Technology is very important in school and learning today. Microsoft has always helped schools around the world. This blog looks at how Microsoft works with schools. It also explains how schools can get Microsoft software. These partnerships help both Microsoft and schools. The world market for school technology is big.
This growth shows these partnerships are key. Microsoft’s partnerships help new ideas grow. They also make learning better. Their school programs let schools use important tools. This teamwork also helps improve things like AI and research.
Key Takeaways
Microsoft helps schools. They make learning better. They have many tools. They also have programs for students. They have programs for teachers.
Schools can get Microsoft software. They use special plans. These plans include Microsoft 365 Education. They also include Azure Dev Tools. They offer cheaper Windows devices.
Microsoft Copilot uses AI. It helps students learn. It helps teachers teach. It makes tasks easier. It makes learning more personal.
Microsoft gives money. They support school research. This helps new ideas. Ideas grow in AI. Ideas grow in quantum computing.
Schools need to know how to get tools. They need to know how to manage them. Microsoft offers training. They offer support. This helps schools use tools well.
A big example of microsoft’s partnerships is with Harvard Medical School. They have a publishing agreement. This lets microsoft use health information from Harvard Medical School. This ai data deal helps with AI growth. It lets microsoft train its AI models. It uses this scholarly content. This publishing deal with harvard medical school shows how health and artificial intelligence work together. The harvard content makes microsoft’s health AI better. Both groups benefit from this. Harvard‘s health knowledge and microsoft’s AI make strong new tools.
Microsoft Academic Licensing
This part explains how schools get Microsoft software. These plans help schools get important tools.
Microsoft 365 Education
Microsoft 365 Education has many tools. Schools can try it for free. Microsoft checks if schools can use it. This check is often fast. Sometimes, it takes longer. They might ask for more information. Then schools can buy Microsoft 365. They get special school prices. Some tools are free. Schools must finish the check. This is before the free trial ends. Then they get a paid or free plan. If a school is not approved, it can buy regular plans. Nonprofits might get special plans. The check can be quick. It can also take a month. If it’s not approved, contact support.
Schools with a special plan can use Microsoft Copilot. This AI tool helps schools. It makes learning personal. It helps students do better. Copilot also helps teachers. It makes tasks easier. This gives teachers more time. They can help students one-on-one. It helps with many tasks. It can summarize topics. It creates content. It also looks at data.
Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 includes:
Study and Learn Agent: This helps students learn. It changes to fit them. It helps them think. Students can practice. They can study topics. They can use flashcards. They can do quizzes. This will be free in November 2025.
Teach: This helps teachers. It makes class prep easy. It uses AI for teaching. Teachers use it for lesson plans. They can make quizzes. They can change language. They can change reading level. They can change length. They can change difficulty. They can match standards. Teach is free for schools. It will work with school systems soon.
Other features include:
Start tasks with agents. Use normal words.
Do more with data. Use AI for school data. Make special reports.
Work with Copilot. Use Microsoft 365 apps. These include Word, Excel, PowerPoint. Also Outlook, Teams, and OneNote.
Make Copilot fit you. Use agents for learning. Use it for messages.
See how much it’s used. Use the Copilot Dashboard.
Get full security. Copilot uses Microsoft 365 security. It uses privacy rules.
Stay in control. Your data is private. It is not used to train AI.
Make agent rules easy. Use central management.
Protect ideas. Use the Microsoft Copilot Copyright Commitment.
Copilot Chat is free. It uses AI web chat. It protects your data.
Azure Dev Tools
Azure Dev Tools helps students. It helps teachers. It gives them tools. It gives them software. It gives them services. This helps students learn skills. These are in science. Also technology. Also engineering. Also math.
Azure Dev Tools includes many software. These are Visual Studio 2019. Also Visio Pro 2019 and 2016. Also Project Professional 2019. Also Windows Server. Also SQL Server. Other tools are included.
Teachers and students can use Azure Dev Tools. A teacher in a class can install it. They can put it on their computer. This is for school use only. Students must be in an engineering class. This is for credit. Active teachers can use it. They must teach engineering. Or do school research. Regular staff can also use it. They must be on payroll.
Device Licensing
Microsoft has device plans. They offer cheaper Windows devices. These are for K-12 schools. The ‘Shape the Future’ program gives big discounts. This is for new computers. It makes tech easier to get. It makes sure licenses are right.
