Christopher J. Davia

Cloud computing services and architecture for education

Cloud computing represents a new field where computing resources can be provided as services and accessed by others from anywhere in the world via internet. Cloud computing services and architecture for education are characterised as being fully managed by the universities, provided on demand, and being elastic as users have as much service as they need in a particular moment. This paper is intended as a resource for institutions that are assessing their institutional capacity and readiness for cloud solutions. Cloud computing is a broad range of concepts and the distinction between ‘consumer of’ and ‘provider of’ cloud-based resources may be important in creating a larger ecosystem of cloud computing. Several members of the IBM Cloud Academy have outlined a definition and framework for cloud computing services and have drafted a cloud assessment survey for senior leadership planning cloud initiatives. Three case studies are presented on cloud solutions for K-12 and higher education along with survey results for the three case studies. The conclusion summarises outcomes and considers next steps for IBM Cloud Academy members.