October 2014

Posted on October 31, 2014 by Edsys

“Creativity is sharpening your imaginative powers in a more appealing way”

School apps nowadays enhance school to parent communication by providing timely and clear information to both the parties. In addition to enhancing the communication between schools and parents, school apps facilitate the use of parent portal and school workforce management. However, a lot of school apps are designed to enhance the creativity of students. Let’s see how school apps foster creativity in students.

A Handful of Ideas

You may have heard about the brainstorming technique which is used to generate ideas freely without any constraints. A brainstorming session allows people to suggest ideas without any restriction. It paves way for nurturing creativity and producing more fruitful results. More recently, ‘Electronic brainstorming’ lets users to collaborate with others through a safe backchannel. So, if students really want to develop and prepare themselves before entering a real brainstorming session, they can use school mobile apps to generate ideas in a creative manner.

Must Read:

20 Ideas to Promote More Creativity in Your Classroom

Drawing Creatively

Painting a castle in the background, creating photos with smileys, hearts and comments or doodling your way for generating amusing ideas needs to remain flexible, fluent and fast. A drawing app can help students save their time in creating the most beautiful art of their imagination. It not only helps them to resize, crop, reassemble, layer or combine various images into a collaboration of visual concepts but allow them to talk over their designs and ideas with other people thereby enhancing their creativity.

Ask Questions

Creativity, according to Paul Torrance is detecting gaps or problems in information. Ideas are formed, tested or modified before communicating the results. So while creating something, problems occur and they should be addressed in a flexible manner. Students can use Mind-mapping apps that encourage them to unlock the underlying problems while working with a particular image. These apps help students to write an inquiry question thereby getting closer to the central issue. Framing questions and redefining problems is the key to innovation!

You May also Like:

8 Benefits of Using Apps in Education

Recording Thoughts!

Walking, driving , playing or day-dreaming… We may be doing diverse things in a day but one thing that keep us from getting engaged all the time is our ‘Thoughts’ and nothing else! Thoughts which are capable of directly or indirectly allowing our minds to wander through trivial things, subtly shape our ideas in a novel way.

But can our thoughts be recorded?

There are apps that can record our thought flow and combine text with features such as photography, voice recording, sketching etc. Students can use these apps to document their thought process in order to explore trends between ideas.

Telling a Story

Original myths, stories or word problem books! Students can now use apps to create and publish stories and share it with others. They can even export it to other apps and stay professional. These apps actually encourage students to develop their creative skills and allow them to create multimedia publications using audio and other media.

Creating Movies

Let students create their own movies adding lenses and effects! Video creation apps allow students to create media projects in an interesting way.
With a good project idea, students can make a 60 second movie of an experience or event. The creation of educational movies actually helps students to engage in learning activities with fun and frolic!

Posted on October 31, 2014 by Edsys

If there is one thing to revolutionize Indian schools, what would that be? There might be several answers – changing the syllabus, teaching styles, and many more.

But have you ever thought of the management side, and the general absence of HR Departments in Indian schools? If yes, you would have reflected on the reasons. The most obvious one would be cost cutting.

“Education is the eternal foundation of a nation’s development”

And therefore, the effect of such cost cutting is far-reaching, affecting the quality of future generations and thus the nation as a whole. But there must be someone who can change the situation, certainly. In case you are wondering, it is none other than the Ministry of Human Resource Development.

Education is a people- centred intention. Managing human resources in educational institutions therefore means restructuring the whole educational setting.

Restructuring the process of recruitment, selection, orientation, performance evaluation, compensation and career development enhance the effectiveness of teaching and non-teaching staff in ways that develop and augment the whole learning experience of students.

In India, Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) performs the functions of improving the human resources through its two departments namely the Department of School Education and Literacy and the Department of Higher Education. These two departments aim at developing the school education and building up better citizens out of the youth.

The initiatives taken by these departments to revamp the educational policies and developmental aspects illustrate the functions of MHRD in a more apparent way. Before diving on to our topic of concern let’s see the initiatives of MHRD in a nutshell.

Road to success

To enhance the status of the girl child and sex ratio, MHRD has supported the Ministry of Women and Child development
Efforts have been taken to provide functional girls toilet in all schools before 15^th August 2015
Developed a framework to assess and evaluate schools with an objective to enhance their effectiveness
To ensure better quality and standards in schools new regulations regarding the monitoring and assessment has been made

Also Read:- Latest Updated Educational Apps Directory List

All these initiatives and schemes better equip students to compete with the international standards. And it compels us to wonder about the lack of initiative in implementing an HR department in Indian schools!