Microsoft Education has cheap Windows 11 devices. These are for K-12 schools. They include Surface Laptop Go 3. Also Dell XPS 13. Also general Windows devices. These fit different needs. They fit different learning styles. They fit different power needs.
K-12 schools get more discounts. They get special prices. This is for over 1,000 devices. They get 10% off some devices. This includes Surface with Windows 11. Also Microsoft 365 Education. This is when bought from the Microsoft Store.
Research Grants
Microsoft helps school research. They give grants. They give sponsorships. Microsoft does not pay for students directly. Their giving focuses on bigger programs. It focuses on partnerships. It focuses on scholarships. These are given through schools. They are given through nonprofits. Look into Microsoft Scholarships. Look into Microsoft Programs. Look into Microsoft Learn. Look into Certifications. Look into school scholarships.
Microsoft offers a grant. It is for PhD students. These students are in the US. They are in Canada. These students are often underrepresented. This is in computing. This grant helps more diverse students. It helps them get advanced degrees. It gives research money. It is up to $25,000 USD. This is for the 2021-22 school year. It helps finish thesis work. Students must be in their fourth year. Or later. Their research must fit Microsoft‘s areas. They must be a woman. Or African American. Or Black. Or Hispanic. Or Latinx. Or American Indian. Or Alaska Native. Or Native Hawaiian. Or Pacific Islander. Or LGBTQI+. Or a person with a disability. Winners also get an invite. It is to the PhD Summit.
Other research help includes:
School fellowships. Grants. Competitions.
Special research work. This is with researchers worldwide. It includes:
AI, Cognition, and the Economy (AICE)
Speeding up Foundation Models Research
Center for Societal Impact. This is through Cloud and Artificial Intelligence (SCAI)
Microsoft Climate Research Initiative
Plural Technology Collaboratory
Studies in Pandemic Preparedness
Applying for these grants has rules. International students can apply. They must be in a US school. Or a Canadian school. They must meet other rules. Students outside the US and Canada cannot apply. This is for this grant. Students must be in their PhD program. This is in fall 2021. This is to get the grant. It is for thesis research only. They must be in their fourth year. Or later. This is when they apply. (Started PhD in September 2017 or earlier). They must stay enrolled. This is through fall 2021. Microsoft workers cannot apply. Directors cannot apply. Their families cannot apply.
Proposals are judged. They are judged on science quality. They are judged on research impact. Microsoft researchers review them. They have the right knowledge. Applicants pick possible reviewers. They pick their main research area. They use keywords. Do not contact researchers directly. Suggestions for reviewers are titles. Like ‘Researcher’. Or ‘Senior Researcher’. Or ‘Principal Researcher’. Or ‘Senior Principal Researcher’. Winners will be told. This is by June 30, 2021. Many apply. So, no feedback is given. This is for proposals not funded.
Schools must have knowledge. They must have resources. They must have skills. This is for the research. They must be an approved university. It must be nonprofit. Or a nonprofit research group. Incomplete proposals are not accepted. Proposals asking for too much money are not accepted. The budget should follow school rules. It should put money towards finishing research. Many proposals from one school are fine. But only one Microsoft gift is given. This is per university. Joint proposals are good. They help chances. Many schools can apply together. They must show how money is shared. It cannot be over $250,000 USD.
All good proposals are checked. Microsoft experts check them. Microsoft picks winners. This is based on checks. Microsoft can give more money. Or less money. This is up to the maximum. No feedback is given. This is for proposals not funded. Proposals are judged on many things. They must address an important area. It must have a big impact. It must have value. It must impact productivity. It must spread widely. They must be able to finish it. The team must be good. The team must be diverse. The school must support it. The budget must be smart. This is to make a big impact. The time to apply for this grant is over.
Imagine Academy
The Microsoft Imagine Academy program helps schools. It gives lessons. It gives certifications. These are for needed tech skills. This program helps students. It helps teachers. They get valuable knowledge. They get credentials. It gets students ready for tech jobs. Imagine Academy offers learning tools. These are for many Microsoft technologies. From office tools. To cloud computing. To data science.
Partnership Benefits
These partnerships help both Microsoft and schools. They make learning better. They give new tech tools. They save money. They help new ideas grow.
