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Top 10 Reasons Why Parents feel School Management Software is Good

School Management System is a complete software system especially designed for schools, colleges and other educational institutions for automating the operations in and out of the school. The general features of School Management System involves managing profile of students and teachers, managing classes and exams, managing time table and events conducted in the school etc. There are several advantages for School Management System as far as parents are concerned. The following are the main advantages of School Management Software for parents.

  1. The profile for the student can be checked at any time by the parent and updating of information is also possible.
  2. The attendance details can be verified by the parents and in case more leaveis needed it can also be checked.
  3. The diary of events and assignment deadlines can be checked by the parents.
  4. The progress report card and assessment details can be checked at any time by the parent.
  5. Feedback can be given about a particular teacher or the facilities  to the administrative department directly
  6. Important announcements and notices can be viewed by the parents in real time.
  7. The details regarding homework and assignments can be seen in advance by the parents
  8. Fees details and receipts can be checked by the parents through School Management System
  9. Contacting teachers and Principal is easy through School Management System for parents.
  10. Important Application Forms and other forms can be downloaded easily via School Management System

The Advantages of Merit Based Pay for Teachers

Tutors in every educational institution dream of a career with merit based payment system. This is due to the fact that merit based payment system are advantageous for both employees and employers. The following are some of the advantages of merit based payment system among teachers.

Motivational Factor
the main advantage of merit based payment system is the factor contributing to the motivation of teachers to perform better among the peer. Teachers who need more salary will work harder and perform well to get more merits and increase salaries. Recognizing the talents of the tutors also helps to boost the self confidence level.

Differentiating Factor
Merit based payment system among teachers will differentiate between a teacher performing well and a teacher performing poor. This will create a competitive spirit and all the teachers will be working hard to earn more merits. This can also help the management to point out the advantages of the top performing employees in helping out the poor performing employees.

Confidence Factor
Paying teachers based on the merit based system helps them in calculating their value in the group. This can help in increasing the self motivation factor and teachers with high confidence can be chosen for long term prospectus of the institution.

Salary based Factor
merit based payment system among teachers helps the employer to pay only for the effort a teacher is taking inside the educational organization.  In some cases where all employees are paid  uniformly by providing bonus as well creates the budget of the educational institution at stake.

Top 5 Best Educational Websites for Teachers

Today’s student live up in a digital age and they love computer based activities. It is also essential for teachers for getting updated as well as keeping students interested with various internet related resources. Without internet teaching will be more hard because certain websites simplify planning and keep students engaged with latest examples.

Twitter
Twitter has become one of the primary tool for education. Following hash tags which give education related tweets include #Education #EDChat #EDTech #College etc. Following experts, connecting with teachers across the world, searching local as well as global trends in learning, re tweeting useful links for students on twitter etc are some of the uses teachers can find on Twitter

About.com
This website contains enormous information about assessment and learning, common educational terminology, community involvement, decision making, professional development, school discipline, issues on education etc. Teachers can utilize these articles for making teaching a memorable experience.

Youtube
The youtube channel for teachers was created for making classrooms more engaging and helping teachers inspire more students. Organizations such as TEDEd, PBS and Khan Academy offers various videos which can be free through youtube. Also tutorials and tips related to any subject is available in video format which can be used for teaching students.

Flipboard
Flip board offers searching for a topic and finding it from the huge collection which can be read on any device. It also have the facility to follow trends and magazines which can be referred about latest trends. If + is added then it can be combined into the form of a magazine curated for students to view. Sharing with other platforms is also possible with flipboard.

Scholastic
Scholastic offers various resources and tools like planning calendar, daily starters, printables, videos, freebies and shopping etc. It also have articles on strategies and ideas exclusively for teachers from videos and featured professional bloggers. Various student activities can be planned with this website on month wise and topic wise. Also scholastic have books from various authors and podcasts available for viewing.

The Role and Importance of Alumni in Education

An Alumni association is a community formed by former students of a university or college. Alumni association sometimes organize events inside or outside campus, publish newsletters periodically, publish magazines and sometimes raise fund for an organization. Alumni associations help students to connect with the educational institution.

