Edsys, Author at Edsys - Page 42 of 46

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!

Posted on October 9, 2014 by Edsys

Over the last few years, UAE has grown economically and culturally to compete with the top countries of the world. The native language of Arabic has also played a huge role in the evolution in terms of culture and tradition.

But,

The recent revelations of Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) on the poor performance in private schools of Dubai were indeed shocking. It was found that the students scored well in the subject but they could not speak the language properly. It was also found that about 75% of the inspected schools had very less number of students who chose Arabic as their first language or additional language. The reason for such a trend was because the teaching and learning techniques in Arabic were repetitive and hence, it could not instil any interest in the students.

As a result,

KHDA is focusing on the promotion of Arabic language in schools this year. The organization has decided to improve teaching methods, thus invoking the interest in students to embrace the language. The teacher-led workshops and presentations are therefore an effort from KHDA’s side to apply innovative teaching methods and to improve the performance of schools in Arabic.

One of the reasons for the students not being able to pick up the language was that they were taught everything word by word from the textbooks. Schools concentrated only on grades and they passed with flying colors. The reason was simple. Students learned everything by heart and appeared for the exams! Another reason was that schools found it difficult to hire teachers who were fluent in both English and Arabic. In private schools, where most of the students belong to other countries, it is important to have teachers who can communicate in English. Most of the natives in the UAE speak only Arabic. Hiring teachers from Jordan and Lebanon is a solution. But most schools prefer local teachers, considering less payment.

‘What Works’

The event named ‘What Works’ was conducted by KHDA on September 29th. It gave an opportunity for the teachers to interact and share ideas to improve their teaching methods. The educators held discussions and exchanged ideas through teacher-led presentations and workshops, which focussed on Arabic.

‘What Works’ also gave attention to other subjects such as Maths, Science etc. The teachers, who attended ‘What Works,’ gave positive feedbacks on the event. One of the teachers mentioned that the event gave them a new vision into the methods of teaching. During the event, one of the teachers suggested maintaining a sheet that taught students Arabic. The students can use it each day, thus helping them to improve their linguistic skills rather than grades.

The event threw light on the innovative ways that Arabic as a language, can be understood, taught and received. It also highlighted the ways to make the teaching process interesting so that the students get motivated and find the language easy to handle.

Posted on October 9, 2014 by Edsys

Aimed at providing valuable feedback to organizations, The Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA), Dubai has completed its annual survey, which was carried out among 70000 principals, teachers, students and their parents from private schools in Dubai. This survey is expected to be beneficial in guiding community-building activities and informing education policies.

The survey comes in handy to choose feasible solutions for numerous problems ranging from parental anxiety over kids’ identity and development to designing stress-busting programs for teachers. In addition to these it aids in building awareness to adopt fun filled educational techniques.

2013 survey feedback help introduce new ideas

The positive impact created by the 2013 survey has made KHDA to send around 220,000 surveys this year. Around 110,000 people, including 67 principals, more than 7500 teachers, 90,000 parents and more than 15000 students have already been issued the first batch of the survey. According to Hind Al Mualla, Chief of Engagement, the feedback from last year’s survey helped KHDA introduce new concepts and ideas. He is also of the belief that Dubai’s education sector will improve significantly in the years to come providing high-quality learning experience for all students.

‘Parent Safaris’

As a result of the KHDA survey, informal meetings such as ‘Parent Safaris’ has been arranged for parents to opine about the educational system in Dubai and to make them aware about the services offered by KHDA. Also, the weekly school visit by KHDA team members facilitate them to meet and talk with principals, teachers and parents.

96% parents happy with the Parent/School contract

The KHDA survey revealed the effectiveness of its Parent/School contract which outlines the rights and responsibilities of students, parents and schools. According to the survey results, 96% of parents agreed that it is essential to have a legally-binding contract between them and the school.

93% students feel safe and secure

The contract makes it mandatory for schools to have an anti-bullying policy and student conduct rules which have been instrumental in lessening inappropriate behavior and instances of bullying. These actually helped schools to deal with bullying incidents and administering safety measures inside the school campus. According to the survey, 80% of students aged 15 and above were happy with the way their schools deal with bullying, 81% are of the view that they are treated fairly in their schools and 93% feel that they are safe and well-looked at the school.

