How an All-in-One School System Helps K-12 Education

Like an SIS on steroids, an all-in-one school system is the framework for an entire educational operation, freeing time for virtually every person who has a role to play in education from some of the minutia of running a school. Not only does an all-in-one school system enhance the process of educating K-12 students, but it can also save districts money through efficiency, consistency, and having an abundance of robust data in one place.

Benefits of an All-in-One School System

Providing K-12 students with a well-rounded education presents a variety of challenges that run the gamut of individual requirements, from unique health concerns and diverse backgrounds to different learning abilities and speeds. Yet students are put into classrooms, for the most part, based on nothing more than being in the same grade, putting pressure on educators to teach to a disparate group while also meeting district and state curriculum standards.

Lumen™ Touch is committed to providing best-in-class solutions to schools and school districts, making it easier to support teachers, students, families, and communities. Our ongoing mission is to revolutionize K-12 education. Lumen Touch’s Bright SUITE™ is a one-stop-shop for schools, incorporating everything a district needs, from a learning management system to student information systems to health-and-safety monitoring and reporting. An all-in-one school system like Bright SUITE can support the teaching process in the following ways:

Consistency

An all-in-one school system can ensure that students receive a consistent and high-quality education throughout their K-12 journey. Not only can the system track their progress from one grade to another, but it gives a complete picture of the student, including health, behavioral information, and gaps in achievement.

Collaboration

One of the additional benefits teachers can realize with an all-in-one system is improved collaboration. Teachers can share resources, lesson plans, and ideas – not only throughout their own school but with other schools as well.  The system also provides a centralized location for teachers to organize and store course materials, such as lecture notes, assignments, and multimedia resources, making it easier for students to access and review course content from any location.

Personalized Learning

Teachers can leverage the technology and data available in the learning management system to help meet the needs of students through individualized learning. While there is a SPED component to the all-in-one solution, the technology provides teachers with tools to differentiate instruction and personalize learning for all students. Teachers can assign different tasks, provide additional resources, and monitor progress, to provide targeted support for students who need it. It can be used to help students work at their own pace, pursue learning that is meaningful to them on an individual basis, and remain engaged.

Streamlined Communication

An all-in-one school system comes with a communication component that makes communicating with parents, teachers, and students easier. It improves parent engagement and promotes parental involvement in their students’ education. Our parent portal within the system allows for parents to stay current in to the health, nutrition, behavior, and academic performance of their students.  Parents can even schedule conferences with teachers. Communication is also documented for teachers and administrators, so everyone is in the know. This can help to improve student engagement and encourage more thoughtful and reflective responses.

Efficiency

The administrative tasks that divert teachers’ attention away from the actual function of teaching – grading, scheduling, attendance tracking, testing – can all be done through the Instructor Suite. This benefit frees teachers’ time and allows them to focus on teaching and student engagement. The Instructor Suite also allows teachers to create and distribute assignments online, which can be submitted electronically by students. This helps teachers to track students’ progress and provide feedback in a timely manner. It will also show teachers if the student has a 504 or an IEP, any health issues, such as allergies or asthma, and associated accommodations.

Why Lumen Touch

With special modules for special education, a full library, and modules for individual user data dashboards, Bright SUITE is an all-in-one enterprise management solution that allows districts to save money, improve student retention, and create a secure and connected school district. Access to real-time data lets educators make the best decisions for all students. Learn more.

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Meeting Special Needs with Bright SPED

More students than ever before are receiving individual education accommodations through 504s and IEPs. These accommodations are important and necessary, but they can place a tremendous burden on the classroom teacher responsible for implementing and managing the accommodations. How do districts make it easier for educators to deliver the education that students need without overtaxing them? Call Lumen™ Touch.

Equipping Teachers with the Right Tools

Writing goals, reporting student progress, and developing transition plans is often a time-consuming and aggravating process, especially when forced to use archaic evaluation systems. Educators must often focus on filling out forms rather than on accommodating students, putting the emphasis on paperwork completion and reporting compliance rather than on individualized education. It can be dehumanizing for both the teachers and the students.  

Automate the Paperwork

Bright SPED™ by Lumen Touch lifts the burden from educators, as well as others on the special education team, by automating the cumbersome paperwork and reporting processes. Bright SPED is designed to address complexities and changing dynamics in special education planning, development, and reporting. Powered by a data-driven infrastructure that does not rely on forms processing, Bright SPED delivers a comprehensive, timesaving, web-based tool for special education programs that meets federal and state compliance modifications in a timely way.

What Does Bright SPED Mean for Your School?

Bright SPED makes it easier for everyone in the district to provide quality, individualized instruction to students with special needs. IEPs can be reviewed, updated, and printed from the Lumen Touch interface. It’s quick and easy to review accommodations and student goals. It also guides teachers through the entire IEP process, including the time-consuming phase of developing annual goals and building IEPs. The solution is designed to provide support to staff and students as well as simplify communication with parents. Bright SPED also provides the ability to have all documentation (IEP, other special education forms, etc.) fully translated into the parent’s native language.

If meeting special ed mandates has overwhelmed your school and district, let Lumen Touch demonstrate how we can free you to focus on what’s important: educating students and creating the leaders we need for the future.  Email us at sales@lumentouch.com, call us at 816.880.0066, or visit www.lumentouch.com.

EdTech Is the Future of Education

Educational technology – edtech – really came into its own during the pandemic. A concept that was experiencing slow adoption rates and some resistance in classrooms suddenly became an immediate solution when schools were closed, and students were forced into distance learning. The necessity of online education forced districts and teachers to acknowledge the power of edtech in managing curriculum – and it forced communities to find ways to bridge inequities and ensure that every student had internet access. While inequity remains an ongoing challenge, much progress has been made during the past few years.