Identifying the gap

An educational institution’s people management can be made effective by identifying and analyzing the gaps in its administration. Identifying gaps help to understand persistent problems and once these are identified, efforts can be taken to provide a perfect solution. One such void, the HR gap, can make a huge difference in the processes of hiring, training, evaluating performance etc.

Addressing the gap

Addressing the need of having an HR department in your school starts with your initial assessment. MHRD’s initiative in implementing an HR department in schools can be backed by proper understanding of the functional aspects of human resources catering to the specific needs of each school.

Meanwhile, you don’t need to overlook your school’s future. Just because you do not need a particular system that comes under Human Resource Department, it doesn’t necessarily mean you will not require that system within a year’s time. Therefore various factors need to be considered before a proper system is put in place. And for this to happen it’s necessary to view the needs of each schools distinctly. MHRD can analyze the specific needs of each school through proper research as each educational institution is unique in its own way.

Fulfilling the gap

Your school doesn’t require an HR department to perform its human resource functions, right? Wrong. Considering the diverse activities involving the management of students and school staff, it has become vital as never before to implement in-house human resource experts or staff. They can specifically perform the functions and responsibilities pertaining to the activities regarding the staff and students of your school.

If Human Resource Development Ministry makes it mandatory to have an efficient HR department in Indian schools, it would facilitate the learning and development activities at schools in a more productive manner.

How HR Department helps?

Attracting, training, evaluating, compensating and retaining people! This is what HR department generally do. But having an HR department in your school can facilitate your school management process in a more diverse manner.

To be specific, evaluating teacher performance is of prime importance considering the influence teachers have in shaping the future of students. As such, there are lot of areas which really needs attention if providing quality education is your key motto. An HR department can therefore aid activities such as managing teacher performance, assessing student progress, dealing with disciplinary problems etc.

In spite of this, what if there is a way for you to get the benefits of an HR department at an affordable rate? We will discuss about that next week. Stay tuned.

Posted on October 28, 2014 by Edsys

Technology has been undergoing immense transitions recently and the new advancements have already been making their presence felt in every sector. The impact is being felt in the education field as well, where traditional teaching methods have already started stepping aside to embrace technology. But, what do we gain out of this? What transformations can use of technology in education bring? Let’s have a look:

Turn digital

In this era where everything is digitalized, how can a person face the world with just a pen and paper? That is exactly why students should be exposed to technology. Computer knowledge is a compulsory criterion for any job these days. Therefore, only a digitally literate can survive in this world of extreme competition in each and every field.

Sharing is easy!

Remember how you used to share notes when you were a student? With exams round the corner, you might have given your notes to a friend who doesn’t return it for few days due to some reason. You won’t be able to revise your lessons until your friend brings your book back and the result? Lots of tension and panic! With technology, sharing lessons is a lot easier, that too without giving away the notes you already have with you.

Analyse instantly

In traditional teaching methods, you have to conduct exams on a half-yearly or annual basis to understand the potential of your students. With technology in your hands, analyzing your students is a simple task. You can conduct simple tests to understand the areas each of your students has to improve in. This saves a lot of time which you can utilize to help the students improve in their areas of weakness.

Share the results

Parent-teacher meeting! The word itself can startle you, if you are a teacher. It is not at all easy to sit and prepare reports on each student’s performance and then meet each of their parents with feedback. It is indeed a laborious task and at the end of the day, you may have no energy left. Especially if conducted on holidays, you lose valuable time that could be spent with your family. With technology entering classrooms, you won’t have to put even half the labour. You can share the reports on each student’s performance instantly. You can save energy and time that way.

Turn social

Most of you play games on social media platforms where you are rewarded or ranked virtually based on your performance. You can use technology in a similar way to virtually award your students who have done well, thus instilling a healthy competition among students. This motivates the children to give their best performances while making the concept of learning more interesting.

Save money and time

This can be said as the one of the most important advantages of bringing technology to the classrooms. With technology, you are saved from having to buy desks, books, lab equipments etc. all of which are very expensive. You don’t have to write everything on the black board. Instead you can share all the lessons or resources online. This saves your effort and time while benefiting disadvantaged students to have access to education.

Updates made easy!