Teachers get enough time to assess students

The teaching practices shared across Dubai’s schools incorporate ideas and articulate values. In the survey, 65% of teachers said that they were provided sufficient time to prepare teaching lessons and assess students. For teachers to manage their workday, sessions on stress management, teacher well-being etc. will be included in the latest What Works events.

Principal’s Playground

To develop the quality of education in Dubai, KHDA established a networking event called the Principal’s Playground for Dubai’s school principals where they can meet regularly and share their ideas. At present, 97% of school principals surveyed were satisfied with the educational system in Dubai.

Initiatives to meet the targets of the UAE National Agenda

In June, 101 principals from across Dubai’s private schools attended a special session to share and discuss about the educational system in Dubai. It was meant to figure out new ways in which schools can work together to achieve the education targets of the UAE National Agenda for 2021.

Posted on October 7, 2014 by Edsys

School management is not an easy job at all. It requires lots of effort to manage every aspect of a school in an efficient manner. Those aspects include timetable management, performance management, payroll management, bookstore management and so on. The worst part is that, in most schools, all these tasks are done manually. Many tools have been introduced in the market to mark an end to the troubles caused due to manual school management. They guarantee accurate and efficient school management with minimum effort put into it. Here are five tools that every school should be using for a better school management experience:

1. School bus tracking software

This software addresses the safety concerns of parents and school authorities regarding students. The school bus tracker software by Edsys is one such example. It enables efficient student and vehicle tracking in real time. Students will have RFID tags attached to their ID cards that they are expected to swipe in the card reader once they board the school bus. Notifications will then be sent to the phones of parents and school authorities. The school bus drivers can log into the GPS tracking system as they start their day, which enables the analysis of their performances. The advantages of such software are:

Whereabouts of students and school buses can be known real time from a mobile application called Parent App
School bus tracking software help in monitoring performances of school bus drivers, by generating reports on driver’s timing and attendance.
Parents and school bus authorities do not have to worry about students getting down at the wrong bus stop or over speeding as they will receive notifications for the same.

2. Attendance tracking software

This software is of great use especially when you are calculating pay scales for the employees. It keeps track of punch details of employees, which can be accessed after any number of days. Attendance history of every employee can be generated on a monthly basis making it easier to calculate the number of leaves taken. It also helps to determine the employee for each month. The advantages of attendance tracking software are:

No paper work
Lesser effort in terms of calculation of leaves taken by an employee in a month
Attendance data of every employee is stored, which can later be accessed for future use

3. Timetable management software

Managing timetables tops the list of toughest tasks in school management. There are many aspects that have to be kept in mind while preparing timetables, be it for class rooms or for teachers. Therefore, manual timetable management is prone to errors. Preparing timetables considering employees’ leaves and allotting classes to teachers balancing the time is not at all easy. Timetable management software comes handy at such instances. Advantages of timetable management software include:

Automated or interactive timetable generation considering absence of certain employees
Allotment of periods in terms of classes and teachers can be done efficiently
Substitution management made easy in case a teacher is absent
Lab periods can be allotted according to their availability
Generation of timetables for schools with any number of working days
A maximum of three timetables can be generated at a time

4. School Work Force Management System

This software helps in calculating the potential of every employee. Sometimes, the calibre of an employee is left unseen even if he or she puts their entire effort into the productivity in a school. This may lead to some issues in future and their work may sometimes be valued only after they leave the institution. School Work force Management System software by Edsys is of great use there. This software has the following advantages

No paperwork in terms of performance evaluation of each employee
Contains attendance history of an employee that can be accessed whenever it is needed
The employees can add their day-to-day activities in the timesheet section of work force management system software. This can help evaluate an employee’s performance on a monthly or an annual basis.
An employee’s skills and areas of development can be understood by analysing timesheet history. This can help the school in using the potential of the employee to the fullest.

5. Smart Card Solutions

Smart Card Solutions can be termed as an all-in-one package that can be used for almost all purposes in school. Some of these include:

Purchase of food items from school canteen
Fee payment
Library attendance
Purchase of provisions from school book store

Some of the advantages of Smart Cards are:

Food items and beverages can be bought using Smart Cards even if a student forgot to take cash with him or her
Parents can easily pay school fees using Smart Cards as they carry all information regarding a student. This relieves the parents from having to panic looking for their child’s roll number and other details
Return and lending of books becomes easier with Smart Cards. Students do not have to carry a library card with them. They can just swipe their Smart Cards while entering the library to mark the attendance
Students can buy books or other provisions at school bookstore using Smart Cards. The statement of the purchase will then be sent to the parents.
You can top up the credit of a Smart Card by paying at the fee collection counter

For schools that still use manual school management techniques, the time is right to turn digital .The tools mentioned above provide an error-free school management experience, that too in an efficient manner. They, thereby contribute to the development of a school to new heights.

