Choueifat introduced the SABIS® Parent App to strengthen parental involvement by providing real-time access to student performance and school updates. The app features user-friendly navigation, direct communication, and personalized student dashboards.
Please share a brief background of your innovation.
At ISC-Manama, as in all SABIS® schools worldwide, we strongly believe that parents are an essential part of our community of learners. There is no doubt that parental involvement in their children’s education has a huge impact on their academic performance and personal and emotional development. As such, because of the rapidly evolving world of technology as well as the needs of many of our parents, SABIS® set out to develop a mobile application, known as the SABIS® Parent App, that would allow them easy and quick access to their children’s academic performance, attendance, behavior, and involvement in student life. Here are some features of the SABIS® Parent App: Ease of navigation: The SABIS® Parent app is extremely user-friendly allowing parents easy access to school announcements, calendar, important links, leave requests, re-registration, etc. Direct Communication: The SABIS® Parent app enhances communication between parents and the school, including the option to book a meeting with their child’s AQC. Real-time announcements and messages: All messages related to news and announcements are received by parents in real-time. These can be announcements or messages that require parents’ action, such as acknowledging, approving, or rejecting a school trip. Student dashboards: Parents with more than one child can navigate between their children’s dashboards to see details related to each one. From the student dashboard, parents have access to important school updates and their children’s academic and non-academic details, including timetables, resources, courses, remarks, exams/grades, report cards, homework, discipline, attendance, performance, SLO®, and more.
How was the innovation planned?
The SABIS® Parent App was fully developed by SABIS® HQ in line with the organization’s commitment to R&D and to providing schools within the network with the latest educational technology that enhances the learning experience. The first Parent App was launched and made available to schools within the network in 2015. In 2021, SABIS® launched an all-new version of the application that was re-engineered to offer parents an even better experience and more information on their children’s life at school. The new app caters to all aspects of communication with parents, including academic, marketing, and financial matters, ensuring that the parents have a comprehensive tool to stay connected with the school and their children’s progress.
What were the challenges faced during implementation?
During the initial stages of implementation, as with the launch of any new technology, we faced a few technical glitches that were quickly addressed. With the latest version of the app, which was launched in 2021, we were able to further address these issues. Perhaps the biggest challenge was the massive coordination it took to inform parents in 21 countries on 5 continents about the benefits of the app and to encourage them to download and begin using the app.
Give us a brief assessment of your results.
Once parents began using the SABIS® Parent App, the feedback was generally positive. Parents appreciate the access they have to their children’s progress and activities at school. They also feel better connected to their children’s lives at school and are able to support them if needed. The upgrade that was more recently released was particularly well-received as it improved the user experience, offered a more modern interface, and easier communication between the parents and the school. We received very little negative feedback, and staff at school were able to use the app easily without requiring much support. The app’s user-friendly design and comprehensive features have made it an indispensable tool for parents.
In hindsight, what were the most valuable lessons learned while implementing the innovation? Could things have been done differently?
A valuable lesson we learned while implementing the SABIS® Parent App is that technology and innovation are always evolving, and parents expect us to deliver the best product promptly. Continuous feedback and improvement are crucial. Our teams at SABIS® are always working on developing new features and improving the user experience to meet the high expectations of our parent community.
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