In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, student information systems have gained more traction in the educational world. The EdTech market is currently valued at $254 billion. Top-notch EdTech solutions like student information systems are transforming every facet of the classroom from managing daily activities to the way learning is imparted. They play a significant role in enhancing the learning experience and charting out a personalized journey for each student.
In recent years, there has been an evident shift in the educational landscape where institutions have made the switch from relying on fragmented solutions to manage administration tasks to adopting a more unified solution that accomplishes a lot more than mere task management. We are talking about solutions that take a more student-centric approach to manage educational activities.
Why this transition, you may ask.
Educational institutions exist to help students gain knowledge, skills, and competencies to succeed in an ever-changing world. All the more reasons why it’s important to adopt a school management software that revolves around the student lifecycle rather than the management or teachers.
With every institution striving to offer a holistic learning experience to its students, you need a comprehensive solution that will help you enhance the student learner journey. This is where a student operating system steps into the picture.
In this blog, we will uncover the shortcomings of a standalone student information system.
We also dish out details on:
- What a student operating system, in other words, student-centric management software is
- How it can redefine the learning experience that you offer
The shortcomings of using a staff-centric student information system
Data silos thrive in the absence of an integrated platform. A lot of educational institutions use standalone EdTech tools that do not cover the entire student journey. If you are walking down this path, it’s time to retract. Here’s why:
- For one, using standalone tools can make purchases for your EdTech costly and time-consuming. You are constantly switching between multiple tools to get a hang of your data.
- Secondly, with siloed and disparate tools, you cannot cover the entire student-learner journey from admissions to alumni in one single platform.
The need of the hour is a student-first school management software where the primary focus is on the student’s learner journey covering the entire student lifecycle from admissions to alumni and beyond. This calls for a personalized approach to imparting learning—taking into account students’ needs, interests, abilities, and goals for the future. The idea here is to ensure that students get the tailored attention they need to succeed in an ever-changing world.
Beyond the essentials: Why should you opt for a student operating system?
A student operating system is a student information system designed with the students at the core. It is built keeping the students’ needs and aspirations in mind where the focus is on helping students succeed both academically and personally. It involves creating a supportive environment for students to thrive and achieve their goals.
A well-structured student operating system will help students stay on top of their tasks, engage with the courses seamlessly, communicate effectively with the teaching staff and other students and receive timely feedback on their performance.
We’ve listed out 10 ways in which a student operating system can redefine the learning experience you offer.
1. Makes all your data accessible in one place and organizes it
Students can get easily frustrated if information regarding their courses, homework, or school activities is unclear. One way to set this right is to be straightforward and make all the content and data including reading material, assignments, and quizzes readily available in one place. Another way to further organize this is to present the data in sequential order. Students have better clarity and will not feel the need to reach out to their teachers enquiring about what has to be done for the week ahead.
2. Offers real-time instructive feedback for student development
‘’We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.“
– Bill Gates
Research indicates that the best way teachers can help students become successful is by offering helpful feedback on their performance. This way, they can keep a tab on their performance for the academic year and work on improving their grades. A student operating system allows you to offer frequent, immediate, and instructive feedback helping students review their performance in assignments, projects, and exams.
A well-organized school management software creates a positive and supportive learning environment for students helping them keep track of their overall performance and find out where they are lagging, and as a result, put in extra effort to improve their grades.
3. Data analytics to power your institution
A student operating system comes with data reporting capabilities, something that every educational institution can leverage. Your school may have numerous data sets from student demographics, and course data, to class section counts and size, etc. There is a gold mine of data that can be collected and analyzed daily.
With an integrated data management solution on board, you can generate insightful reports on your school’s performance overall or at class levels. This can then be compared with statistics of the previous years to understand where your institution stands at the moment. Take it a step further and you can observe trends in student performance, behavior, well-being, and growth of every student in your institution.
4. Strengthens relationships among stakeholders
With a student-centric system on board, students can manage all their communication with ease. They can effectively communicate with teachers and other students on the portal. A unified solution keeps everyone in the loop on the daily events and upcoming activities, in turn, strengthening the relationships and enabling greater collaboration between all the stakeholders.
5. Tracking attendance made easy
Students can stay updated on their attendance for every session. All they have to do is scan their ID cards, log in to the portal and get a complete picture of how many classes they have attended, and how many they have missed. They can then make amends to ensure they meet the minimum required attendance quota for each semester.
6. Efficient alumni management
The Alumni network of any institution is powerful. Managing the alumni network need not be a complicated ordeal. A good student operating system lets you stay in touch with students even after they have graduated. You can easily manage their records for future reference.
With student-centric school management software in place, you can help members of the alumni connect with one another, and stay updated on the happenings in your institution at any given point in time.
7. Blended learning
Owing to the pandemic, education shifted to an online format. While several institutions have returned to conducting classes in person, the bulk of the students prefers learning remotely.
Blended learning gives students a more flexible learning experience where they can choose between in-class learning set-up combined with online self-paced learning. The e-learning components could include tutorials, videos, quizzes, and more that can be easily accessed from the learner’s mobile phone or tablet.
In blended learning, the learning experience is tailored to suit the preferences of every learner. It enables students to become well-informed and engaged in their learning journey by helping them take charge of their personal and academic information.
8. Student behavior tracking
If the data stored is incapable of offering insights, then it’s practically useless. Student management software should make the most of all the data that’s captured daily. A well-structured student operating system can predict student behaviors by tracking critical data related to them.
By studying online behavior patterns, a student operating system will give you insights into how students are faring academically and personally. It will help you understand if your students are happy and healthy and getting along with peers.
9. Enables quick and seamless online fee payment
With an easy-to-use student operating system, students can easily pay their fees online, at their convenience, even from the comfort of their homes. The platform renders a secure and quick way to process all kinds of student transactions. Students can easily log in and access the record of transactions they have made to the institution, in a centralized place.
10. Online admissions forms
Prospective students can easily fill up online application forms during enrolment. They can track and review their status in the admission process and get real-time updates on where they stand in the admission process at any given point in time.
Help your students succeed with Classe365’s student operating system
As student expectations evolve, educational institutions are inclining towards a student-centric approach to data management. This simply means allowing students to take charge of their learning journey.
The right EdTech partner is your ticket to creating a learning experience with the students at its core. Classe365 is a unified platform offering a student information system that’s focused on student success. The platform helps students take ownership of their learning journeys right from admissions, to alumni and beyond. Partner with Classe365 to streamline your learning activities and curate learning experiences that hone students to thrive in a highly competitive world. Request for a demo today.