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Edsys

Admissions, recruitment of staff, quality assurance, performance management, retention and motivation of educators- school management! The functions and responsibilities of a school management range from recruiting to orienting new employees, creating job descriptions to tracking attendance, monitoring policies to monitoring benefits and what else. Nothing matters more to educational institutions than the teachers who work there. Schools are nothing without the right people!

The question of whether a school needs a human resource department is not a simple one to answer. Ask the question to a variety of educators, school authorities and HR professionals and you are likely to get a variety of responses. For instance, many professionals will tell you that the number of staff in a school is the determining factor. A lot of educational institutions assume that they don’t need an HR department. But there are various issues to be considered before arriving at a decision on this matter.

Get FREE Teacher Apps (Check it Now)

Let’s assume that you have been requested to establish an HR Department in your school. So what all functions will it perform?

Recruiting the right people

Choosing and appointing the right people for your school is important. It’s not just about selecting the right ones to do the work, as schools are becoming increasingly focused on producing quality results. Addressing the long-term goals of the school, recruitment should be done to find the right people who enjoy working with your school and want to advance with it.

Administering the ‘student life-cycle’

From admission to leaving the school there is a number of activities concerning the students, which needs to be taken care of. You need to manage student data, simplify administrative tasks, maximize school-to-home communication, recognize and encourage student performance and success. So whether your school is public, private, international or charter, what matters is the level of efficiency in administering student activities.

Taking care of the payroll

When you have teachers, librarians, non-teaching staff and all other people who constitute the human resource of your school you have payroll and there is no evading it. Employee payroll processing is a tedious task and is usually well outside most schools’ area of expertise. So, combining human resource and payroll will allow automatic updating, reduce paperwork and lessen the difficulty in providing accurate reports.

Managing teacher performance

Teacher performance and development appraisals should be based on essentials of professional growth, improvement of performance and influence on school and student outcomes. Your school can help teachers to perform to their best abilities through an effective HR department, which has the following benefits

Documenting, measuring and assessing the performance of teachers using balanced-scorecards.
Conducting Performance Appraisals across various elements, including student outcomes, professional practice, professional knowledge and professional engagement.
Assisting teachers in identifying their potential and ways of improving their ability thereby raising their professional standard.
Providing counseling, guidance and training to those teachers who have difficulties in their performance.

Creating a safe and secure school environment

How safe your students, teachers and other staff to your school feel may eventually determine how well your HR department meets its health and safety responsibilities. Integrating school safety and people’s security in human resources management practices will foster a culture in which students, teachers and non-teaching staff stays together in harmony. Your HR department creates an environment free of violence, reducing the risks of illness or injuries and other external threats to individual safety.

These suggest that an HR department plays a key role in analyzing, categorizing and developing distinguished HR practices and ensuring their alignment and integration with your school’s overall strategy. In order to satisfy your needs for recruitment, selection, motivation and retention of employees, your school requires an effective human resource management system which incorporates the basic functions of HR starting from recruitment to retention.

Get FREE Teacher Apps (Check it Now)

Posted on September 29, 2014 by Edsys

We know that GPS technology is finding more and more applications to improve our day to day activities. For example, there are various GPS enabled apps which can be of great help to us such as school bus tracking, parent portal and school mobile app which puts emphasis on the safety of students and allow parents to track their children’s whereabouts. The application of GPS technology is therefore not just limited to specific objectives like finding the right path when we are stuck in a place or searching the nearest restaurant. It can be used for more distinct things that we could ever dream of. Now we will see how GPS influence today’s social networking activities.

1. Helping hands for veterans

How do we make sure that veterans understand they have a peer network they can trust on in a time of need? Today, apps have been created using GPS technology, exclusively for veterans to prevent them from feeling alone and without deep pockets. There are a number of social media apps which can be used by veterans when they move to a new place and are looking for friends, to locate people nearby and to find a health care while traveling. The support network these apps create will help fend off the worst outcomes of loneliness and mental sickness and support veterans in a great way.

