Communications Tools for Schools

Hargett’s Hints and Technology Tips

  

Last year I told you about Remind101, a FREE text messaging service that allows schools or teachers to communicate with staff, parents, and/or students through text messaging without any of the members knowing each other’s cell phone numbers.  Members can subscribe and un-subscribe themselves so that there are no user lists to create and maintain.  I personally use it to communicate with my students at Georgia Highlands.  It is a very simple method for instant 1-way group communications through SMS text messaging. 

However, if you want more functionality, the ability to receive information as well as send, you might want to check out Celly !  I have pasted some information below from their website: http://cel.ly/education
What is Celly? 

Celly is a group communication service. Celly connects people you interact with in daily life like friends, family, classmates, teammates, band members, and communities into instant networks called cells. Celly works from any phone or web browser. You can send and receive group messages, polls, and alerts using SMS text messaging, email, or the Celly website. We also have Android and iOS apps (iPod/iPhone/iPad) available here: http://cel.ly/app    

Three reasons Celly is popular with schools and educators:  

1. Privacy:  Students, teachers, and parents do not need to exchange personal information or phone numbers to communicate over Celly. Everyone is known by their Celly username. People can be invited by phone number or email, but phone numbers and email addresses are never revealed over Celly. Educators can also set privacy restrictions on who can join groups and who can send messages.
2. Accessibility: Celly is free for schools and requires no software to download. Celly works with any regular phone (SMS text messaging) or web browser (laptop, tablet, ipad, smartphone, etc.).  This makes it a low cost and easily accessible alternative to purchasing hardware and software devices. Students can participate in the same group using school computers or their own phones or devices (BYOD). Groups can easily be formed just by texting the @cellname to 23559 (@cellname = the group name, e.g., @History101).
3. Extra Tools:   Celly comes with additional group communication tools. For instance, you can also send group polls, schedule messages to be sent later, filter in messages from the web or RSS, store notes, share groups via QR code, and connect multiple cell groups together to form multi-cell networks (e.g., an entire school or school district). These additional tools can be used for a wide variety of school scenarios.  We also have a premium pack that includes extra polling features, e.g., you can create quizzes that can be scored and graded; more info here: http://cel.ly/leaders

Both of these free tools can be used by schools, teams, and/or classroom teachers.   With the availability of school and classroom websites, email, and now free group text messaging, there is NO EXCUSE for not getting the word out !