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White PaperCitrix Mobile Workspacesfor EducationThe future landscape of education and mobilitycitrix.com/education

White PaperEmpowering user-centric accessAll levels of education share the same goals: improve the learningexperience, increase education outcomes and prepare studentsfor the future. With the rapid evolution of technology, there arenow more ways than ever to accomplish these goals while settingup students and educators for success.Today’s next-generation learning solutionsfocus on finding technologies that improveeducation quality, as well as increase universityand employment readiness and completion.Schools need to invest in solutions that meetthe diverse needs of students from varyingbackgrounds and support a mix of technologythat is both scalable and flexible enough tomeet changing demands and requirements –all while reducing costs and access barriers.Gone are the days of education IT simplykeeping the lights on; they are now taking amore student-centric approach to deliver valueand drive success for students, faculty and staff.Because of this shift, we are seeing theemergence of five education IT trends that aresignificantly changing the way schools designtheir campus mobility strategies to offerimproved productivity and greater opportunity.These trends are made possible throughmobility solutions and virtualization, which helpdeliver everything students need to succeed athome, on campus, or from anywhere.1. Learning space redesign: Schools arebeginning to realize that computer labsfilled with rows of computers no longerwork for today’s students. Since the averagestudent owns three or more mobile devices,1they need anywhere, anytime access toresources and a space to collaborate withothers. Many schools plan to decrease orcompletely eliminate open-use labs in thefuture and transform them into comfortablespaces that offer creative learning areas with1improved Wi-Fi, large-screen monitors andplenty of outlets where students can bringmobile devices and work together.2. Personalized student learningexperiences: Since each student is unique,learning solutions can no longer be onesize-fits-all. Educators and IT teams arebeing challenged to find customizablelearning solutions that can change andadapt to students’ varied needs. When ITimplements flexible, mobile workspaces,they increase access to learning resourcesand reach students wherever and wheneverthey feel most productive and inspired.3. Equal learning opportunities acrosssocioeconomic lines: Schools are expandingand implementing new technologies toprovide an equal learning experienceregardless of each student’s socioeconomicstatus. IT services and resources must be ableto work anywhere and on any device – whetherit’s a brand-new tablet or a desktop that isseveral generations old. Additionally, collegesand universities are increasingly bolstering theirphysical environments by adding remotecampus locations and offering virtual onlineclasses to reach more students and makelearning opportunities more readily available.4. Creating innovation around devicechallenges: To provide their students withthe latest technology, many schools haveimplemented new devices such as tablets,thin clients and 3D printers. But without theproper back-end infrastructure to supportAudience Survey on Technology in Higher Ed, University Business, June 2014citrix.com/education2

White PaperEmpowering user-centric access“Our IT team no longer has to manage schools one by one, so theycan take on more strategic objectives.”– Dr. Luz Elena Gaviria, secretary of education, Medellín, Colombiaand deliver services to these devicessecurely, they aren’t providing the value orinnovation they intended, leaving IT toquestion purchase decisions. As a result,education IT is tasked with addressing theopportunities enabled by deviceproliferation to create mobility strategiesthat are reshaping the way students work,learn and study.5. Learning continuity throughvirtualization: Every child loves a goodsnow day, but snow days also mean thatvaluable learning time is lost. In response,more schools are moving to virtual schooldays – not only to make up for days lost dueto things like weather and flu season, butalso to keep students engaged when theycan’t be in the classroom. With virtualizationand other mobility solutions, students haveaccess to everything they need to have aproductive, fulfilling learning experience athome. Virtual school days also have theadded benefit of saving schools facility andstaffing costs.Mobility challenges impact usersin different waysStudentStudents in today’s education environment areno longer only learning while in the classroom.They’re constantly on the go and moving acrossdevices, so it’s important that resources areavailable 24x7. In the morning, students can befound working on a laptop at home or in adorm room. As the day progresses, they moveon campus and take notes during class or makecitrix.com/educationedits to a presentation on a tablet. And afterclass, they can often be found studying in astudent common area or collaborating in thevirtual computer lab, using a thin client.These students – and educators – need a singlemobile workspace that helps foster successfullearning anytime, anywhere and on whateverdevice they use to improve collaboration, shareideas and make new connections.EducatorIntroducing new technology and systems intolearning environments is not only expensive,but it can also prove difficult for teachers toadopt, resulting in frustration, lack of use of thesolutions and ultimately the technology beingreturned to IT.Educators require solutions that are flexible anduser friendly for students and teachers alike –across a number of devices. This flexibility isespecially important for classes that require thepurchase of a powerful device or expensivesoftware like SPSS, AutoCAD or ArcGIS.Delivering these applications through a virtualcampus app store to any affordable deviceopens the opportunity for educators to reachmore students. The benefits surpass in-classuse; with mobile workspaces, teachers andstudents can meet for discussions or tutoringsessions online, not just during office hours orin the classroom.3

White PaperEmpowering user-centric access“Virtualization allows us to more effectively use IT to supportthe university’s educational mission by allowing our users to getaccess to resources wherever they are and from whatever devicethey choose.”– Sue Workman, associate vice president of support, Indiana UniversityNinety-four percent of highereducation leaders agree thatstudents today should be able toremotely access all the information,data and software they need, on anydevice, at any time and with aconsistent user experience.2IT leaderThe job of the IT leader is centered on findingsolutions that are easy to manage, costeffective, flexible and adaptive to change. Foreducational organizations, it’s also important toutilize systems that are scalable across manydifferent campuses, which might includeremote campuses, off-campus environmentsand even exchange programs around theglobe. To overcome this challenge, IT mustbecome more agile.Allowing IT to have a meaningful businessimpact, mobile workspaces increase efficienciesby enabling IT staff to manage issues andenvironments from anywhere. Their new,innovative way of thinking not only savesmoney, but also transforms the business oftheir schools.School leadersDepending on the type of school, an educationalbusiness leader or department head is taskedwith a multitude of different priorities. Forexample, larger institutions place a high priorityon providing cutting-edge technology andservices to stay competitive and to help attractand retain top students, educators, researchersand applicants. These organizations aredesigning, planning and implementinginnovative technology solutions and services thatare fun and engaging in environments that willsustain the interest of these individuals.On the other hand, leaders at primary schools,community colleges and technical schools tendto be more connected with the local communityand focused on student graduation and jobplacement. To help achieve these goals, leaderswant to ensure that students get access ondevices they can afford, while also providingon-campus resources that are flexible forstudents who work or have families.Bring technology innovation to educationwith Citrix solutionsCitrix solutions for education can empowermobility, improve education outcomes andachieve next-generation learning. With Citrix,educators and schools are able to reach studentswherever they may be learning, on whateverdevice they use to improve performance,satisfaction and graduation rates. Anywhere access – Deliver secure, anytimeaccess to instructional, collaborative, researchand administrative resources anytime, on andoff campus. Lower costs – Reduce desktop and mobileinfrastructure costs by managing complex,multi-campus environments under unitedIT control. Bring your own device (BYOD) – EmpowerBYOD and utilize any device to makeeducational resources readily available tostudents, educators and staff. Data security – Protect the privacy of studentsand secure research data while maintainingcompliance, providing high availability andsimplifying learning continuity.2Audience Survey on Technology in Higher Education, University Business, June 2014.citrix.com/education4