Updating the syllabus is not a tough task when you have technology to your support. It can be done in a very short span of time. Also, you won’t have to buy thousands of updated books every year, adding to your savings.

Go Global

With technology, learning won’t be confined to the walls of the classrooms. Students get a chance to connect globally and hence, expand their knowledge.

It’s convenient

The heavy backpacks and hundreds of books have been causing physical issues to students for long. Introducing technology to classroom can therefore, tend to be such a relief to them physically.

It is a fact that use of technology beyond a limit can have negative effects. But there is a positive side that weighs heavier. And it is not tough to help children out of the bad effects due to over usage of technology. Introducing technology to class rooms can help in breaking the monotonous learning methods, thus motivating the students to do well. It also helps in reducing the issues related to stress, for both teachers and students as things get a lot easier.

It is to note that technology has not only intervened in teaching but also in the overall school management these days. There are lots of software and gadgets available in the market to provide suitable solutions to education related issues. Edsys is one such company that provides efficient educational solutions. The RFID Student Tracking System and GPS Vehicle Tracking System by Edsys addresses safety concerns regarding students and help in managing school bus fleet while the school work force management system and timetable management software aid in overall school management. Other products of Edsys such as Parent Portal and Smart Card Solutions for schools & colleges are also quite effective.

Posted on October 27, 2014 by Edsys

“A child without education, is like a bird without wings”-Tibetan proverb

Education, apart from being a human right, is a necessity for survival these days. An uneducated person finds it tough to survive, be it financially or socially. The list of these schools given below is proof that people around the globe understand the value of education and are ready to go to any extend to spread knowledge. They are much different from the typical schools we are used to.

These schools do not even come close to those large class rooms with a black board, chairs and table, plenty of students and teaches. But they all serve the same purpose-to educate. Here’s a journey through the world’s unique schools:

Boat school, Bangladesh

Most of the rural areas of Bangladesh do not even have access to education. If at all there is a facility, it is mostly boys who attend school. Girls can attend only if the school is near their homes. But, when it is monsoon, it becomes tough. Due to the long-lasting floods during monsoon, children are unable to attend school. This is the reason architect Mohammed Rezwan came up with a unique idea-the boat school! “I thought that if the children cannot come to the school, then the school should come to them,” he says.

Nomadic School, Siberia

This school was formed in 2006 by Alexandra Lavrillier, an ethnologist, with the intention of providing modern education to children belonging to the Evenk, a nomadic group of south-east Siberia, while preserving their culture. Before this school came into existence, the Evenk children followed a modern education system, by staying in boarding schools for months at a time. This caused them to lose contact with their tradition. The school, which has been given the status of “official experimental school,” has inspired more schools of that sort to come up in other parts of Siberia.

Train Platform Schools, India

These schools were formed as a result of Inderjit Khurana, coming in contact with lots of children begging in trains, instead of attending schools. Being a school teacher, Inderjit understood that education is the only way to help those children escape from poverty. But to enrol these children in school was an impossible task. The concept of train platform schools enables children who dwell in streets of India to have their share of basic education.

School in the Cloud, China

Journey to attend this school in Gulu village of Sichuan Province in China is no child’s play. Located in the middle of lots of cliffs and canyons, it takes about 5 hours to walk across the narrow mountain path leading to the school, consisting of dangerous twists and turns. Unlike the present situation, the school had dirty classrooms with leaky roofs and no toilet about 26 years ago. It was the teacher Shen Qijun who toiled hard single-handedly to bring the school to the present form. Now, the school has a toilet and children have been given uniforms by volunteers. The school continues to thrive despite the difficult conditions.

Door Step School, India

Established in 1989 by a group of social workers, the concept of Door Step School is similar to that of Boat School in Bangladesh. Aimed to provide education to the underprivileged children, the school goes to where the children are and starts the class there. “School on Wheels” is an initiative of the people behind DoorStepSchool to educate the children on the streets. For that, a school bus has been designed as a class room, with just one aim-100% literacy.

The existence of these schools proves that, beyond the facilities, all that matters is just education.

But all of these schools do not just follow a traditional education system. Technology is making education more affordable, simpler and safer. Edsys is an example of a company that provides educational solutions that help to enhance educational system, right from school management to school bus management. Some of its products include RFID Student Tracking System, GPS Vehicle Tracking System, Parent portal and smart cards for schools, that prove to be very useful in terms of overall school management.

Posted on October 24, 2014 by Edsys

My colleague was furious. He was swearing at the school representative over his cell phone. As I was looking at his actions with mild amusement, he slammed his phone on the work desk and kept muttering.