2. Follow your friends

Most of us want to follow our friends and dear ones, once they step out of their homes for a cup of coffee, a stroll up the street etc. We see their photos and wonder when they would be returning. For those of us who are connected with the new generation of social networking sites that uses satellite positioning technology, it is now easier as never before to see and monitor our best ones. We can view the location of our friends using GPS tracking apps and get in touch with them through the system.

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

3. Let customers find you

If you have a website for your local business, wouldn’t it be immense if prospective customers can easily find your location? This can be made feasible with Geo tagging. You can use this technology to let your customers know precisely where you are. There are plenty of unique ways that Geo tagging can benefit your online presence. If you are a little local business, then you can really benefit by labeling your business in all of your content. You will be able to reach people that are close by, so when they go over your content or website, they can effortlessly find your location!

4. Fun games

Have you ever wondered how you could facilitate kids in learning navigation skills using a compass and following coordinates? If you haven’t, it’s high time you should have known more about fun activities which are specifically designed for assisting children of all ages to play and learn with fun. The GPS enabled fun games allow kids to search or hide items and share their adventures online. It is an exciting way to help children learn about the world around them.

5. Tracking teens’ whereabouts

Teens love to publicize their whereabouts using location services. Many of us think that it is potentially risky for teens to put themselves on the map. But we can help our teens balance the social aspects they want with the safety protections they need with a number of downloadable location apps. Nowadays GPS tracking apps integrate features that cover a wide spectrum of capabilities from simple street directions for social networking safety. These programs help us to track our teens’ whereabouts and give alerts immediately when they arrive at or leave a place.

6. Monitoring people for enhancing security

Did you know? GPS enabled software is aiding governments and security professionals to track individuals via social media posts. Yes, the use of GPS tracking technology supports law enforcers to ensure security and monitor individuals to locations they frequent. Mobile phone calls and social media posts are monitored and linked to CCTV systems to deal with the homeland security thereby bringing security tracking to a new level!

7. Know your customers

GPS tracking technology is now used to track the behavior of customers to improve digital marketing campaigns. You can now collect location based data and a wealth of information regarding your customer’s shopping activity, behavior and preferences of buyers, length of time the customers spend for visiting your website etc. This helps you to improve your insights about the local market & the consuming behavior of your target customers.

8. Share your adventures live!

Share your adventures with others live (or afterwards) as you are doing them! Share it on a map with embedded photos, audio, videos, tweets and other media. You can create a map of your route live and share it with your friends. Each map you create can either be publicly visible to the world or only visible to you – even though you can set a default privacy setting, this can be altered for each map. Using these excellent outdoor GPS apps you can find people and interact with them, meet friends who live on the route, track friends using the map on your phone etc. It is an excellent way of improving your hiking experience!

9. Tracing trivial things

We often have an urge to let others know what we eat, drink and shop. Today a lot of social mapping apps allow us to trace the trivial things of daily life in even more minute detail. These apps are really appealing as it sends real-time recommendations on what to drink, eat and buy once we check into a location. The features of these social mapping apps include:

Simple privacy controls
Temporary sharing option
Parental restrictions
Locating family and friends easily

10. Sharing real-time road info

Ever wondered if you could join drivers in your area to share real-time traffic info? Well, now you can know! It would help you to outsmart traffic and improve daily commuting for everyone. Millions of drivers out on the roads jointly work towards a common goal to get everyone the best route to work and back, everyday. A number of social GPS apps help drivers to share real-time road info, including traffic, speed cams, police, accidents and many more with each other.

Advantages

Can navigate to the cheapest station on your route, report prices at the pump and save some gas money.
Can see other friends who are driving to your destination, when you connect to Facebook.
Can coordinate your friends’ arrival times when you pick up or meet up with them.
Can get alerts before you approach accidents, police, road hazards, traffic jams, etc. shared by other drivers in real-time.

Posted on September 26, 2014 by Edsys

If you are a fan of Hollywood sci-fi movies, you might have come across various means of individual identification. Remember the retina scan in Minority Report, finger prick in Gattaca and many more. But these futuristic technologies would take quite a long time to become practical everyday solutions. For the immediate future – say the next couple of decades, we have smart cards, which everyone including you and me would find easy to use.