Learning & Teaching
Microsoft helps students learn. It helps teachers teach. For example, a study looked at a school. It was The Royal Grammar School Newcastle. Students used Reading Progress in Microsoft Teams. Their Spanish reading got much better. Their reading speed went up. It went up by 22.43 words per minute. Other students did not use it. Their speed went up by 10.5 words per minute. Reading was more correct. It went up by 13.29%. For others, it went up by 4%. Students made fewer mistakes. They made 7 fewer mistakes per task. Other students made 3.5 fewer mistakes.
Teachers can see reading mistakes. This helps them teach better. These partnerships also help teaching. They use many tools.
Microsoft Teams for Education mixes classes. It lets students connect from far away. It helps give out homework. It helps with group work.
Teamwork tools let students work together. They can share things easily.
Reading and writing tools help improve skills.
Minecraft Education Edition makes lessons fun. It helps with math, science, art, and history.
Flipgrid makes everyone in class more involved.
Microsoft also works with Khan Academy. They use AI in school. US teachers get Khanmigo for Teachers for free. They also look at AI math help. They make good learning experiences. Microsoft works with Disney and Pixar. They offer new activities. These are through Minecraft Education, Reflect, and MakeCode. These make classrooms open and friendly.
Technology Access
Schools get new tech tools. This is through these partnerships. This includes Microsoft‘s quantum compute platform. This platform finds and fixes errors. It works in different quantum hardware. It gives good quantum computers. Schools can also get quantum computer models. These are in Microsoft‘s lab in Maryland.
Microsoft Copilot is for teachers and older students. It has AI chat for the web. It uses models like GPT-4 and DALL-E 3. It costs nothing extra. It keeps user data safe. It does not save chat history. Microsoft does not look at the data. It does not use data to train AI. Copilot for Microsoft 365 is now for school staff. New Copilot features are coming soon. These include GPT-4 Turbo for longer tasks. DALL-E 3 makes better images. Multi-Modal helps understand images. Code Interpreter does math and analysis.
Cost & Resources
These partnerships save schools money. Software licenses are cheaper. Free tools lower costs. Schools can use money for other things. Microsoft 365 Education has special school prices. This helps schools get modern tools. It makes IT easier to manage. Schools deal with fewer companies. Systems work together better.
Research & Innovation
Microsoft works with schools. This helps new research. It helps new ideas. Grants and sponsorships help projects. Schools get new tech. This includes quantum computing and AI. This helps researchers. They can learn new things. They can find new answers. These partnerships also help future workers. Students learn with top tools. This gets them ready for tech jobs. This helps both sides. It helps science. It helps technology.
Challenges & Ethics
Licensing Complexity
It is hard to understand all the licensing models. Schools find this a challenge. They need to know the rules. They need to know who can use what. This takes a lot of work. Schools must check agreements. This helps them follow rules. It helps them get the most good.
IT Integration
Putting new Microsoft tools into school computer systems is hard.
Legacy Systems: Old computer systems are hard to change. New Microsoft tools may not fit. Special tools might be needed.
Customization and Configuration: Making Microsoft 365 fit a school takes effort. You need to know the system well. This can take much time. It needs special computer skills.
Data Migration: Moving lots of information is risky. Data can get lost. It can get broken. This happens when moving to Microsoft 365.
User Adoption: People may not want new tech. Teachers and students like old ways. This can stop new Microsoft tools from working.
Cybersecurity: Cloud tools like Microsoft 365 have risks. Data can be stolen. People can get in without permission. Strong safety rules are needed.
Cost Management
Microsoft gives schools lower prices. But costs are still a worry. Schools pay for setup. They pay for ongoing use. They pay for computer help. Schools must plan budgets carefully. This is for long-term costs.
Data & AI Ethics
There are right and wrong questions. This is about schools letting AI companies use their content. The Authors Guild is worried. Publishers like Taylor & Francis made deals. They let Microsoft use content. Authors were not asked. They were not paid. The Guild says using works for AI training is wrong. It goes beyond old publishing deals. This is true even if publishers own the copyright. The Guild thinks AI could hurt writers’ jobs. It could hurt their rights. They say authors should decide. They should say if AI can use their work. This is unless they gave permission. They say it is wrong to train AI on writing. This is without asking the writer. The Authors Guild wants publishers to let authors say no. Or pay them. This is for all works in these deals.
