K-8 technology knowledge base
A K-8 school with hundreds of Windows laptops, Chromebooks, and iPads had no documentation. Every problem was solved from scratch, every time, by whoever was on duty. I built the knowledge base and the job aids so it would not depend on me.
The problem
Repeat support requests for the same handful of issues: Chromebook resets, tablet charging, interactive display troubleshooting. Teachers waited, technical staff re-solved solved problems, and a new hire had nothing to learn from.
Who it was for
Teachers who needed to fix the common things themselves in the middle of a lesson, and newly onboarded technical staff who needed to be useful in their first week.
What I analyzed
- Which requests repeated. A short list accounted for most of the interruptions.
- Where the request happened. A teacher at a Promethean board with 25 students does not open a wiki; she needs a card on the wall.
- End-of-year inventory across three platforms, which showed the labeling and charger organization problems that caused a second class of requests.
What I decided, and why
- Two formats for two audiences. Physical quick-reference guides at the point of use for teachers; a searchable, categorized knowledge base (modeled on Stack Overflow's question-and-answer structure) for technical staff.
- Write for the person at the device, not the technician: steps in order, the exact key sequence (Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R for a Powerwash), what the screen should look like when it worked.
- Fix the inventory so the documentation stayed true: a labeling system by device type and assignment, and chargers sorted by iPad, Samsung student, and Samsung teacher.
What I built
The knowledge base, quick-reference guides, FAQs, troubleshooting articles, inventory tracking across platforms, and onboarding documentation for new technical staff.
Result
Fewer repeat requests, faster onboarding for new staff, and teachers handling the common problems themselves. The documentation outlasted my time there, which was the point.