He saw I was looking at him, and told me, “The idiots at my kids’ school are saying they won’t be able to provide school bus service for today evening.” He paused for a moment and continued, “Now I am supposed to find someone to pick my child up in the 11^th hour. And these guys say they are quality education service providers.”

The guy was fuming. It must be a serious issue. He went on, ranting at the school authorities. “It’s not like these people provide awesome education either.”

This incident forced me to think.

Do all these issues with school bus, canteens, library, etc count as part of an education institution’s quality or is it just the standard of the education provided that is counted as the criterion?

My mind, instead of answering this question, gave rise to several new questions, the most important being –

“who defines and sets the criteria for an education institution’s quality benchmark?”

Yes, obviously there are authorities who provide rankings for schools so that it is easy for parents to choose the better equipped or higher quality schools.

But if a school wanted to improve its quality, it won’t happen overnight. There should be proper planning with dedicated resources who work to improve the school’s standard.

So, what do you mean when you say standard or quality?

We can basically divide quality aspects into two –

(i) Educational aspects –

The quality of teaching
Laboratory facilities
Language excellence
Emphasis on value education
Language excellence

(ii) Non-educational aspects

Communication with parents
Cleanliness
Customer service
Safety & security
Recreational/extracurricular facilities
Working conditions and management of faculty

These would be the basic aspects to consider if an institution were to improve its quality by itself.

But who defines, judges and ensures the quality of education in schools?

Over the years, efforts have been made to answer this question, but in vain. To make judgments about the educational quality on students, educational program evaluations, students’ achievement tests, competency tests, teachers’ performance assessment etc can be done. However, an effective machinery to judge and define the quality standards in Indian schools is non-existent!

It is the duty of Human Resource Department to define roles for the existing responsibilities. The HR department should set who defines and who measures quality in an institution. But curiously, the HR department itself is auspicious by their absence in Indian schools.

Does it matter?

Does it really matter if Institutions strive for internal quality improvement or not? Most certainly, yes!

Unless a school strives to improve itself in both educational and non-educational factors, the reputation of the school gets affected gradually. And that is never a good thing in the hugely competitive education sector.

The absence of HR department in Indian schools might be attributed to it being viewed as an additional expense. But, is there an alternative method that can provide the benefits of an HR department while being pocket-friendly?

Technology might have an answer. Subscribe to our newsletter and stay tuned for further discussions.

Posted on October 23, 2014 by Edsys

Do you remember your school days, when you used to carry piles of books in your backpack and walk to school or may be, catch a bus to school? You’ll then attend classes and copy notes, most of which you would not have understood completely. Most of you might be saying, “Yes! That was me,” in your minds.

But, things are changing in the education sector these days. Technology has stepped into the overall function of a school, right from school management to the classrooms. Manual attendance tracking, payroll calculation, timetable management, school bus management etc. have been replaced with software solutions. Edsys is an example of a company that provides such software to schools, thus making the jobs lot easier. Some of the products of Edsys include school workforce management system, GPS vehicle tracking system, RFID school bus tracking system, RFID student tracking system, time table management software, Parent portal and so on.

In today’s class rooms, projectors have replaced black boards, computers and tablets have replaced books and mobile applications have replaced lessons. But, how do these changes influence the students, especially the use of mobile apps by students in their beginning stage of education? Let’s find out!

No books
This is one of the greatest advantages of embracing technology! Students need not bring lots of books to school. Just a tablet or laptop will do. Lessons from different subjects are available from a single source. No health issues, no pain. Great! Isn’t it?

Easily understood
It’s a fact that people tend to learn faster from what they see than reading out of books. There lies the relevance of mobile apps in education. Most of the mobile applications have lessons converted to games that make it interesting. Students get to learn from the apps to get a clear understanding of things than when they learn from books.

Class participation
This is one of the challenges faced by a teacher in a traditional education system. Some students are too shy to even answer questions that teachers find it hard to understand whether they have comprehended what was taught. Mobile apps are a big time solution to the problem. Since the learning is interesting, some students even tend to break free from the shyness and start interacting and actively participating in the class.

Going paperless
Students can login to the respective mobile apps and complete their homework and assignments while doing something good for nature. Saving trees! It is easier for the teachers as well, as they do not have to go through bundles of notebooks to check the assignments and homework, thus saving their time and effort. Same applies to the case of exams.