There are a variety of the services offered by Alumni Association outside Campus. Sometimes career development programs which include the sharing of experience old students have in the institutions are done. This also includes mentoring programs for existing students. Some alumni helps students by providing internship and externship opportunities as well as job placement programs.  General social networking events in social media like Facebook and LinkedIn are also organized by aluminis.

Homecoming events are organized for alumni people by existing students to gain exposure to various things. Training sessions as well as orientation programs are conducted inside the campus with the help of alumni during academic  year.

The advantages of having Alumni are as follows:

  • Mostly Alumni people are an educational institution’s most loyal supporters.
  • Fund raising events are often conducted at educational institutes with the help of alumni and their professional networks.
  • An educational institution can benefit from Alumni from their skills and experience.
  • Practical support for students can be offered by well placed alumni people to start careers.
  • As alumni people are located around the globe the exposure of the institution can be done in an international context.

 

Top Five List of Best Educational Video Websites for Students and Teachers

There are several educational video websites that cater to both students and teachers. Here are some popular ones:

1. Academic Earth
Academic Earth was created with the purpose that everyone deserves access to world class education. They assure that there is something for everyone,  whether it is exploring a new topic or making advance in the career field.

2. Big Think
In future the success will be managing and mastering information effectively. The purpose of Big Think is to move beyond random information and applying knowledge and answering questions in the learner’s life.

3. Cosmo Learning
Cosmo Learning was created with a purpose to provide free online school and is a non profit educational website for improving learning skills.

4. Coursera
Coursera is an education platform that partners with top universities and organizations worldwide, to offer courses online for anyone to take, for free.

5. Edx
EdX offers interactive online classes and MOOCs from the world’s best universities, colleges and organizations. Online courses from MITx, HarvardX, BerkeleyX, UTx and many other universities can be taken here.

Seven Best Lead Generation Techniques for Small Business

As far as lead generation is concerned Social Media Optimization is less effective that Search Engine marketing. Following are some of the best Lead Generation Techniques.

1. Customer Reference
Happy customers are the best prospectus for getting leads. When a customer refer to a person or business about your services the credibility of the services is assured.

2. SEO SEM and PPC
The best way to get leads through internet are utilizing the potential of Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimization. Using long tail keywords which usually consists of three words will be good in targeting customers better. There will be more specific landing pages for such queries and the competition of keywords can be reduced by utilizing these factors. Adding more content that is giving benefits to the customers can increase the search engine visits.

3. Co Marketing
Marketing in partnership with non competitive vendors for exchanging leads can have positive effects in getting more leads. These mutually benefiting activities will make both business grow at equal pace. Even though managing the alliance with the partners is time consuming the number of leads getting will be more.

4. Useful Content
Most of the customers do research online about the products and services before making a decision to contact the business. Those companies who provide useful content to the customers can create the feeling of thought leadership which will be the first step in getting leads. Providing Blogs, Webinars, Ebooks and Case studies are different ways to provide useful content.

5. Speaking at Events
Giving a presentation about the company at trade shows exhibitions and conferences are great ways in getting more brand exposure which will yield more leads. Following up with the individuals met at the events in the form of follow up emails will also be good in attracting more customers.

6. Contact Information
Providing contact information on the web page and showing quick links to the important services can increase the chance of customers contacting the business. Asking for more information about the products and services can also be acheived by providing a web form.

7. Live Chat
Adding live chat box to the website increases the chances of customers asking to support executive to know more about products and services. As people are looking for more fast answers from business providing live chat and support is an easy way to generate more leads.

How Overcrowded Classrooms can cause problems to Students and Teachers

Most of the parents are concerned about the way over crowded classrooms in public schools can influence the children’s ability to learn things. Although there has not been much research done on this area it is clear from the grades of the students that overcrowded classrooms can affect the ability of the students to learn and retain the information inside their brain. In fact the real reason why over crowded classrooms have minus points is due to the extent upto which teachers can concentrate on each student. The following are the general reasons for the unsuccesful performance of some students on overcrowded classrooms.

The number of teachers per student ration will be much less in overcrowded classrooms and this can lead too poor attention given to certain students in need of attention.

If proper care is not given for certain students there is a chance for them to get lower grades which is due to the lack of attention from the teachers.

Certain teachers will find it difficult to manage the class if there are more number of students and this can make them feel exhausted at the end of the class and creating a feeling that they lack time to concentrate on students.

