The Lightspeed Blog

Learn about upcoming events, K-12 edtech insights, back-to-school tips, student mental health resources, software implementation and utilization, and more, from the experts at Lightspeed on the Lightspeed Systems® blog.

How Schools Manage Network and Endpoint Monitoring in a BYOD Setting 

Network and endpoint monitoring means tracking health, activity, and risk signals across both district infrastructure and individual devices. Schools need both layers because network visibility alone can't explain what's happening on a specific device, and endpoint visibility alone can't show the full picture

Growing Up in the Online World: Why Proactive Monitoring Must Sit Alongside Filtering

As concerns grow around distraction and online risk, Sweden’s approach highlights the importance of intentional technology use, balanced learning environments and proactive digital safeguarding that protects students while enabling effective education.

Scotland Has a New AI Strategy and Safeguarding Is at the Heart of It  

As concerns grow around distraction and online risk, Sweden’s approach highlights the importance of intentional technology use, balanced learning environments and proactive digital safeguarding that protects students while enabling effective education.

AI Week Scotland: Understanding AI Enabled Harm and How We Safeguard in 2026 

As concerns grow around distraction and online risk, Sweden’s approach highlights the importance of intentional technology use, balanced learning environments and proactive digital safeguarding that protects students while enabling effective education.

Beyond ‘Pen and Paper’: What Sweden’s Schools Reveal About Smarter Digital Learning

As concerns grow around distraction and online risk, Sweden’s approach highlights the importance of intentional technology use, balanced learning environments and proactive digital safeguarding that protects students while enabling effective education.

Safer Internet Day 2026: Awareness Isn’t Enough

Safer Internet Day highlights the need for effective filtering and monitoring in schools for safer digital learning environments. Director of Safeguarding and Digital Transformation, Tania Mackie, leads a conversation about it in our latest blog.

Filtering Today in 2026: Navigating AI, Proxies, and Emerging Technologies 

In our recent webinar, Filtering Today: Navigating AI, Proxies, and Emerging Technologies, Colin McCabe and I talked about what we’re seeing in the field, what customers are struggling with, and how filtering has to evolve to keep pace.

The Screen Time Debate: Myths vs. Facts – What the Data Really Shows

If you’ve been anywhere near a school board meeting, a parent coffee chat, or even your own dinner table lately, you know the screen time conversation is heated. Phones are getting banned in districts and states across the country, the use of technology in education is being questions, and everyone has an opinion. But here’s the thing—opinions aren’t data.

Visibility and Control of EdTech Devices and Apps: Key Insights from Our Latest Webinar

Over the past few years, schools across the globe have experienced a dramatic shift in the way technology is integrated into teaching and learning. In our latest webinar, I had the pleasure of exploring the challenges (and exciting solutions) around gaining true visibility and control over edtech devices and applications in schools.

What Happens When Your Learning Management System Goes Down the First Week of School?

The first week of school is chaos enough. It’s the worst possible time for your Learning Management System (LMS) to go down. But that’s exactly what happened this fall. And here’s the kicker: the district’s IT team knew before the LMS vendor did.

From Confusion to Clarity: How Lightspeed Signal Addresses Device Swapping and Shared Use in K-12 Schools

The practice of students sharing or swapping devices is becoming increasingly common in K-12 schools, bringing some serious challenges to IT departments. Keeping track of who has what device and ensuring everything runs smoothly can quickly turn into a logistics nightmare.

From Overload to Order: How Lightspeed Signal Reduces Helpdesk Tickets by Detecting Performance Issues Early

Technology plays a pivotal role in delivering lessons and managing classrooms. But what happens when an essential app suddenly goes down? Often, teachers are the first to notice performance issues, and the ripple effects can disrupt learning and overwhelm IT support teams.

From Anonymity to Accountability: How Lightspeed Signal Tackles VPNs and Proxies

Students are increasingly finding ways to bypass web filters using VPNs, proxies, and anonymizers on school-issued devices. This trend poses significant risks to network security and compliance, making it a pressing concern for IT leaders in K-12 schools.

From Inefficiency to Visibility: How Lightspeed Signal is Helping Schools Maximize Budgets

IT leaders face the daunting challenge of managing tighter budgets while ensuring that technology remains effective and efficient. With the increasing reliance on digital devices for learning, the need to maximize the lifespan and utility of these devices has never been more important.

Real-Time Visibility Starts Here: Lightspeed Signal in Action Webinar Recap

“What Signal is really about is giving you time back.” With this powerful statement, Chris Travis, EVP of Sales at Lightspeed Systems, kicked off today’s webinar, emphasizing a key theme that resonates with many K-12 IT leaders.

Now Available: Lightspeed Signal Helps You See—and Solve—What’s Been Slowing You Down 

Lightspeed Signal gives IT teams real-time visibility into the health of their devices, applications, and internet performance—all in one place. It’s designed to help you answer the questions that interrupt your day, cost you time, and frustrate your team.

IT Blind Spots: The Hidden Challenges K-12 Tech Teams Are Tackling 

Our conversation reinforced just how challenging it is to manage IT in K-12 schools, but it also highlighted the incredible work that tech teams like...

2025 CoSN EdTech Leadership Report: 3 Urgent Challenges Facing Districts—and How Lightspeed Is Meeting the Moment

The 2025 CoSN EdTech Leadership Survey, released in May, captures a critical moment in K–12 technology leadership. Drawing on responses from hundreds of school district leaders, the report highlights mounting challenges in visibility, budgeting, and artificial intelligence (AI).

Breaking Down Silos, Optimizing Technology, and Empowering Student Success: Insights from Our Webinar

I had the pleasure of moderating today’s insightful webinar with district leaders, where we dove into some of the biggest challenges facing education today. From breaking down departmental silos to leveraging technology for informed decision-making, the conversation was filled with real-world strategies and valuable takeaways.

Device Swapping in Schools and What To Do About It

Students swap or share devices, and reporting, security, accountability and other IT reporting systems fall apart. Lightspeed Signal closes the gap with reporting on assigned user AND actual users. Easily spot when an unassigned or unrostered user logs into a device.

⚡ Lightning Chat: Proxies, VPNs, and the Hidden Risks on School Devices

For our first episode, Matthew Burg (Principal Product Manager, Lightspeed Filter) sits down with Rob Chambers (EVP of Product) to unpack a challenge schools (and Lightspeed) know all too well: students constantly looking for ways to bypass web filters.

5 Essential Reports for K-12 IT Admins

K-12 technology administrators are the unsung heroes of today’s digital classrooms, juggling everything from device rollouts and network security to software updates and user support. A key part of this role is having clear, actionable data that informs everything from budgeting to bandwidth allocation.

How 7 Critical K-12 IT Challenges Sparked Lightspeed Signal’s Creation

K12 IT leaders have a tall order: keep devices secure and compliant, manage assets effectively, troubleshoot connectivity issues, and respond to outages before chaos erupts—all with limited time and resources. Rather than guess what districts need, we asked them directly.

The #1 Way to Reduce K-12 IT Support Tickets

Lightspeed Signal is the first solution designed specifically to deliver the comprehensive IT visibility districts need by consolidating device, app, and internet health data into a single platform.

Introducing Lightspeed Signal: Smarter IT Management for Schools

Lightspeed Signal equips K-12 IT teams with integrated insights to proactively minimize classroom disruptions, streamline inventory management, and support districtwide initiatives.