Managing a school efficiently can be a challenging task—especially if you don't have the right software in place to help you manage complex day-to-day processes.
Luckily, there is a better solution. Student management systems are the most efficient way to keep track of your educational services, students, and staff.
In this article, we discuss everything you need to know about these systems and how they can streamline your school's management.
Quick takeaway: The best student management systems centralize scheduling, billing, attendance, communication, and reporting—so you spend less time on admin and more time teaching.
What Is a Student Management System?
A student management system is a digital platform that makes managing a school's financial and administrative tasks much more efficient.
The primary focus of these systems is to store data and records. This includes student information, test results, and attendance reports.
When these documents and records are stored on a centralized system, staff can access them in a matter of seconds.
Many student management systems also offer a variety of features that do more than just relieve time-consuming administrative tasks.
In the section below, we outline all of the noteworthy features an efficient student management system should have.
Key Features of a Student Management System
Billing and Payments
Keeping track of payments can be one of the most challenging parts of managing a teaching business.
Every school administrator knows how difficult it can be to chase late fees and keep payment records organized.
Many student management systems have automated billing and direct payment features to help manage a school's finances in one place.
- Add pricing methods directly to a student's account
- Automatically calculate the amount due for classes
- Send automated, recurring bills
- Keep track of payments
- Send overdue payment reminders directly to parents
Reporting
To ensure your school is a success, it's important that you have access to accurate business information and insights.
School management systems can automatically keep track of this data for you and create detailed reports on:
- Student progress and experience
- Class and individual attendance
- Payments and overdue fees
These reports can give you an overview of how students and courses are performing, as well as help you see which areas you could improve.
A student management system also makes these reports easy to download and share with parents, governors, or the school board if necessary.
Attendance Management
Storing and managing class attendance can be a tedious administrative process.
With a student management system, you can say goodbye to disorganized Excel spreadsheets forever.
The software can help your teachers manage and organize their attendance sheets in just a few clicks. It also allows you to:
- Easily take attendance of the whole class
- View class attendance in real-time
- Store all the data in one organized place
- Access and manage attendance history
Professional Support
For many schools, switching to a student management system is intimidating—especially if they are doing it for the first time.
That's why it's key to choose a provider that can help you with onboarding and ongoing technical support.
When choosing student management system software, it's important that you choose one where:
- You have the opportunity to schedule a demo
- Training sessions are available to help you familiarise yourself with the software
- There is a dedicated help center that is updated with features, FAQs and advice
Cloud-Based
One of the most important features to look out for in a school management system is whether or not it's cloud-based.
Simply put, this will mean that your information is stored on an internet platform rather than on one specific device's hard drive. This is often much safer because:
- Malware and hackers can't access the data since it's stored remotely
- Security can be increased by adding anti-virus software
- You can use standard encryption, like passwords, to keep you safe
- Any potential cyber attacks can be monitored, tracked, and eliminated
Data Security
Schools also need to be sure that their data cannot be accessed or leaked.
Through user permissions, a student information system can protect your data by only allowing authorized users to have access to the platform.
Many student management systems will also use some form of encryption, like passwords or PINs, to add an extra layer of security.
Encrypting the data also gives a student information management system the ability to monitor and warn you about any security risks.
👋 Meet Teach 'n Go
If running a school was just about educating the kids, life would be a lot easier.
However, anyone who has managed a school knows that at least 20 hours of the week is spent on administration duties.
If you find yourself in a similar position, it's time to simplify your workflows with a student management system.
Teach 'n Go has everything you need to manage your school more efficiently.
In fact, our user-friendly software is already being used in more than 30 countries—and our clients love it.
Scheduling Management
Parents get mixed up when their child is due for their lesson, and the teacher may have scheduling conflicts too.
This is where Teach 'n Go's powerful scheduling software can ensure that everyone is on the same page.
- Schedule classes
- Assign classroom groups ahead of time
- Customize school lessons on recurring days
- Get an overview of upcoming lessons through classroom management
- Easily manage scheduling conflicts in real-time
Automated Billing
All you have to do is to set your course prices and add any additional fees, and we will take care of the rest.
Our online school fees payment software lets you:
- Choose custom pricing methods and payment dates
- Automatically add due payments to students' profiles
- Send automated billing and invoices to parents
- Add discounts
- Set up PayPal or credit card payments for parents to pay you directly
- Keep track of payment history in real-time
- Notify parents about overdue payments
Constant Communication and Group Messaging
Our group messaging features give you several options to let everyone know what's happening.
- Effortlessly create and manage contact lists
- Send multiple emails to students, teachers, or classes
- Send mass text messages delivered straight to parents' phones
- Instantly send emergency notifications or essential updates
- Share course material ahead of time
- Access history logs to find and keep track of important details easily
Monitor Student Attendance
With our school attendance software, you can:
- Take your whole class's attendance in just a few clicks
- Monitor attendance in real-time with our interactive dashboard
- Create complete and accurate attendance sheets
- Generate comprehensive attendance reports
- Monitor individual data for any student or class
Dedicated Technical Support
At Teach 'n Go, our priority is to ensure that our customers receive the best technical and operational support so that they are set up for success from the start.
Data Security
We also protect students' data by:
- Using encrypted passwords
- Updating and removing data from students after 24 months of being inactive
- Creating regular back-ups so that we can effectively recover information
- Managing, tracking and reporting any data breach incidents
Competitive Pricing
We pride ourselves on honest and affordable pricing. One of the best features of Teach 'n Go is that you only pay for the services you need.
- Unlimited number of teachers
- Unlimited classes
- Access to all of Teach 'n Go's features
- Free 7-day trial
Get Started Today
Teach 'n Go was designed to help you spend less time on tedious admin tasks and more time on creating the best school possible.
We've helped schools in over 30 countries streamline their workflows and enjoy more efficient day-to-day processes.
To optimize your school's management, all you need to do is create an account and start your free trial.
