Educational institutions have to streamline a large volume of data, activities, projects and more on a daily basis. The efficiency with which schools can do so ultimately determines their productivity and efficacy, the defining characteristics of successful schools. In the past, schools had to depend upon files and mountains of paperwork to keep a record of activities and plan future ones. However, this system is far from perfect because it opens up the room for human error, misplacement of important information and poor planning.
These days, an end-to-end school management software has become an absolute necessity for schools to ensure their smooth functioning and improve administrative quality. School management software can automate several processes and improve the productivity of the school as a whole.
Why do you need school management software?
A school management software streamlines the various functions of an institution and simplifies it. It is a single dashboard which can be used by a school’s admin staff, teachers, parents of students and student themselves. In this way, a school management software can also improve visibility of all stakeholders.
Some of the applications of a school management software include timetable management, setting of exam schedules, recording marks and grades, tracking leaves by students and teachers and managing libraries. It can also be used by HR and admin staff to track salaries, budgets and utilization of resources.
The impact of a school management software, therefore, can be wide-ranging. This helps school cut down on total time spent on routine tasks, which can free up more time to improve the quality of education and a student’s experience in the institution, which are some of the top characteristics of successful schools.
How to choose the best school management software
But with the number of options available, it can be challenging to find the best school management software for your institution. Here are top characteristics to look for when choosing a school management software.
1. Homework tracker
A school management software can be used to both, assign homework and track homework that has been received. This is especially useful for parents as they will receive a notification each time homework has been assigned to their child. It can give them a clearer view of what their child is learning and how they can support the process.
2. Student profile builder
A good school management software can give you all critical information about any student within the institution at the click of a button. Typically, each student will have a profile, in which their grades, attendance and vital information (such as the emergency contact, address, blood group, etc.) is tracked. This helps schools and parents access information about a student whenever required.
3. Align teacher schedules
Most school management software will have a separate login for teachers, where they can manage their timetables and submitted assignments from students. This not only helps teachers plan their routines with greater ease, but also helps a school’s admin staff make changes to teacher timetables. Teachers can even schedule class activities and deadlines on the school management software so that they can get a notification whenever something is due.
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4. Management of libraries
One of the characteristics of successful schools is the extent to which their libraries are in use. Library management software is a separate suite of services by itself, but many types of school management software also come integrated with it. This feature allows school libraries to track what books are checked out, which ones are available, which student has checked out books, whether the due date has passed and a lot more. It can even make the process of checking out a book much easier for students since the process can be automated to a large extent. This can help schools manage the large repository of books in a library with greater efficiency.
5. Send mass notifications
Generally, whenever an important announcement has to be made to students or parents, a school’s admin staff needs to personally call each individual or send emails to them. With a school management software, however, this is no longer necessary. Now, a school’s admin department simply needs to select the group they want to send a notification to and hit send. School software also allows users to send notifications to specific grades within a school, parent groups, etc.
6. Track attendance records
Tracking a student’s attendance is one of the most important features of a school management software. A parent or student can apply for a leave directly through the dashboard so that the teacher gets notified immediately. Parents and teachers can also track the attendance record of students through the software. This can be a huge time-saver for teachers as they no longer have to actively maintain and update student attendance records. It also ensures greater accuracy in the data, since the whole process is automated.
7. Automatically generates report cards
Compiling a student’s report card at the end of the year can be a time-consuming process. A student’s grades throughout the year have to be taken into account, the correct weightage assigned to each and then the final grade calculated. A school management software can simplify the entire process. Since grades are automatically recorded on it, it will be able to assign the final grade for each student instantaneously. The auto-generated report cards can also be sent immediately to parents and students.
8. Processing of fees and salaries
Processing fees from students as well as salaries which need to be paid to teachers and admin staff can be difficult for any institution due to the sheer volume of payments. School software can be set up to automatically disburse salaries to teachers at a specified date. It can also be used to process school fees received and highlight which students have paid the fees.
These features in a school software can ensure that your institution receives the best utility from the software. With an efficient school management software in place, you are sure to see an improvement in productivity and convenience within the institution.
iTech India has been providing customized software solutions since 2003. We specialize in Education ERP with a product portfolio built on best practices. We have distinct product offerings for different segments from schools, colleges and coaching institutes. With a large team of technically qualified professionals and mentored by educational experts and technology architects, we are recognized for our cutting-edge ERP solutions. Speak to us today to know more about how our solutions can fit your needs.
