Today, in many countries, far too much of teaching is taken up by admin work. Now, contract management software won’t remove all of that from teachers, but it can help manage some of it.
Through our exclusive report, we found that 11.4% of respondents who don’t work in customer-focused roles, including teaching, used contract management software. That’s why, here, we’ll take a deep dive into how this kind of software can benefit teachers.
In this article, we’ll cover:
How much admin work can contract management software help teachers reduce?
How can teachers use contract management software?
How can schools benefit from contract management software?
Read more: Why schools are going digital in a post-pandemic world
How much admin work can contract management software help teachers reduce?
Teachers work an average of 54 hours per week, yet less than half of this is spent actually teaching. Admin tasks, like creating and checking permission slips, risk assessments and lesson planning, take up the lion’s share of a teacher’s time. With all of this in mind, it’s not difficult to see why 55% of American teachers feel burnt out.
But before we get into how contract management software can help teachers reduce this burden, let’s first take a look at our numbers. We surveyed hundreds of people at companies across the Nordics (bar Iceland), the Netherlands, France, the UK and the US. Among the respondents, 11.4% worked in roles defined as ‘other’. Among the respondents who identified themselves as ‘other’ were teachers.
Now, to be clear, contract management software can’t help teachers with marking or lesson planning. There is software out there that can help with this, but Oneflow isn’t that platform. But what it can help with is one of the most burdensome parts of a teacher’s job: permission slips.
Every school trip, new course or, in some cases, even certain classes, require permission slips. At the start of each school year, this admin work takes on new levels, with all kinds of slips and forms needing to be sent to parents. Either a teacher has to make sure they’re posted home, or they have to hand them out to their students – and hope they get home.
Contract management software can automate all of this. Instead of relying on a wing and a prayer – and a huge amount of photocopying – teachers can simply create any slip or form they need in their contract management software, then send it out. All you need is an email address. As soon as it’s sent, all guardians will receive an email notification that there’s a slip or form waiting for them to be signed. In turn, teachers will be notified as soon as a guardian has signed. This can help ease the burden for both teachers and school administrators.
How can teachers use contract management software?
In short, teachers and school administrators alike can use contract management software to ease the admin burden that’s part and parcel of working in schools. In fact, at the start of every academic year, schools can spend days working through mountains of paperwork. In many jurisdictions, teachers need to make sure that all slips and forms are signed and returned, adding to the complexity of an already difficult time of year.
Contract management software can, quite literally, save teachers and school administrators alike days. It helps streamline the process, ensure compliance and, as slips and forms are more likely to be returned in a timely manner, can help ensure greater compliance with local regulations governing schools.
All a school has to do is sort the names and email addresses of each guardian into groups based on which class their child is in, and then do a bulk send of all slips and forms. With sometimes as many as a dozen different slips and forms needing to be sent out at the start of the year, this feature can make life a little easier. Of course, features vary from platform to platform, so make sure to check that an individual platform can do bulk sends before signing up.
Read also: Why Oneflow is a contract platform for everyone
How can schools benefit from contract management software?
We’ve already touched on this, but contract management software can ease some of the burden for teachers, especially during more hectic periods, such as the start of the academic year in August or September. Overall, for teachers and schools alike, contract management software has two key benefits: time and money.
Time – The start of the academic year is extremely hectic. Students need to settle in with their new classmates and teacher. Teachers and school administrators need to make sure that all important forms and slips are signed. Guardians need to make sure that they sign these forms – or, more accurately, that they find them in their children’s backpacks. With a bulk send option in place, all of these forms and slips can be sent out in one go, and teachers and school administrators alike can be notified as soon as they’ve been securely signed. Contract management software won’t remove all of the admin burden from schools, but it can certainly help.
Money – Schools often work on tight budgets. If you work at a state school, then you’ll know just how shoestring some budgets can be. Printing, copying and potentially having to send out the same form or slip more than once costs money. Contract management software also costs money. But with the money spent on paper, ink, printing and sorting the slips and forms upon their return, contract management software can make for a strong return on investment.
The key takeaways
Every academic year, teachers and school administrators alike face hectic periods – none more so than the start of the academic year. Permissions slips and forms pile up or need to be handed out again, adding to the already heavy workload in schools.
Contract management software can change this. With bulk sending, you can send all of your forms and slips out to guardians in just a few clicks. If you break your lists down by class, then you can even send out forms relevant to just that one class, for example; for a school trip. Contract management software does cost money, but it can ultimately save schools money, and, crucially, time.
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