Smart cards or Integrated Circuit Cards (ICC) are very much similar to a credit card and it is usually made with plastic. Smart cards contain integrated circuits embedded inside them. They are capable of providing many functions such as identification, data storage, authentication and application processing. The advantages of smart cards over conventional magnetic stripe cards are high security, convenience, reduction in fraud activities etc. So smart cards have a bright future. Using a smart card, you can access various applications and networks. Smart cards offer services to both public and private sectors. The future aspects of smart cards in these sectors are discussed below:

Services in Public Sector:

Smart card provides services in various fields under public sector. Those are mentioned below:

1. Healthcare: Smart health cards are capable of storing various information regarding patients like medical, administrative, pharmaceuticals and biological records. It also helps to reduce frauds in healthcare, improve the privacy and security of patient data and also provides a secure platform to implement new applications in demand with the health care organization. Smart health card helps to simplify the administration process and allow doctors to access complete and comprehensive patient information.

2. Schools: Students are provided with multifunctional smart cards at schools and colleges. Take for instance, the Edsys student smart card solutions. Their uses include:

Student tracking: Edsys’ smart card solutions enable parents to get real time information about their kids and their vehicle. They can track their kid’s vehicle location. Automated SMS alerts are sent to the parents if their kids are in any sort of danger. Edsys’ smart card solutions also generate various Management Information System (MIS) reports. Data of students, drivers and parents can also be stored in this smart card.

As an electronic purse in canteen/cafeteria: Edsys smart card allows students to purchase items at canteens. Students can check the balance available on their smart card at the time of the purchase. At the time of the purchase, the appropriate amount will be deducted from the available balance and the attendant would issue the ordered item. Parents would be able to check the purchase statements against the money credited on to Edsys smart card.

Payment of fees: Using Edsys’ smart card, parents can pay their kid’s school fees. In comparison with the conventional method of providing name and other details to pull up details, encoded information in the smart card helps to identify the student and their fee details. At the Fee collection counter, parents can top up the credit on the card by paying the amount to the cashier.

Library: Using Edsys smart card, students can mark their attendance in the library when they are using library for reading. Similarly, librarians are able to pull up records of students to issue/return library books.

Book store management: Students can purchase books, magazines etc. from the book store using Edsys’ smart card. Parents would get a statement of items purchased from the store.

3. Transportation: Transportation smart cards are rechargeable and also they are contact-less cards. If you have this smart card, you don’t need to take tickets or pay money while you travel. It will also simply the process of passenger boarding. Using this smart card, you can even pay for your parking.

4. Welfare:
Smart cards can be used to identify finger prints of the card holder. Using this facility, card holder can access government databases and he/she can receive the welfare payment. The security provided by the card will help to eliminate the frauds.

5. Telecommunication: The Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) which is used in mobile phone is a smart card of reduced size. Calls can be made from the public phones using smart card and they can be recharged with cash points. By using the card, you don’t have to use coins in the public phones and this will reduce the vandalism. Usage of smart cards will reduce the operating charge and will increase the revenue. Studies have shown that people who use smart card to communicate tends to talk more on the phone.

Services in Private sector:

Usage of smart cards can reduce the handling and transaction costs. Smart cards combine the functions of various cards into one. They gives users the ability to make peer-to-peer and online/offline transactions. Smart cards have made rapid and potential advancements in various fields such as Banking, Internet and Electronic commerce.

6. Banking: Smart cards can avoid the major problems in banking field such as fraud, bad debt and the limitation of magnetic stripes. Smart cards are capable of storing 80 times more data than the conventional cards. Based on each individual’s profile, smart card helps the financial institutes to offer more services and personalized products for the card holders.

7. Internet: Instead of a remote device, smart card can store all personal data such as e-mails, user ID’s, phone numbers etc. It allows to get connected to the Internet anywhere around the globe if you have either a phone or an information kiosk.

8. Electronic Commerce: Smart cards can store electronic cash in it and card holders use that to make payments over the Internet. Customer data and payment details are transported securely over the Internet using Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) protocol.

Smart cards are widely accepted in Asia, Europe and in less developed countries mainly because of their convenience and safety. At present, smart cards are used for Internet access, wireless telephony, banking, payphones and healthcare. It would continue to revolutionise various sectors and pave way to a future that looks like a sci-fi movie.

