Improving systems for remedial school in South Africa : A closer look into eduexcellence

Abstract

A Student Management Information System (SMIS) can enhance organizational operations by consolidating and organizing all aspects of a school in one hub to enable efficient allocation of resources which will lead to more effective management decisions and lead to continuous organizational improvement. This project report addresses an in-depth study and analysis regarding an industrial engineering approach to developing an improved solution for a remedial school in South Africa. The aim of this report is to explore and investigate the challenges and best practices associated with managing and improving efficiency and quality of the systems within the remedial education industry. The study investigates the need, benefit and challenges of an SMIS, current trends in industry, metrics and standard operating procedures. In addition, several industrial engineering mechanisms will be explored in order to select the best techniques and tools required to achieve an improved design. Thereafter the problem or the as-is state is analysed using the appropriate techniques to obtain the requirements of the organization, which enables the foundation of the logical design. The logical design includes drawing up a complete set of requirements comprising of both functional and non-functional requirements. These requirements are then modelled using several data modelling techniques. The design also includes the development of metrics according to the Balanced Scorecard Framework that will be used as performance indicators in the form of dashboards in the SMIS. Various alternatives were evaluated to allow for a comprehensive set of possible solutions. A feasibility analysis and various criteria concluded the infeasibility of developing the system due to cost and time constraints and thus a custom modified COTS (Commercial Off-The-Shelf) software package was the undisputed alternative. Even though a COTS software is not enterprise specific, this was selected with the intention of adding extra modules to meet all requirements. Three COTS software were evaluated against each other using several methods and criteria. Trial versions of the alternatives were tested with the required users and then surveyed to attain user input and opinions A thorough evaluation on the various alternatives using both technical and financial criteria allowed for the selection of the best candidate, which was then verified and validated against the system specification. Finally, a brief implementation checklist and schedule was drawn up in order to assist the implementation process to be a smooth transition from the old system to the new system. The report concludes with a summary of the findings.