Equal opportunity to all students
Every child will not have the same learning ability. Some may find it hard to understand the lessons while some grasp it easily. In such cases, learning through mobile applications is quite convenient. There are also educational mobile applications available for children with special needs, giving them a chance to learn just like other children.

Performance analysis at the earliest
In traditional education techniques, teachers had to wait for exams to understand their students’ potential. But with mobile apps, it is a lot easier to analyse students’ performances. Teachers can conduct tests or exams may be on a daily basis and then, assess their students to understand the areas they are weak at. They can then help the children improve in those areas, thus providing education to the fullest.

Save time and money
Teaching through mobile apps requires half the effort a teacher puts on in traditional teaching techniques. Also, there is scope for saving lots of money in terms of books and stationary. Since students do not have to pull out each book and then open the lesson, it saves plenty of time too. Teachers can utilize this time to teach more.

All these points prove that mobile applications can play a huge role in the enhancement of education. For those schools that haven’t opted for technology yet, it is time they understand how mobile apps can transform the monotonous learning experience to a delightful one. Mobile apps not only make learning easier but since it’s less time-consuming, the students get to learn more in a day. Also, including technology such as mobile apps in education can benefit students to prepare them in facing the world where technology has laid its hands in every field.

Posted on October 17, 2014 by Edsys

To expand production of its radio frequency identification (RFID) tags and readers which facilitate the Internet of things, a $35 million has been raised by Alien Technology in a new round of funding.

Tags based on RFID (radio frequency identification) acts as a super bar code and it’s easy for RFID readers to wirelessly detect and track RFID-tagged products in the supply chain. Alien’s RFID tags need no batteries.

Alien Technology has previously raised money to manufacture its own chips using an assembly system called “fluidic self-assembly”, where the system was developed by Alien’s founder John Smith, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Alien established many of the industry’s standards as RFID infrastructure took shape in the supply chain and attempted to go public. Even though the company sought to raise $120 million in 2006 due to the changing market conditions, it was forced to withdraw its initial public offerings.

According to Chris Chang, the new CEO, the older technology never reached heights that justified the huge manufacturing facility of Alien in Morgan Hill, California which is in the far south of Silicon Valley. The technology being expensive, Alien shut that down and decided to manufacture products in a traditional manner.

As compared to 230 employees in 2010, Alien has less than 100 employees now. Chang said that due to the attractiveness of the ‘Internet of things’, the company is going through a revival stage as actual orders for RFID readers and tags materialize.

The funding for Alien Technology comes from a new firm named Ruizhang Investment Co. which has many investors in China. This company is determined in deploying RFID for socially responsible purposes. Therefore with its support, a company such as Alien can bring more innovations to the volume RFID market.

This move reinstates the growing importance of RFID tracking systems technology. The numerous RFID applications across a number of industries are proof of the technology’s relevance. In the education sector, RFID vehicle tracking systems are quite popular. RFID tags are used for library management, store management, attendance management and a lot more.

Posted on October 15, 2014 by Edsys

Be it providing education or receiving it, the task isn’t easy at it seems. It requires a lot of effort and energy. There may be various elements to tackle in between to earn real benefits out of education. Bullying, racism, inequality etc. are some social issues that the providers and the students have to face in common.

There are some other issues that are solely confined to teachers or students. Hence, it is very difficult to understand for people outside the circle. But many movies have brilliantly portrayed most of the issues related to education so that others out of the education system can understand them better.

Here are 11 movies that narrate some of the challenges faced by teachers and students in the education system. These convey the importance of education:

1. To Sir, With Love (1967)

Released in 1967, this movie highlighted racial and social issues. ‘To Sir, with Love’ narrates the story of Mark Thackarey, a former engineer, who begins his career in teaching at an area with low standard of living in London. Soon, Mr. Thackarey realizes that rather than arithmetic or any other subjects, how to survive is what he has to teach his students and how Mr. Thackarey achieves that forms the rest of the story. Actor Sidney Poitier portrayed the role of Mark Thackarey in this feel good movie.

2. Educating Rita (1983)

‘Educating Rita’ is all about self-discovery and the power to choose, that comes through education. The movie narrates how the life of a young wife Rita (played by actress Julie Walters) transforms when she comes in contact with Frank Bryant, her assigned Open University professor after deciding to complete her education. Mr. Bryant happens to inspires her and teaches her to value her own thoughts.

