they apply for their child to join the school: show them how they can keep track of what is happening with their child’s school day.
More importantly, once admissions are confirmed in March, issue Edulink One logins and ask parents to check the details the school holds on them and their child. This helps your school clean up the data you’ve received, making it more accurate whilst saving time. It also sets a precedent for ongoing engagement via Edulink. You can read more about using Edulink One for admissions here.
If you’ve found this article helpful, you may be interested in our recent white paper on “Improving Communication with Hard-to-Reach Parents”. You can download our Guide for Improved School-Family Partnership here.
You may also find these articles useful:
