Schooling in the current year has been vastly different from pre-pandemic days. Almost overnight, we realized that online learning was no longer a novelty or luxury, but a necessity. Like other industries, the education sector had to find a way to go contactless, while still keeping its people contactable. *Cue the advent of the school management system*

During these times, the physical and mental wellbeing of students and school staff are a priority and concern. With isolation, safe distancing, lockdowns being a public health requirement, schools need to implement digital learning and school management. While an online education may not be as ideal as tactile and in-person learning, technology can make it a pretty viable alternative.

School management systems like LittleLives digitize education. This allows teachers and students to continue their studies and even improve the quality and speed of teaching. Every day there are fewer offline classes, and there are many causes for this. Virtual classrooms are the very train that is best to get on as soon as possible, otherwise, it will move, and you will not catch up with it.

Parents now expect different and more things from schools

We appreciate the hard work parents put into their everyday and in giving their children the best education possible. It’s unsurprising they would have high standards for their children’s schools. With the curveball that is COVID-19, have their expectations changed? Let’s dive a little deeper.

Physical and mental health 

COVID-19 can spread rapidly among young children, due to their weaker immunity and lower likelihood of being vaccinated. To mitigate this risk, parents may prefer to continue with home-based learning or homeschooling. Schools are here to support students and should understand expectations and limitations of certain households. Also, with COVID-19 comes new mental health challenges like lockdown fatigue and pandemic-related stress. Schools should implement measures to maintain student wellness and continue providing quality learning experiences. With a learning management system, this can be possible. 

Continued extracurricular activities

These provide some respite to students and are associated with improved cognitive skills and mental health. Parents who now work from home can take this opportunity to participate in their child’s activity or monitor their progress. Teachers and schools can find ways to involve parents in their children’s activities.

High quality teaching and learning experiences 

School is meant to bring an unwavering routine to childrens’ lives, cultivating not just knowledge but also discipline. Regardless of external circumstances, students’ quality of learning should always remain high. Now more than ever, digital aids are needed in teaching due to increased home-based learning. A robust school management system and school management app would come into play. This system would be able to reduce time spent on time-consuming administrative tasks, allowing teachers to focus on adapting their curriculum and continue teaching.

Advanced Technology

In addition to the time saved on administrative work, a well-rounded school management system would allow creative learning through an effective learning  management system

• Individual progress tracking and personalized feedback provision 
• Communication channels (with parents too)
• Easy access to educational material 
• Replicate group discussion and teamwork via virtual breakout rooms
• Curriculum management

Curriculum Updates 

With COVID-19, learning time for students may have been reduced, with lockdowns, school closures and time needed to pivot to digital learning. The school curriculum may have changed due to the current situation and parents need to be informed whenever such amendments are made. A school management system would be able to easily update students’ timetables when necessary and provide quick updates to parents. 

Interactive Learning and Sustained Engagement 

With face-to-face interaction in school reduced due to the pandemic, parents may fear their children receiving less attention from teachers. When conducting online lessons, teachers must still focus their attention on each individual and follow up on his/her progress. This is possible via tools like video conferencing, chat groups and digital assessment methods. With a school management system, parents can also be easily updated on their child’s progress. 

Low-cost Education

Economies are not doing well and populations feel the pinch. This includes both schools and parents, who need to pay school fees. Parents may expect some leniency in fee payments. For schools, a way to reduce operational costs would be through streamlining work processes by digitizing them. A school management system can save manpower hours and streamline manpower needs. This would lead to greater productivity and reduced costs.

Easy Access to Learning Materials

Having to minimise leaving home, much less visiting a library or bookstore to browse books, is a must in these times. In tandem with online learning, the learning management system used by the school would need to have a cloud-based school management system. This is to store learning material online, for access at any time. Other reading material could be stored there as well.

To Sum it Up

A smart school management system is designed to make your life easier. It is the nervous system for your institution around which other technologies are incorporated. It is, in fact, a master plan to regulate administrative operations in a consolidated, integrated, efficient and smooth way to increase the productivity of your school.

If you are still looking for a system that will work well for your school's operations, you can contact LittleLives to see how we can help!