3. The Breakfast Club (1985)

A bit different from the usual teacher-student movie, ‘The Breakfast Club’ tells the story of five students, each belonging to a different high school group, who happen to come together during a Saturday detention and connect to each other. The movie successfully portrays the interaction between students in an education system.

4. Stand and Deliver (1988)

This 1988 movie revolves around a high school maths teacher, Jaime Escalante, who leaves his highly-paid job to take up teaching. ‘Stand and Deliver’ narrates how Mr. Escalante motivates his undisciplined and rebellious bunch of students to excel in academics while overcoming various hurdles. The movie is based on a true story and the character Jaime Escalante is for real. In the movie, actor Edward James Olmos played the role of the teacher, Jaime Escalante.

5. Dead Poets Society (1989)

This classic film tells the story of a teacher who motivates his students the break out of their normal lives to seize the day and to be extra ordinary. Late actor Robin Williams played the role of John Keating, the free-spirited, understanding and inspiring teacher, every student wishes to have. The movie ‘Dead Poets Society’ and the character John Keating has been inspiring students for many years.

6. Mr. Holland’s Opus (1995)

Director Stephen Herek brilliantly portrays the harsh realities related to teaching in his movie, ‘Mr. Holland’s Opus’. The movie is about Glenn Holland, a music composer who is forced to take up the job of a high school music teacher to pay his bills, who later discovers the impact he made on his students. Actor Richard Dreyfuss portrayed the role of Mr. Holland in the movie packed with touching scenes that can leave you with a lump in your throat.

7. Chalk (2006)

The fictional documentary, ‘Chalk,’ narrates the challenges and problems that four teachers endure over the course of an academic year. Some moments of the documentary make you laugh, while others make you think as it honestly depicts the real hardships one has to face in one of the most respected professions-teaching.

8. Half Nelson (2006)

More than a student-teacher story, ‘Half Nelson’ explores race and class issues and friendship. In the movie, Ryan Gosling plays Dan Dunne, a high school teacher, with a unique teaching style, who is otherwise, a drug-addict. Mr. Dunne is forced to be friends with one of his students, when she finds out his secret.

9. Freedom Writers (2007)

This movie proves that education isn’t something that is merely confined to the four walls of a classroom, but beyond that. In the movie, actress Hillary Swank plays Erin Gruwell, a teacher who motivates her rebellious and underprivileged students to improve in terms of academics and behaviour by asking them to maintain journals about their lives.

10. Tare Zameen Par(Like stars on Earth) (2009)

This Indian movie, which comes with a tagline, “Every child is special” gives a new definition to education. Tare Zameen Par narrates the story of Ishaan Awasti, who is good at art but fares poorly when it comes to academics. Ishaan’s art teacher Ram Shankar Nikumbh, suspects that Ishaan is suffering from dyslexia and helps Ishaan overcome his disability. Actor Amir Khan plays Mr. Nikumbh while Darsheel Safary plays Ishaan Awasti in the movie. .

11. Precious (2009)

This movie about an illiterate and obese girl explains the importance of education. Actress Gabourey Sidibe plays the role of 16-year-old Claireece Precious Jones, who is physically and mentally abused by her mother and is sexually abused by her father. Precious Jones later enrolls in an alternative school and certain incidents inspire her to have a new outlook of life.

All these amazing movies help you to understand a lot about education. They might help you to provide better education to students. And for that to happen in an easier way, you can embrace technolgy. There are solutions such as RFID Student Tracking System, GPS Vehicle Tracking System, Parent portal and smart cards for schools that can be quite effective.

Posted on October 10, 2014 by Edsys

One day, I was sitting in the staff room with a couple of other teachers. One of them was describing her experience to all of us. “Until that moment, the students were all calm. Then suddenly, without warning, the classroom turned to utter chaos. All I saw was students yelling and fighting with each other and making loud noises. I tried to calm them down. But it was in vain. They were screaming like anything”. She explained the alarming situation she faced, with severe distress. Her situation made me think. This was only a classroom fight and managing it seemed to be an uphill task. Just imagine if it was a large scale student fight or unacceptable behavior from teachers and other staff!

Why do discipline problems arise?

After pondering over the question of what actually causes discipline problems in schools, I understood one thing. There are a plethora of reasons that directly or indirectly influence the behavior of students, teachers and other staff working in a school environment. The personality of teachers, characteristics of students and the whole school environment are determinants in effecting changes in the disciplinary procedures in the school.