When there are more number of students a teacher can manage the actual time spent for teaching will be less and more time will be spent for managing the students and organizing the class.

When there is uncontrollable crowd inside the classroom the level of noise can hinder certain students from listening properly to the class and this can reduce the attention span.

Even though there is much technological innovations happening in the field of education over crowded classroom management is much more tedious with technological aspects.

The teacher will also find it difficult to have a deeper connection with the student and understand his / her abilities to learn if there are more students in the classroom.

However most governing organizations are imposing rules and regulations to have the maximum number of students permitted inside a classroom to be less than the stipulated level. Teachers who are passionate about their job will work harder to overcome such barriers and connect with the students through their ability.

Why Students should read Newspaper Everyday

It is a well known fact that reading newspapers are essential for grown ups. But it is also equally important for students to read newspapers in order to get the most valuable information which can not be obtained from Social Media alone. The following are some of the advantages of reading newspapers as far as students are concerned.

One of the primary advantage for reading newspapers is because it gives all the vital news and events happening around the world. Modern newspapers are available on Mobile devices which also have options to share the news and interact through comments. Various categories of news are available from national level news to international level news along with news related to political and sports.

Reading newspapers help students to have vast knowledge about current affairs and events which is essential to expand their knowledge level. It also helps students to have confidence in knowing that they have basic knowledge about the recent happenings around the world. Along with General knowledge vocabulary and command over language is also improved by reading newspapers. Reading newspapers also improves pronunciation level to expert level.

As newspaper reading is a time consuming process it is also good to read the news through E papers which will be having precise and short news descriptions. These E Papers are also available with mobile phones and tablets. Students preparing for competitive exams also find newspapers useful for increasing information. As the cost of books that are required for preparing such competitive exams are very costly newspaper reading is much more cost effective.

Importance of following Syllabus in Educational Institutions

Any Syllabus is an agreement made at the academic level which helps in creating an academic relationship between the teachers and students doing a course. A syllabus is used as a starting point for communicating between teachers and students. What all things are to be expected during a course is being communicated through the syllabus which also helps in organizing the information and creates a theme for the learning atmosphere.

The syllabus of curriculum creates accountability for the course and is kept as an authoritative statement by the educational institution. A syllabus helps in creating a learning map for the instructors to aid teaching. How a course is made is dependent on the objectives of learning and the guidelines for assessing and evaluating the students is described through policies meant for grading. Syllabus is also a reference about what is expected from a student and a teacher.

After preparing the syllabus it is essential to give a copy to the student and teacher for reference purpose. The educational goals required to be fulfilled by students should be widely described in the copy given to students. The type and category for the course and the evaluation procedure should be described in the copy given to teachers.

The delivery mode of syllabus can vary depending upon the mode of the course. For online courses some educational institutions prefer the syllabus to be delivered electronically while regular colleges and schools rely on hard copies. Any changes in syllabus during the course should be informed to the students and teachers before starting the course and at the beginning of the academic year. The concerned departments holds the responsibility for keeping the syllabus relevant to the one provided by the university.

Advantages of Flipped Classroom in Education

Flipped learning methods is a blended learning method focused on the delivery of content usually online outside the classroom. In this type of learning activities are often conducted in the classroom and reading of content is done at home. in flipped classroom model students often watch lecture by instructor online, or do research at home and will discus with faculties in the classroom. In traditional classroom teachers will be focused on giving content to group while in flipped classrooms teacher will get time to concentrate on individual students.

In the flipped classroom the instructional method is shifted to a more learner centric model which is helpful in exploring subjects in detail. Online videos are used mostly to convey ideas which are watched outside the classroom. Along with this online discussions among students and research through digital libraries and content reading are done at home by students and doubts will be asked to teacher during the class room sessions.

The following are the main advantages of flipped classroom management

  1. Obtaining first exposure to the subject through various mediums including text, video or podcast. The content can either be created by the faculties itself or viewed through videos available online. There are several websites offering free content in different forms however having a professionally prepared learning video helps a lot in learning subject.
  2. Students complete the learning process in class where they do tasks in the form of worksheets or assignments. Students come to the class with points noted down from the text read or video watched at home. Students are often graded based upon the ability to do tasks and this can be a boosting to them.
  3.  The preparation of class outside the classroom can be assessed by the tutor about the ability of the student to grasp subjects. This can help teachers prepare for the elements which are difficult for certain students. Teachers will also be able to clarify doubts of the students in detail and according to the level of understanding.
  4. As basic information can be learned from outside the class it is much easier for both students and teachers to learn the subject deeply.

