Apple devices are as easy to deploy as they are to use.
We want every aspect of your school’s experience with Apple products to be as simple and intuitive as the products themselves. That starts with support for IT in each step of your deployment.
iPad and Mac integrate seamlessly into your learning environment.
Whether you're planning a brand new deployment or adding Apple devices into your existing infrastructure, iPad and Mac fit perfectly in. And now with Microsoft Azure Active Directory support, it’s easier than ever to provide your students and staff with access to key Apple services for teaching and learning. All the apps and services your teachers and students need every day, like Google Drive and Microsoft Office, are available on iPad. And with the countless creative tools iPad offers, students are empowered to express their learning any way they like.
Prepare your school to get up and running.
Apple School Manager is a simple, web-based portal that helps IT administrators deploy iPad and Mac in schools. You can easily provide students and staff with access to Apple services, set up devices, get apps and books, and enable teachers with tools to create engaging learning experiences — all from one place.
Learn the basics of deployment and get started with Apple School Manager.
Integrate with your school’s existing systems.
With federated authentication in Apple School Manager, it’s now easier than ever to integrate iPad and Mac into your existing environment using your school’s Microsoft Azure Active Directory credentials.
Use Azure Active Directory to manage access.
Connect Apple School Manager with your school’s Microsoft Azure Active Directory and get every student and staff member automatically set up with Apple services. Your students and staff members can then use their existing Microsoft account credentials to log in to iPad, Mac, iCloud and Schoolwork.
Prepare for this simplified login experience:
- Verify that your school uses Microsoft Azure Active Directory.1
- Decide which school domains you’d like to link to Apple School Manager.
- Set up the connection to Microsoft Azure Active Directory in Apple School Manager.
Connect your Student Information System.
The easiest way to get class rosters with students and teachers set up in Apple School Manager is through a direct connection to your schools’s roster data in your Student Information System (SIS). Apple School Manager integrates directly with popular SIS providers including SunGard, Infinite Campus and PowerSchool. You can also automatically import roster data using an SFTP integration provided by your school or a wide range of SIS providers. Roster information is then available for Schoolwork, Classroom and Shared iPad, so teachers can start working with their class straight away.
Integrate Apple School Manager with your existing systems.
Build an individualised experience for students and staff.
With apps, iPad can become a laboratory, a movie studio, a time machine, even a spaceship. Apple School Manager makes it easy to provide classrooms with the right learning materials in time for the first day of class, from the productivity apps schools need for their daily workflows, and free Apple-designed apps for doing and creating, to the thousands of apps in the App Store designed specifically for learning.
When you’ve set up federated authentication, students and teachers can use their existing login to access the full range of Apple services, including 200GB of free iCloud Storage and the ability to collaborate in Pages, Keynote and Numbers. Students get an individualised experience on iPad, even if they’re sharing a device. Teachers can use Schoolwork to hand out assignments and follow student progress, helping them tailor instruction to each student’s needs. And importantly, their personal data will stay private and secure.
Easily buy apps and books.
Purchasing content in bulk for iPad and Mac is made easy within the Apps and Books area in Apple School Manager. You can search for content, purchase licences with your education volume discount, and instantly view important information including assigned and available licences, all in one place. And with MDM, you can send content directly to iPad and Mac. Your school retains app licences and can easily reassign apps among all your devices.
Offer a curated app catalogue.
If your MDM provides a self service portal, you can allow students and teachers to install additional apps and books from a selection that is pre-approved by your school. So the content you make available meets your curriculum goals as well as your standards for security and privacy.
Include every learner.
Everyone learns differently. And our products are designed to support those differences. So they include innovative assistive technologies to complement every learner’s vision, hearing, motor skills, learning and literacy needs. And IT admins can use MDM to configure devices wirelessly with the assistive apps for individual students’ needs already in place when students log in to their device for the first time.
Purchasing content is straightforward, and deploying it to the necessary groups is simple. Having one central place, instead of navigating across a multitude of logins and tabs, is a timesaver.
Ensure teachers and students have the apps and books they need.
Privacy is our first thought.
Not an afterthought.
