What is a Learner Information System?

Introduction

How do you improve students’s academic performance and ensure their overall development? That’s quite a significant question that demands much thought and deliberation by teachers and institutes. The answer lies in strategic approaches that meet their learning needs and track their continuous progress.

Relying on outdated and paper-based mechanisms makes it challenging for educators and institutes to drive student success. In contrast, incorporating modern solutions, such as a learner information system, helps organize student data to improve learning and teaching practices.

But what makes a learner information system useful, and how does it impact students’s comprehensive development? Let us find out:

What is a learner information system?

A learner information system is a digitalized solution that enables institutes to collect, manage, and track all student-related information conveniently. Consequently, you don’t need to sort through files and folders to find specific data, thereby saving time and effort.

Therefore, it is hardly surprising that higher educational institutes in the Philippines have been adopting such software. You must have noticed the increasing pattern of technological integration in the country’s education sector. But what difference does that make?

When most institutes have a team of professionals to handle core tasks, what is the use of the tool? Learner information systems streamline administrative activities, minimize paperwork, and save time and effort. Hence, it is only fitting to take a look at its primary features.

Primary Features of the Learner Information System

1. Organized Administrative Procedures

Filipinos applying for skill-based education through technical or vocational courses in institutes expect a smooth pre- and post-application process. However, imagine the disappointment when they encounter procedural lags due to misplaced or disorganized documents.

That is where LIS can be instrumental in organizing the end-to-end process of admission, examination, etc. in the following ways:

• The system stores all data in a centralized location, eliminating the need to maintain manual records.
• It automates routine tasks such as admission, registration, and grading, which saves time and effort.
• The centralization of student or institutional information makes it easy for administrators and staff to share it with stakeholders.
• It ensures data accuracy and consistency across various institutional departments, enabling them to make timely decisions.

2. Enhanced Communication

Have you ever missed an assignment deadline or found out about an upcoming test only a few days before? Many students have encountered such issues due to ineffective communication methods, especially when they fail to attend classes.

Institute administrators can use the software to post regular updates about upcoming events, and teachers can share assignments, schedules, etc. Consequently, students will remain up-to-date with academic and other crucial information.

Likewise, students and parents can use their dedicated portals to check grades, attendance records, etc. Also, the built-in messaging feature facilitates direct communication between students, teachers, and parents.

Hence, teachers can send reports regarding their children’s academic activities, disciplinary actions, and progress. Likewise, parents can connect with the teachers and discuss matters pertaining to their children’s overall conduct.

3. Personalized Learning

The Philippine education system has come a long way in terms of transforming its educational approaches and producing a large number of qualified graduates. However, the knowledge and skill gap is a prevalent issue, hindering their career.

Although curriculum reform and noteworthy initiatives of the Department of Education (DepEd) have made a difference, institutes must employ strategic teaching methods. That is where the integration of Learner Information System and Learning Management Systems can be immensely beneficial, helping to employ personalized learning in the following ways:

• Use the data analytics tool within the LIS software to identify trends, patterns, and individual student requirements.
• Gather insights from student performance data and learning styles to create adaptive learning pathways.
• Develop personalized learning paths by adjusting the content and assessment difficulty level, helping students to learn at their own pace.

4. Data-driven decision-making

Despite all institutes aiming for success, why do some achieve remarkable feats while others struggle? It is one of the most relevant questions, especially because it leads to determining shortcomings and problem areas.

In fact, the institutes can leverage the software to evaluate various aspects of institutional function. For example, they can use data analytics to measure the effectiveness of their action plans in achieving their goals and objectives.

Similarly, they can use predictive analytics to figure out future trends in student admission, academic performance, and learning needs. Teachers can use student performance and attendance data to identify at-risk students. Therefore, institutes and faculty can take corrective measures and make data-driven decisions to make appropriate improvements.

5. Improves resource optimization

‘’What one institute might be lacking, another might not be''—this is something that colleges and universities should be well aware of. Besides, identifying institutional issues and requirements is key to allocating resources properly.

What’s more, is that they can use the software to improve resource optimization in the following ways:

• Use predictive analytics to identify potential shortages in various areas, like facilities, staffing, lab equipment, etc.
• Use analytical data to identify the institute that must prioritize resource allocation to meet student learning requirements.
• Refer to attendance and admission data to ensure that classrooms follow a well-planned batch structure, helping to avoid overcrowding or underutilization.
• Use class schedules, student attendance, and facility usage data to optimize the classrooms, labs, and other facilities’ utilization.

6. Data security and privacy

Digitalization provides multiple benefits, including simplifying administrative tasks, which reduces manual overload and saves time and effort. Also, it helps to collect, store, and maintain institutional information effectively.

However, whether or not it is safe to save data online has been a concerning matter and topic of discussion, especially due to cyber threats. Fortunately, LIS, also known as SIS, comes with modern security measures such as:

• Data Encryption: It transforms readable data into cypher text, making it unreadable.
• Role-Based Access: It provides access to authorized personnel of the institute based on their roles and responsibilities.
• Regular Backups: The system runs a regular data backup, ensuring that institutes can restore information in case of data loss or corruption.
• Disaster Recovery Plans: These outline systematic methods to recover data and systems in the event of catastrophic events.

7. Scalability

Nothing is more frustrating than the system freezing in the middle of some important work while you are trying to complete it within time. Have you faced such issues? It is quite a common problem when institutes use outdated systems with low scalability.

In contrast, high scalability is central to SIS software, allowing it to grow with the institute’s evolving needs and providing the following benefits:

• It handles excessive data due to increased student enrollment, helping to reduce workload and improve the admission process.
• It ensures that the system adapts to future developments in educational needs, regulations, and technologies.
• It provides customizability, which helps with the particular requirements of institutes.