 

Significance of Conducting Surveys at Educational Institutions

The purpose of survey is to collect information from a group of students on a topic that is understandable to them. There are different kind of surveys being conducted at educational institutions which mainly fall in the following categories.

Case Study Survey – Case Study surveys are conducted among a group of students without considering them to represent for the whole of students either inside the institution or in other colleges. This type of survey is often conducted to know how the larger group will respond for the same questions.

Sample Survey – These types of surveys are conducted among a group of students and the results obtained are projected as the opinion of the larger community. Only certain topics can be used for these types of surveys at schools and colleges.

Census Survey – In these types of surveys the questions are asked to every member of the community and the detailed analysis can be done with the whole data for reaching conclusions.

The method of collecting data from the students also vary according to the medium being used. At the time of conducting surveys it should be noted that all the questions are to be asked instead of asking selected questions to certain people. Surveys are conducted for the following reasons.

  • Surveys are the quickest and Most efficient way of getting information from a group
  • Surveys are suitable for getting idea about what the majority of people thinks about the topic
  • Surveys help to get statistical information with respect to a community or group of students
  • Surveys help to obtain information which are not available through other methods

The following are the Advantages and Disadvantages of surveys

Advantages

  • The number of people who can give their opinion can be very high
  • The cost of conducting survey is less
  • Students can respond to questions at their convenient time
  • Surveys can give written proof of facts
  • The results of surveys can be represented in tables and graphs for easy assessment

Disadvantages

  • Some surveys gets fewer response due to the nature of the topic being surveyed
  • How the students respond to questions can not be clearly understood through Yes/No answers
  • The result of the survey is dependent on the set of students considered for collecting opinion
  • The result of the survey may not represent the opinion of the whole college or school

Different Methods of Assessment among Students

There are different kinds of assessments used for the evaluations of the performance of students at schools and colleges. They are described below.

Through formative assessment method learning of students is monitored during the process of learning through feedback. This feedback is used to identify the areas where students are weak and giving extra care in teaching those students.

Informal Assessment Methods

Reflections
These are a popular form of assessment method in which the students reflect after attending a course.

Polls and Surveys
These are basically data on the opinion by students and their behaviors which is assessed inside or outside classrooms. These kind of assessment is especially useful in the case of knowing about misconceptions and prior knowledge related to the subject.

Random Checks
These are techniques used in between a course in order to measure the level of understanding of subject. These kind of assessment also creates gap between the lecture which makes to start fresh to the next section of the topic.

Formal Assessment Methods

Class Activities
Certain instructors creates pair or group of students to work together to participate in learning process. During this the instructors can observe and help students in learning better by guiding through the learning process. The extend of participation is measured by the tutor during such events.

Quizzes
Quiz are conducted among students either to assess prior knowledge or in between the learning process. At times as part of games and review generation sessions assessments based on quiz are conducted.

Online Learning Modules
Online Canvas and Whiteboards help students to learn in between the lessons which can be monitored by the faculties remotely. These kind of learning management systems help in the assessment of the ability of students through interactivity.

Top Tips About Getting Top Grades in Placement Interviews

As you reach your final year of engineering programme, placement concerns begin hovering into your mind. No doubt, your first step towards your long-term career depends on how you carry yourself before the interviewers during your campus placement or off-campus job interviews.

1. Make a crisp resume

Your resume is a window to present yourself briefly. It should contain bold headlines highlighting your key academic achievements and highlights of your extra-curricular activities. Frame a crisp intro and keep your CV short preferably lasting for one-two pages.

 

“In interview, you explain the points you have mentioned in the resume and this defines your communication skills in first two minutes. Your resume should not exceed two pages, however one page is ideal. We don’t need a thesis on your life’s journey,” says Sanjiv Narayan, Managing Director, Calypto Design Systems.

