Schools use tech to let you know how your child's doing

Schools go in for SMS alerts, electronic devices in student I-cards to track kids' movements, CCTV cameras to let parents monitor child on Internet

If you have caught your child hiding something about school from you any time in the past and fear a repeat of events, then here is good news for you. Schools in the city are fast adopting newer technologies that not only allow you to know about events at school but also your ward's attendance and behaviour reports.

In a bid to keep a tab on student mischief, schools have started sending SMS alerts to parents about attendance and passes on remarks and other information.

Principal Renu Sumbaly, who runs Andhra High School in Deccan, sends alerts about students through the website www.bulksms.com.

"My clerical staff prepared a list of all the numbers and we got registered on this website and created a group of parents. Besides sending alerts about PTA meetings, school events and activities, we also see to it that if children are missing school or misbehaving their parents are informed," she said. "We are doing this because students don't always show school calendar remarks to parents, who remain unaware of what happens in school."

Pimpri's SNBP School is going to employ software that goes two steps ahead of mere attendance reports.
"The students will be given unique I-cards fitted with a radio device. Parents will keep getting real-time updates of their ward's movements, like when they enter and leave school or sit in the school bus. In fact, vehicles might also be fitted with a tracking system to allow parents to know the location of students," said school supervisor Bina Kadam.

She added that the technology would come at a cost of Rs 75 per month per student.

Besides SMS, email groups are getting increasingly popular too.

Lily Patel, principal of Sardar Dastoor Boys High School, said the group of schools would be starting the service soon.

"It was after the terror attacks that parents were worried about kids and kept calling us to check on them," she said. "They suggested this system of monitoring them and that's when we started research on this."

A few schools send group mails to parents to keep them updated about school activities.

"Whether it's H1N1 vaccination or any other information, we send out emails to parents to keep them updated. Most parents are quite Internet savvy and prefer this communication medium," said Leena Chaudhari, principal of Symbiosis School.

Sukhdeep Arora, director of Checkmate Security Systems, said a few pre-schools had bought internet-based CCTV cameras.

"It is a simple technology wherein CCTV cameras installed at the schools are attached to a broadband connection. After this, parents are given access through a password. Parents can log on to the website, enter the password and watch what their children are doing live through a viewing camera in classrooms," he said.