School Platform IServ: Minimal Issues with Distance Learning - German schools turn to remote learning as winter storm disrupts classes
Winter storm Elli has forced schools across northern and western Germany to shift to remote learning on online course platforms. The sudden change has led to a surge in activity on IServ, a widely used digital learning platform. Nearly 6,500 schools nationwide rely on the system, with heavy adoption in Hamburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, and Lower Saxony.
As the storm disrupted in-person classes, many schools cancelled lessons for the day. Some instead assigned remote exercises, pushing students and teachers onto IServ. The platform saw video conferencing usage jump to around 75,000 hours by midday—up from just 10,000 hours on Wednesday. At its peak, nearly 3,000 users were online simultaneously.
Support requests for IServ also rose by roughly 20 percent. While the platform itself remained stable, some users faced access issues. These problems were likely caused by overloaded internet connections at schools or homes rather than IServ’s systems.
In Lower Saxony alone, about 90 percent of schools use IServ. The sudden reliance on remote tools has put the platform’s capacity to the test during the storm’s disruption.
The spike in IServ usage highlights how schools depend on digital platforms during extreme weather. With nearly 6,500 institutions using the system, its performance has held steady despite the increased demand. Schools in affected regions continue to adapt as the storm passes.