Authors are worried about their rights. Publishers made deals. They let tech companies use content. This is for AI training. The Society of Authors (SoA) said no. They do not want their copyright works used. This is for AI training or use. This is without special deals. They warn this hurts writers. It puts their future at risk. This ai data deal for content for ai knowledge mining brings up questions. It asks about authors’ rights. It asks about fair pay.
People worry that Microsoft and others are ‘stealing’ copyrighted material. They use it to train their LLMs. One person said schools made a ‘bad deal’. They gave copyright to publishers to get published. Now, researchers are ‘paying for it’. They wonder if they ‘should have listened’. This was when open access people said to avoid publishers. This shows how hard it is. It shows the right and wrong of publishing. It shows the right and wrong of using content.
This part talks about problems. It talks about right and wrong. These come from microsoft’s partnerships with schools.
Accessing Resources
Schools can use Microsoft tools. This part shows them how.
Enrollment Steps
Schools must follow steps. They must join Microsoft programs. First, check if your school fits. This is for Office 365 Education. Rules are on the Microsoft website. If it fits, start a free trial. This is for Microsoft 365 Education. You get school prices. Some tools are free. Microsoft needs proof. This shows your school is real. You might show papers. These are like school certificates. Schools without “.edu” need more proof. After checking, students and teachers can sign up. They get free Office 365 Education. This has many helpful tools.
License Management
Schools must manage Microsoft licenses well. There are tools for this. There are good ways to do it.
Group-based licensing: This is good for big schools. It works with a paid plan. Or a trial plan. This is for Microsoft Entra ID P1 or higher. It also works with some Office 365 plans. Licenses go to group members. New people get them too.
PowerShell: This is another way. It gives out licenses. Use it if group licensing does not work.
Microsoft 365 admin center: Schools can use this. It gives licenses by hand. But it is not good for big schools. It is too slow.
Training & Support
Microsoft gives much training. It is for teachers. It is for IT staff. This helps them use Microsoft tools best.
Educator training and professional development: This teaches many things. It covers AI for school. It covers online safety. It covers learning tools. It covers science and coding. It covers games. It covers helping everyone. It covers leading. It covers working together. It covers feelings. It covers school research skills.
Product guides: These books help with tools. They cover Teams for school. They cover Minecraft Education. They cover Microsoft 365. They cover Search Progress. They cover Search Coach. They cover OneNote. They cover PowerPoint. They cover Immersive Reader. They cover Reading Progress.
On-demand resources: These are always ready. They include Microsoft Open Source lessons. They include Microsoft Educator Center. They include Microsoft Learn Student Hub. They also have labs for teaching. Students get $100 Azure credits.
Community Resources
Microsoft builds a strong group. It is for school products. This gives more help. It shares knowledge. Schools can find forums. They can find online groups. They can find experts. These help users connect. They share good ideas. They fix problems. This teamwork helps teachers and students.
Microsoft works with schools. They offer many tools. They have different ways to get software. These partnerships help schools a lot. Schools get new technology. New ideas can grow. Microsoft also gains from this. They improve their research. This is true for AI too. Technology in schools keeps changing. Microsoft will stay important. Schools should use these tools. This helps learning. It helps make new things.
FAQ
How do schools get Microsoft 365 Education?
Schools must pass a check. Microsoft looks at them. This check proves they are real schools. Then, approved schools get special prices. Or they get free plans.
What tools does Azure Dev Tools give students?
Azure Dev Tools gives important software. It gives services. Students get Visual Studio. They get Windows Server. They get SQL Server. These tools help students. They learn STEM skills. Teachers use these tools too. They use them for teaching. They use them for research.
What is the Microsoft Imagine Academy program for?
The Microsoft Imagine Academy program helps students. It helps teachers. It teaches key tech skills. It gives lessons. It gives certificates. This gets students ready. They can get tech jobs. The program covers many Microsoft tools. It goes from Office to cloud computing.
Can K-12 schools get cheaper Windows computers?
Yes, K-12 schools can get big discounts. This is for Windows computers. The ‘Shape the Future’ program gives special prices. This helps more students get tech. Schools can also get more money off. This is for buying many computers.
Does Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 cost more for schools?
Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 is for schools. They need an Education plan. Some parts, like Copilot Chat, are free. Other advanced Copilot tools may need special licenses.