Posted on September 26, 2014 by Edsys

GPS vehicle tracking technology has become popular in a short span of time. It tracks the location and position of vehicles. Commonly, a GPS vehicle tracking system will have a tracking device inside the vehicle along with software and a server which allows the user to track the vehicle from the headquarters. GPS vehicle tracking system is usually used by fleet operators for fleet management functions such as fleet tracking, routing, on-board information, dispatching and security. This system allows you to effectively manage your business, improvise the services and also to reduce the cost. There are 10 reasons you should invest in GPS Vehicle tracking system:

1.Reduce fuel costs

Fuel cost is one of the highest cost that affect businesses. GPS vehicle tracking systems help you to reduce fuel consumption by tracking over speed, excessive engine idling time, monitoring the routes taken by drivers to reach the destination, proper periodic maintenance and dispatching. Monitoring the routes via GPS system can also ensure that drivers are not using company vehicle for non-authorised trips and thus can reduce the fuel cost more efficiently. By installing a GPS system, it is possible to save as much as 15-18% on fuel costs.

2.Student tracking

GPS vehicle tracking system can also be used as student tracking systems. RFID student tracking systems provided by companies such as Edsys enables both the school/college authorities and parents to track the location of their students. It is used to enhance the safety of students while they are travelling. School bus tracking provides the real time travel status of the students who are availing the school bus facility. Management Information System (MIS) reports also helps in monitoring and enhancing the travel operations of schools/colleges.

3.Visibility of fleet

GPS vehicle tracking system provides you real time locations of your vehicles and drivers. Vehicle tracking systems’ mapping feature allows you to zoom the street levels. Satellite, street mapping and birds eye views enables you to accurately locate the vehicle and take action on any customer complaints or queries.

4.Increase in productivity

GPS vehicle tracking system helps you to increase productivity. As drivers and employees are aware that their activities are being monitored, they tend to be more alert. The feedback provided by the tracking system enables the managers to make plans to increase the company’s and driver’s productivity. Tracking systems help to reduce the phone bills as there is no need to always call drivers to know their location.

5.Theft prevention

Fleet companies prefer GPS systems in their vehicle due to this facility. As tracking systems provide continuous location updates of the vehicle, it is very easy to find out the lost vehicle’s location. This allows police to quickly find the car, arrest the thief and return your vehicle.

6.Improvement in driving behaviour

Real time monitoring allows you to measure sudden acceleration, harsh breaking, cornering, break times and route control and thus driver’s performance can be improved.

7. Better driver safety

Using tracking system, fleet managers can monitor their vehicles 24/7 and increase the safety of their drivers. Alerts can be set for sudden breaking, over speeding, harsh driving and it will inform the fleet managers when an employee drives carelessly. Managers can react to these situations and can prevent accidents from occurring. The tracking system also provides the drivers with means to raise an alert if they find themselves in any danger.

8.Better customer service

GPS vehicle tracking system can help fleet companies to improve their customer service. For example: Office staff can inform customers about the nearest cab location if their vehicle has been delayed on the way. Also, they can respond to customer queries effectively. As the employees present in the office have the facility to see real time location of their vehicles, they are able to identify quickly which vehicle will be best suited to attend a customer. They are also able to provide immediate answer and better service to the customers.

9. Manage and motivate drivers

Tracking systems can also be used as motivation tools to increase the productivity and performance of drivers. Drivers who perform well in all areas will receive recognition for their good performance and hard work. Those who under perform will receive feedback on how to improve their performance.

10. Reducing paper work

GPS vehicle tracking system helps to reduce the amount of paperwork that drivers have to fill out. As the tracking system provides detailed information on the whereabouts of the vehicle, drivers need not enter it on records. This system helps to increase the accuracy of records.

These are 10 reasons why you need to invest in a GPS vehicle tracking system. There numerous benefits that the tracking system can bring to your business. Any company that uses vehicles for their business can benefit from a GPS vehicle tracking system. It is a worthwhile investment as it helps to reduce costs and increase productivity.

Posted on September 26, 2014 by Edsys

If you think the only application of GPS apps are the ones that offer basic driving directions and similar uses, think again. For example, application of real time GPS in school bus tracking and parent portal drives operational efficiencies and allows parents to track personalized information about their children. GPS technology is now in everything from cell phones to shipping containers, boosting productivity across a wide swath of economy including construction, mining, farming, etc. Now, let’s have a look at some GPS applications which will surprise you.