How can we address discipline problems?

A couple of years ago, during a discussion, it was my friend Anna who opened my eyes to a new way of thinking about addressing discipline problems in schools. She said:

“The discipline of students and staff should be maintained through teaching and not by punishment”.

Her definition of discipline forced me to analyze disciplinary measures that deal with problems between students, teachers and other staff members in a school, such as the following:

Providing educational assistance to students
Enforcing school discipline policies
Creating a positive relationship between teachers and students
Motivating teaching and non-teaching staff
Encouraging teachers to work as a team while they execute their professional duties

These measures can be of great help in maintaining school discipline and creating a harmonious school environment. But do you find these measures easy and trouble-free to implement? Definitely not! Tracking student discipline and managing teacher performance is a difficult and time consuming task. So what can we do to measure disciplinary activities and make a positive change? The solution is right around the corner. We’ll discuss about it in the coming days…

Other interesting posts:

The Recruitment Circus in Indian Schools

Why is human resource department vital to schools?

Posted on October 10, 2014 by Edsys

You’ve most likely been in this situation. Thinking that you know right where you are going, you take confident strides in an unfamiliar place. But after taking a few turns around the block, your conviction seems to wane a little bit, a few minutes later, you understand that you are hopelessly lost. Ever since the introduction of the Global Positioning System (GPS), to the public in 1995, the technology has been bailing out people from similar situations.

Currently, a growing number of people rely on GPS technology to securely guide them to their destination apart from other purposes facilitated by the addition of GPS to mobile devices.

GPS is a network of 30+ navigation satellites orbiting the earth. Formally developed by the US government for military navigations, this system is now used by everyone with a GPS device.

Wherever on the planet, a minimum of four satellites are ‘visible’ at every time. At regular intervals, each satellite transmits details regarding its actual time and location. These signals travel at the speed of light gets intercepted by our GPS receiver and calculate how far away each satellite is on the basis of how long it took the messages to receive.

GPS can work in any weather conditions, anywhere around the world, 24 hours a day without any interruption. It can easily work without any subscription or set up charges.

History of GPS

Raytheon Company created the technology used in GPS when the United States Air Force acknowledged the need of an accurate guidance system. In 1960, Dr.Ivan Getting, a scientist who worked with the Raytheon Company left his position and started developing the Global Positioning System. Getting developed the concept of three-dimensional GPS along with a group of scientists
and aerospace engineers.
In 1957, the former U.S.S.R launched its first-ever satellite, ‘Sputnik’ amidst the space race and cold war that was hitting the country. U.S scientists started observing Sputnik and realized the fact that the satellite’s orbit can be traced listening to the changes in its radio frequency using the Doppler Effect. Actually Doppler Effect was previously used to explain why the pitch of a car’s horn alters due to the change in its speed.
In 1960, using the information and knowledge acquired from tracking Sputnik, the U.S Navy launched TRANSIT, the first satellite navigation system to assist the process of guiding the Navy’s fleet of ballistic missile submarines.
Later in 1967, Timation technique was developed by U.S Navy. This system used a highly consistent, synchronized clock in the satellite, a technique on which GPS is dependent. The first atomic clocks were put into orbit by 1974.
The development happened gradually and U.S Military was credited with launching the first four GPS satellites by the end of 1978. GPS Technology was accessible for U.S military only until the necessity arose to extend its use to civilians in 1983.This was due to the repercussions of a tragedy which occurred at that time. A civilian Korean Airplane with 269 passengers mistakenly entered Soviet airspace and was shot down, killing all passengers on board. A tragic incident indeed!
In response to this woeful incident, a directive was issued by President Ronald Reagan, providing free access to GPS Technology throughout the world.
The first modern satellite was launched on Feb. 14, 1989, and the global positioning system was finished by July 17, 1995.

Features of this system

It consists of a constellation of twenty-four 2,000-pound satellites and each move all the way around the world from 12,000 miles above the earth once every 12 hours.

The satellites transmit their location and the exact time the signal was broadcasted to earth via radio signals and by gathering this information from four or more satellite’s signals,

GPS receivers can determine their own speed, location, and elevation with great perfection – usually within a few meters or even less.

Evolution of GPS

Today GPS technology is changing the way we live and communicate and its successful applications influence all our lives in a very distinct manner. The evolution of this technology is a gradual process transforming many diverse areas of human activity. Now let’s see how it has evolved progressively.

