Paper forms, digital forms, online forms - forms, forms, forms!
As a parent, we are asked for contact information by each teacher, over and over again. Why?? We get inundated with paper, often a crumpled mess (when the kids were younger), often at the last minute to sign a permission slip. Every form asks for the same info, making the parent enter information the school should already have. We also get robo-calls from the schools for routine items, which we learn to ignore (not even pickup). So in a real emergency, we may not pay attention. Also as a parent working in a commercial environment, we notice all the ridiculous administrative paperwork school staff have to do (printing, collating, distributing, etc.).
That’s when I realized that there was an IT solution to all this administrative madness which is how ZippSlip was born (although I slowly realized what a complex issue it was).
Whether in the commercial or educational space, new systems can be a mixed blessing - the ultimate rewards can be great, but boy, it can be a lot of work to get them! Again, as someone with a technical background, I know this only too well, but I hadn’t had any experience in Ed Tech. There are some unique challenges in the Ed Tech space that just don’t exist in the commercial tech space
Typically, K-12 schools and districts face a few challenges which make Ed Tech different than Commercial Tech, such as:
Lack or fewer IT resources, especially in implementation and training
Technology for administrative tasks not seen as a critical component to the core educational mission
Multiple free solutions exist that allow for “coping” with parental engagement
System integration, especially with these free systems, is difficult at best and frequently impossible.
District or school leadership may or may not have experience with new technologies and thus are reluctant to change.
All staff at schools and districts seem to be over-taxed!
Not surprisingly, new systems are difficult “sells” in the K-12 tech space.
So, what we offer at ZippSlip is:
Ease of implementation, ease of integration, ease of use and mobile-centricity are the four cardinal rules here at ZippSlip (I know, it should be three…).
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