 

A crisp resume with all the necessary details about your professional experience till date is very effective. Try to picture in mind the success story, which you have mentioned in the resume and you are going to tell at the interview.

 

“Recruiters are not interested in your auto-biography but in you and in the value you can add to the organization. Don’t write something that you don’t understand. You should be always clear that you are the one who deserve this job,” says Aparna Saraagi, Vice-President, RBS.

 

2.  Research on interviewer and organisation

It always helps you to know about the interviewer and the company before appearing for a job interview as it helps in figuring out some of the expected questions that can be asked during the interview.

 

“Candidates should make ample of research about the interviewer and a company before appearing for a job interview. It is actually worth,” says Deepak Goel, CTO, Packback Books.

 

3. Ignore common mistakes:

After entering the interview hall, candidates do some common mistakes. It’s better to list out those mistakes and beware of them during interview.

 

“Be yourself, make eye-contact with your interviewers and always follow your values. Be truthful, honest and humble but make sure your humanity should not be mistaken as quietness. Don’t be aggressive,” says Jai P Menon, says Group Director, HT Media.

 

Other common mistakes committed by candidates during job interview include chewing pencils, nervousness, being casual etc. Experts suggest that you should not be overconfident while sitting before the interviewers.

 

4.  Right body language, proper dress

Body Language: Right body language and formal dress code always get plus points for you. You are going to be tested not only for what you know about your area of expertise but also on how you present yourself at the interview.

 

Meet the interviewers warmly. It’s good and appreciable if you offer a strong handshake to them. Strong handshake shows warmth and enthusiasm. Experts advise candidates to look like a mature person. Being a little imperfect is not bad. After all, nobody is perfect. Smile on your face reflects a charming personality.

 

“Do mature things. It’s okay to be imperfect. At least wear a smile on your face, be well dressed, be straight forward and do your basics correct,” says Aparna Saraagi, Vice-President, RBS.

 

Dressing sense: Formal dress code is recommended for a job interview but there is no need to wear a nice suit and tie which you don’t own.

 

“It was 10-20 years back when wearing a nice suit and tie was important. Now, what is more important is to be crisp, clean and sharp,” says Jai P Menon, says Group Director, HT Media.

However, some interviewers are more critical about your dressing sense as Rajat Mishra, CEO, Efkon India Pvt Ltd says, “Content is more important, however, you cannot negate presentation. Your dressing sense is a part of your presentation.”

 

5.  Show interest and mutual commitment

During the interview, show your interest in the job that you are going to be assigned if you get selected. It should be reflected on the interviewer that your job priorities are not going to change very soon. Don’t go for temporary plans, otherwise many resources exploited by the organization during job interview are wasted, and also the candidate loses your goodwill.

 

“It’s a match-making exercise comprising mutual commitment between you and organization. You need them as much as they need you. So, both you and the organization should be comfortable with each other. It’s like a marriage. ‘We’ and ‘us’ are more important than ‘I’ and ‘me’,” says Jai P Menon, says Group Director, HT Media.

 

6. Have grip on domain but don’t be stubborn

Clear basics and concepts: Basics and concepts of your subjects should be very clear in your mind and you should have a strong grip on your domain. Still, a learning attitude is always appreciable.

 

“Acknowledge your specialization in a domain and share your insights with the interviewers. Show your interest in applying what you have learnt. Show your eagerness and keenness towards the things. Also, show that you are practical, pragmatic, open and hungry for learning,” says Jai P Menon, says Group Director, HT Media.

 

Avoid being stubborn and humorous: If at some point during job interview, your views get conflicted with those of the interviewer’s, be confident and stick to your point, but don’t be stubborn. Leave it and if needed, just say ‘I may be wrong. I will check it again’.

 

“Your job is to get a job, not to prove the interviewer wrong. Being stubborn and being confident are two different things. On the other hand, humor is good and being humorous is all right but it also may go wrong, so better to avoid it,” says Sanjiv Narayan, Managing Director, Calypto Design Systems.

 

7.  Be prepared for ‘Beginning’ and ‘End’

Beginning and end are very important part of anything in life, even in an interview. Beginning of an interview makes your first impression on the interviewers and they almost decide whether or not you are fit for the job. End of the interview draws your last impression, immediately after which evaluation is done.