1972: GPS was initially used by the US Air Force and enlarged by Navstar

1983: It was then permitted by the US Government for public use and consumption.

1994: At this time US military has been extensively using GPS technology.

1996: Pedestrians began using GPS for navigation.

2000: Civilian demand for GPS Technology increased when the U.S. military halted its practice of purposely blurring the signals for security needs

2006: Social networking started integrating this technology by checking in, providing restaurant locations etc.

2014: GPS becomes a standard in all cellular phones and new automobiles with the majority of smartphone users using varied kinds of GPS technology.

Today, 4 out of 6 Smartphone users utilize some sort of GPS Technology

How does GPS work?

A GPS system works independently on the user’s internet or telephone signal. These satellites circle the earth twice daily in its precise orbit.

The system consists of three parts- satellites to act like stars, ground stations that use radars and finally it consist of a receiver who receives these signals.

These satellites send out signals constantly, these signals are received by the receiver. Once our receiver calculates its distance from three or four satellites, it smartly figures out where you are.

Use of GPS System

Do you know the only limitation of the GPS system?

It is your imagination about the possibilities of this system!

GPS system is versatile and used in many sectors which we can’t even think of.

This system is widely helpful for farmers to harvest their fields, navigate airplanes in air/ on the ground, used to map forests, etc. It is also used for many military purposes, emergency crews, etc.

Generally, this system falls into 5 main categories

Location- to access the required position
Navigation- direction from one location to another
Tracking- Tracing the movement of objects/ persons
Mapping- to create maps including world maps
Timing- to denote precise timing

What are the Function of the GPS?

A GPS system is capable to do a lot of things. It is still undergoing a lot of changes to exhibit in the near future. Let us discuss the main functions of s GPS system-

It is used to track people

The idea of using a GPS system for tracking people started when the military was in desperate need of a system to track soldiers on a battlefield. Though a lot of devices were introduced before, none of them were as powerful as a this device. A GPS device is accurate to track location. Since then it was introduced to common people to track each other in need with the help of a this device.

Better understanding of a specific location

A GPS system is used to have a better understanding of a place. The system is connected to all world satellites and has access to every country, state, places, buildings, etc. This makes people to get knowledge about any location.

If you are a person who loves to travel, it would be difficult to keep track of all places, so using a GPS system will make the job simplified. It also has a bookmark facility so that you can bookmark your favorite and most visited places.

Used to track valuable objects

Crime is one of the unpleasant things happening around us and committing theft is also increasing. Robbers not only steal small objects but also valuable items like cars, mobile phones, musical instruments, etc. So this device helps us to track the stolen device no matter wherever it is in this world.

Optimize routes

One of the effective ways to use this system is for route optimization. GPS system suggests the best way to reach the destination. It helps drivers to receive real-time traffic notifications, avoid traffic jams, reduce tools, etc.

Monitoring employees

Employers can use GPS to monitor their drivers are behaving responsibly. Rash driving, wasting fuel, using company fleets for personal purposes, etc can be monitored effectively.

Also Read: 27 Best GPS Tracking Apps for Android and iOS

Advantages of GPS

Easy to navigate- It notifies each direction you have to take to reach your destination
Works in all weather conditions- irrespective of all weather conditions, it works without any fail
Low cost- This system works efficiently at very low cost as compared to other navigating devices
Works powerfully- Gets 100% coverage from anywhere in this world.
It helps to easily search nearby hotels, schools, places of worship, pumps, ATM, etc
Easy to integrate- This technology can be easily integrated into any device like cell phone, tablets etc
This system can be used for navigation even in large water bodies

Disadvantages of GPS

Battery drain – GPS chip is power-hungry, so the battery may drain within 8 to 12 hours which requires battery replacement or recharge
This Technology may fail in certain situations. So always avail a backup travel map too
Due to some obstacles, these systems need not be accurate every time

How accurate is GPS?

It depends. GPS satellites use certain accuracy to broadcast signals but what we receive always depends on other additional factors. It uses radio signals frequency to determine the location of devices.

Though this system is not dependent on weather conditions, certain other factors may affect its accuracy. These factors include space under tree cover, huge buildings, inside parking garages, inside tunnels, near land formations like mountains, etc.

GPS technology continues to alter every year and as the price of these devices becomes cheaper they are more and more readily available. The next 5 – 10 years is a stirring time for GPS. What once seemed like science fiction movie trinket is now recognized as accustomed technology!