Professional Documents
Culture Documents
2) Module A1 School Records Management
2) Module A1 School Records Management
2) Module A1 School Records Management
2.1
4.
5.
archived; or
disposed of.
7.
8.
Archiving storing inactive records so they can be later retrieved for use.
Disposal discarding, deleting or destroying a record.
In a school, the SRMS has to involve various school staff to systematically record
data and information about different aspects of the schools operations. They use
specific, pre-designed school record forms and follow procedures that are
defined by school regulations and requirements. Different staff can be
responsible for different school records and procedures in recording, storing,
updating and retrieving information. At the end of each school year, the records that
have been accumulated are appraised to determine which records should be
retained, archived or disposed of.
A good SRMS is characterized by organized classification and filing of the
school records in a way that makes it easy to search, access, retrieve and use
the recorded data and information. Records about the same topic or issue are
grouped and arranged in a logical order, such as by alphabetical order, chronological
order, or sorted by other criteria. For example, individual student records can be
classified and filed by grade, class or subject. Teacher records can be sorted
according to years of service, and school facilities by type of facilities, etc.
If the information is recorded on paper, each file will group together all relevant
supporting documents such as detailed inventories, receipts, invoices, payment
records, copies of important correspondence and other related documents. If the
records are computerized, such paper evidences can be scanned and stored in
electronic format.
Computers can help to manage school records by storing information in a way that
allows for rapid sorting, searching and retrieval of data. Besides reducing the use
and handling of papers, an additional advantage of a computerized system is that it
can help to analyse the recorded data and quickly generate various summary
statistics, performance indicators, tables and graphs, and even detailed school
management information such as lists of students and teachers who were absent on
a specific day, or list of equipments needing repair, etc. Computers can also be used
to archive inactive school records in electronic form such as on CD-ROMs, DVDs or
other media, for efficient storage and retrieval.
Each of the record management functions (items 1 to 8 above) has a direct influence
on the availability of information and their use for school management. Since various
people in a school generate and use information, poor recording of key school
management information and poorly managed school records can seriously affect
the efficiency and effectiveness of a school. To systematically manage school
records, each person must assume their respective roles in creating and updating
school records using correct records forms, terminology and practices, and submit
the record files to the designated place of storage on time (see Section 4 for further
details).
Activity 1: Ask school managers in your local area, district, province, or
country about their practices in school records management, and then answer
the following questions:For school managers and staff:
1.
Does your school keep records of what is happening in school?
2.
What kinds of records are kept in your school?
3.
Who creates and updates which kind of records in your school? How well are
they doing their SRMS tasks? What problems do they face? Do they feel they
have adequate support from the school in terms of clear instructions, standards,
forms and equipment to handle their SRMS tasks properly?
4.
How do record-keeping practices in your school compare with the SRMS
functions described in this section?
5.