The province’s 28 divisions all have different, non-connected systems to keep track of student data. A new system aims to bring them together and with the data bind them.
The North East School Division’s board voted to support the new system, which will allow students to seamlessly move from division to division as well as make it easier for school divisions and the government to share data, at its Feb. 27 meeting.
Don Rempel, the division’s director of education, said the division will start implementing the system within the next two years.
“We’ve expressed interest in moving ahead [sooner] if we can get commitment from the government to do it sooner,” he said.
Nine school divisions will be transitioning to the new system before the end of June.
The licensing fee for the system, which isn’t used by any division in Saskatchewan but has been used in B.C., is $8.06 per student, placing the cost for the division around $40,300. There is a requirement for a five year commitment. Luke Perkins, the division’s chair, said the costs are comparable to what the division pays now for its Maplewood system.
The division will be responsible for paying for training its staff on the new system.
“We will have to put in a plan for staff training in place when we move to the new information system,” Rempel said.
Staff that need training include administrative assistants, division office staff, and could possibly include teachers.
The division expects that once the unified system is in place, there will be less need to re-train staff when they move from one school to another.
The new system has been in the works for three years. The division had staff members involved in the province-wide project.