Tractors plow the field

We often buy nuts, berries, vegetables, fruits etc from the grocery shops frequently, but we usually never think about the difficulties farmers face in growing these crops. Driving a tractor is a complex operation unlike driving a car. It’s a tiresome job where you need to watch your gauges and tires, listen to the engine etc. But GPS enabled self-steering tractors make it easy for farmers to plow the field in ideal rows, day or night all by itself. Using satellite signals for guidance the tractor could assist farmers in easing the monotony of endless plowing. It’s such a wonderful thing to help farmers boost efficiency.

Wildlife/pet tracking

Many of us use GPS to track and find our friends or family, prevent getting lost and reach our final destination when on a journey. The effectiveness of parent portal and school bus tracking devices, for instance compel parents to rely more on GPS tracking technology nowadays. For them, it’s replaced maps as the simplest way to navigate, but it is not just helpful for mapping and tracking – GPS is now being used to understand the movement and behavior of different groups of animals.

A radio receiver is placed on an animal to pick up signals from special satellites.
The receiver calculates the location and movement of the animal and sent the data to another set of satellites which then sends the data to the people.

So if you have ever wondered why your pet cat often sneaks into your neighbor’s home or why sheep move to the center of a flock when threatened by a predator or why cattle often graze in a particular manner in their local area, you can now find all the details regarding these using this technology.

Catching criminals

We often hear stories of policemen who encounter dangerous situations while chasing culprits who escape in cars after committing severe offenses. However, with GPS Tracking bullets, police can put a stop to high-speed car chases. GPS tracking bullets increase the likelihood of catching the culprit who is fleeing in a vehicle as well as stop potentially deadly vehicle accidents.

How it works?

GPS tracker in bullets is attached to vehicles so that the speed and location of the vehicle can be monitored from a remote location. Police use a real-time map of the vehicle to track it and chase the vehicle using the GPS location data. They wait patiently to see where the trail takes them, thereby avoiding dangerous high-speed chases and increasing the possibility of catching the criminals once they slow down the vehicle.

It’s a high-tech solution to hamper an old-fashioned escape.

Tracking football players’ performance

There are several football players who even after putting their best efforts encounter disappointments and fail to correct their mistakes while playing the game. There are situations where the coach tries to monitor the performance of the player accurately but in vain. Well, no more chaos. It’s now easier than ever to track and monitor the performance of football players using GPS tracking technology.

Benefits

Provides an enormous amount of information, including the speed, distance and dynamics of a player during a game.
Helps coaches in monitoring the players, thereby helping them to take relevant measures to build up the overall performance of the team.
Reflects a great percentage of the competitiveness of football players on the field.

Preventing vehicle theft

Your vehicle is precious to you. That goes without saying – its your hard earned money. Whether it’s the vehicle itself or the valuables within it, your vehicle is as much an aim for thieves as it ever was. Statistics show that nearly 36,000 vehicles, which amount to Rs.115 crore, are stolen in India every year. This means that your vehicle and its contents are not as safe as you might think. So how do you keep your vehicle from getting stolen? By employing GPS tracking devices! It can prevent attempts at theft.

GPS tracking devices will alert you the minute your vehicle is stolen and you can track it in real time on a map, with your phone or computer .You can track every movement of your vehicle, its speed, location and the history of the vehicle traveled so far at any point of time. It can share data about the journey, as well as alert dear ones in case of a crash. So no more worries! Protect your vehicle, and increase your chances of recovering your vehicle if it is stolen.

Safe hiking

Hiking is a healthy, affordable and fun activity that is open to anyone. We all can get the most out of a hiking trip and it can be one vacation that we remember years down the road and tell our friends about. However, hikes can turn out to be dangerous. Even though you are an experienced hiker, sometimes you might get lost in the wild, whether it’s getting left behind, wandering away from camp, getting injured or trapped etc. In that case, the only perfect way to let others know where you are is through GPS tracking!

There are many GPS Tracking devices that come with long battery life and other related features necessary for a hiking trip. It helps you by showing where you are and finding a way out and broadcasts live signals to other people so that they can find you. So, before your next hiking or camping trip, ensure that you are equipped with a GPS tracker and make your hiking a whole lot safer!