 

First 3-minutes are crucial: Don’t ignore the importance of first three minutes of your interview. These three minutes are going to be judgmental.

 

“First three minutes are very important in an interview. The panel makes a decision in three minutes and in the next thirty minutes, it just tries to validate the decision,” Navyoug Mahnot, CEO QAI India Ltd.

 

Speak well-framed sentences and be very particular about your body language. If these three minutes go well, your half work is done.

 

“Not only sentences, it is body language, eye-contacting ability, sharing of ideas and forming of sentences, which play crucial role in a candidate’s selection. Be prepared for the first three minutes. Play it in a sequence as a movie in your mind before appearing in the interview,” Navyug Mahnot, CEO QAI India Ltd.

 

How to conclude interview: After an interview, whether your performance was up-to-the-mark or not, it is desirable to thank the interviewer. Here is also an opportunity to show your interest in the job. So do it.

 

“Show more interest in the job and try to show if you get selected how your day would be like. Never forget to say thanks with mentioning your reason of thanking them,” says Aparna Saraagi, Vice-President, RBS.

 

8.  Handle stress level

Many candidates find it difficult to handle stress level before an interview. Being stressed is natural but you should learn to clear it off.

 

“An optimum level of stress is needed and is natural with all of us. Once you come to know about it, you will be able to beat it. Do not bother about it. Just take a long breathe and nervousness will go away,” says Ashok Kumar, IPS-IG.

 

9. What’s your weakness?

Interviewers generally ask your strengths and weaknesses at the interview. You may have a long list to tell about your strengths but it is not the right place to mention your weaknesses. Many candidates get confused what to do at this moment. Try to mention few weaknesses that seem to be plus points for the job and the organization.

 

“Never show your real weaknesses. Show those weaknesses which seem good to be harvested. Choose a weakness you want to talk about. Be very contextual about your weaknesses,” says Sanjiv Narayan, Managing Director, Calypto Design Systems.

 

10.  Ask about organization’s growth

It’s a mutual commitment and an understanding of give-and-take formula between you and the organization. However, when you get an opportunity to ask a question at the interview, don’t ask about your own growth or what the organization can give you. Ask more about the organization and its future plans. It reflects that you are coming up with long-term plans and organization’s goals are superior for you.

 

“Ask about the growth plans of the company, how big the team is and what technology they use. Also ask about the future plans of the company and where they are engaged,” says Jai P Menon, says Group Director, HT Media.

Importance of Record keeping of Teachers

Record keeping is an easy and efficient way for tracking the progress of students and providing the evidence as a support for the grading system. Having proper record management system in an organized way is essential for every school.  As part of record keeping teachers are required to organize the records related to the assignments of students in a proper way so that grading can be done based on that.

  • Record keeping can be used for helping students set goals during education.
  • The Record System can be used as an evidence about how much growth did the student attained during the curriculum.
  • Record System shows at which subjects are a student weak at and this can be used for improving the learning ability
  • Record System can be kept as a benchmark for knowing what all actions are taken about a product during various stages of education.
  • Details about meeting done with parents and teachers can also be recorded for further reference.

Importance of Extracurricular Programs in Educational Institutions

Nowadays academic courses are not the only activity running in an organization. With the latest trends related to education educational institutions incorporate a lot of other activities. Along with studies students look for all other activities that can help them in future. Students want their knowledge updated in every field they come in contact with.

Social benefits of Extracurricular Programs
Extracurricular activities increases the chances of interacting with each other socially and helps in forming good relationship between students. Extracurricular activities in groups offer chances to know more about the cultural differences from which the students are coming from and interacting with students from various parts help in developing interpersonal skills.

Practical Benefits of Extracurricular Programs
Participating in extracurricular activities give students an opportunity to work together for achieving goals and thus increasing the factors concerning responsibility. Extra curricular activities also increases the confidence in students and helps in making learn that working united under different conditions needs effort.  It also helps students face the challenges faced during the job hunting process.

Educational Benefits of Extracurricular Programs
The current trend in jobs shows that companies prefer people who are all rounders.  Having talents in multiple activities tells the employer that the student is talented. It is also true that hiring agencies also prefer students with talents in extracurricular activities. Extracurricular activities also helps students in managing time which is an essential part of most jobs.