Our business doesn’t depend on invading anyone’s privacy. Especially schoolkids. We care about energising students’ imaginations — not monetising their data. Every Apple product is built with an integrated approach to privacy and security — providing schools with devices, apps and services that keep student data and personal information secure. We don’t sell student information, we never share it with third parties to use for marketing or advertising, and we don’t build profiles based on their email or web browsing. And with Managed Apple IDs, the school controls student information and can choose to enable or disable apps and services such as iMessage, FaceTime and student progress recording with the Schoolwork app.
Apple has received ISO 27001 and 27018 Certifications for implementing an Information Security Management System with measures for protecting PII in public cloud environments. We also meet the requirements of the new EU GDPR framework. In addition, Apple has signed the Student Privacy Pledge, further underscoring our commitment to protecting the information of students, parents and teachers shared in our schools.
Learn more about how we protect our customers’ privacy
Set up devices instantly.
Once you’ve designed the learning experiences you want your teachers and students to have, you can set up devices so everyone can get up and running quickly. Whether your school chooses a one-to-one iPad environment or a shared iPad model, with Apple School Manager and your mobile device management (MDM) solution, you can easily automate device setup. Wirelessly configure settings and restrictions according to your school’s requirements, then assign devices to students, teachers or class groups.
Apple School Manager and your MDM work together.
With Apple School Manager you can assign school devices to MDM so they are automatically enrolled and configured. Since you can set the default MDM server by device type, it’s easy to automate assignments for iPad and Mac. Using MDM you can wirelessly deploy apps and books, configure home screen layouts, filter web access, schedule overnight software updates, find misplaced devices and manage dozens of other settings.
Choosing your MDM solution.
MDM solutions are available from a wide range of vendors, whether your school is better suited for a cloud-hosted environment or an on-premise server. MDM solutions come with different features and pricing, so you have flexibility in deciding how to bring Apple devices into your school. The MDM solutions below support the education features in iOS.
Shared iPad
Shared iPad enables schools to share devices among students, while still providing a personalised experience.2 Before class begins, teachers can assign any student any shared iPad. Students know which devices to use because their pictures are on the Lock screens, and they can access their personal content using a password or easy-to-remember four-digit PIN. Because a local copy of their data is stored on the device, after students log in, their homework, apps and assignments are exactly as they left them. So teachers and technology managers won’t lose time backing up or wiping data between classes.
Assessments and standardised testing.
iPad and Mac are approved devices for securely administering summative exams. Both work with state online exams, including tests from Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC), the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) and ACT Aspire. With Automatic Assessment Configuration, assessment apps can automatically lock and configure iPad for testing, to prevent students from accessing other apps or features.
Learn more about managing devices and assessments.
Use in the classroom.
With devices in the hands of students, it’s important to set up teachers with the right tools to create great learning experiences. iPad and Mac fit exactly in to your school’s existing productivity workflows, with native support for apps like Google Drive and Microsoft Office. And Classroom, Schoolwork and Apple TV help your teachers go further and transform their classrooms into dynamic and interactive learning environments.
Help teachers manage their own class.
When you set up student accounts and class rosters in Apple School Manager, classes are automatically available in Classroom and Schoolwork, so teachers can start working straight away. And you can enable Student Progress for Schoolwork from the Settings area of Apple School Manager, or disable this feature for individual students in the Accounts area.
Works with the tools you use every day.
Google G Suite apps, including Google Drive and Google Classroom, work seamlessly on iPad. So do Microsoft Office apps. And with free, built in apps designed by Apple, teachers can bring out the creativity in every student. iMovie brings the power of moving images to storytelling. GarageBand lets students be in a band even if they’ve never played an instrument. And Pages can transform written reports into interactive digital books complete with photos, illustrations and your own audio clips.
We feel that IT should be as hands-off as possible. Teachers need control, and now with Classroom they have more power to manage their technology, which reduces support from our IT staff.
Set up Apple TV for sharing and collaboration.
Apple TV is a great addition to any classroom or conference room. It allows iPad and Mac to wirelessly display their screen to share presentations, websites and videos. Management features in tvOS make it simple for schools to configure Apple TV. Apple School Manager or Apple Configurator 2 can enroll Apple TV in MDM and fully configure it simply by plugging in power and Ethernet — no user input required. Schools can manage Apple TV at scale including the option to remotely set AirPlay security settings and greater control of what shows on the default Home screen. With MDM you can also set the Apple TV name, network and Conference Room Display Mode with a custom message.
Help Teachers get the most out of technology in the classroom.