EdTech Levels the Playing Field for Students

One of the ways in which edtech enriches the educational experience is by giving students access to more information and more opportunities than they would have had otherwise. Not only does edtech open up possibilities for students to individualize their learning and pursue diverse interests, but it also brings the whole world closer to them. It empowers students while fueling their curiosity; learning becomes more fun.

EdTech Provides Districts Solutions for Complex Challenges

Edtech solutions – from health and safety to security to communication – help districts manage their schools more effectively. Do you even remember the days of paper attendance sheets and manual grading systems? What about trying to keep track of student vaccinations and allergies? All-in-one school systems have removed the burden of administration from the districts while providing them with more comprehensive data so that they can make informed decisions about how to best serve students, parents, and their communities.

EdTech Empowers Educators

Edtech empowers educators by freeing them from the daily minutia involved with teaching, so that they can focus on that which motivated them to join the profession in the first place: impacting young minds. With tools that help grade homework, manage student information, and conduct basic testing, as well as provide solutions for SPED and the cumbersome reporting required, teachers can spend less time doing paperwork and more time with students. This allows teachers to devote more time to individualized educational goals for every student without feeling overwhelmed.

EdTech Is the Future

While there are challenges that must be continually addressed – cybersecurity, student data privacy, data management – edtech offers the ability for schools to deliver a better educational experience that is more efficient and more cost-effective. Edtech is the future of learning. It enables districts to be better partners in their communities, improve engagement with parents and guardians, and fuel student motivation by having the ability to offer new and innovative opportunities in learning.

Winter Break – Ideas for Educators to Recharge

Educators are under more pressure than ever with overcrowded classrooms, teacher shortages, and so many more additional responsibilities. By the time winter break rolls around, you might feel as if there’s no time to really catch your breath before the chaos of the second half of the year begins. It’s more important than ever, teachers, to make winter break about focusing on you and about recharging your batteries. How? We’re glad you asked!

Let It Snow and Let It Go

You are good at what you do, but it’s okay to let go of the worry, stress, and concern you feel during the school week and just enjoy the break. Curl up with a good book, enjoy a spa day, putter in the garage, catch a game, bake cookies, go for long walks. And sleep in!

Pleasure before Pedagogy

Instead of reading student papers or the latest pedagogical research, pick up that mystery or horror novel you were reading last summer. Let your mind get completely sucked into a world of fiction. Disconnect. Make some hot cocoa or a cup of tea and get lost.

Coffee and Connect

How long has it been since you and your best friend have grabbed coffee or lunch or spent time together? Don’t let the break go without scheduling a little time to reconnect. During the holidays, people may be in town who you rarely have the chance to see; so, make the most of it.

Skip the Holiday Hustle

Find ways to simplify your holidays so that you have time to enjoy them, too. Don’t spend every moment cleaning and cooking only to be exhausted at the end of the winter break. Enlist help if you’re hosting the holiday meal; don’t be afraid to say ‘no’ to extra requests when you’d rather have the downtime.

Doing Nothing Is an Important Thing to Do

As a teacher, you’re always on the go, with barely enough time for bathroom breaks and a lunch break during the school day. Even though the holiday season can create its own unique style of chaotic pressure, it’s okay – and recommended – to make sure you set aside time in which you don’t have to do anything. Whether it’s sleeping in and spending a day in your pajamas or skipping the long lines at the stores and having stuff delivered, take an actual break.

Winter break is an opportunity for educators to recharge. It’s good for you and good for your students.

Keep Your School from Getting Hooked – Avoid Phishing Scams

Cybersecurity incidents targeting schools and districts have grown exponentially over the last few years and show no signs of stopping. And cyberattacks – especially phishing attacks – on schools have never been higher. Phishing has become one of the most successful types of cyberattacks because it plays on people’s emotions, compelling them to act without thinking.

Cyberattacks Cost Schools Time and Money

Every school district is feeling pressured to improve protection of student data, to train employees and staff to recognize threats, and to prevent cyberattacks before they happen. The cost to districts in terms of time and money is significant. Yet, the cost of inaction is even more so: Schools may be closed for days or weeks; regaining access to data may cost thousands of dollars or more in ransom, and the risk exists that personal data of students and teachers may still be leaked on the dark web. These threats are not something to be taken lightly.

Take Action Now and Protect Your School’s Data

Hackers don’t take a break over the holidays, even though schools do. In fact, cyber criminals typically step up their efforts when they think people are distracted and paying little attention to the insidious methods used to access school networks. Here are some steps you should take to be more cybersecure as you learn more about protecting student data.

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Hackers achieve the most success when all they have to do is crack a password. Let’s face it: We all reuse passwords, use passwords that are easy to break, and store passwords in our browsers. But if having a password isn’t enough to allow hackers network access because they still need a six-digit code that was sent to a phone, or a code from an authenticator app that has to be accessed from a separate device, then they are stopped in their tracks. Requiring MFA can nearly eliminate the risk of successful phishing attempts.

Employee Training

The single most important effort you can make to protect student data is to provide your staff with ongoing training. The more your staff know about recognizing phishing emails, and the more they are empowered to take action – or not –in response to an email request (whether it’s clicking on a link or providing secure data), the more they can become a frontline defense against phishing.

Let Lumen™ Touch Help Secure Your School

In order to know where you need to make improvements to your cybersecurity strategy, you need to know where your weaknesses are. That’s why Lumen Touch is offering a security audit service for schools: Bright LITE™. 

Our customized service offering provides individuals and organizations with the information and education necessary to efficiently evaluate both the risks and opportunities they face. Email sales@lumentouch.com to schedule your audit. 

How to Solve the Data Management Problem in Your District

Managing student and district data can be extremely time consuming and complex. It is a challenge for most school districts, regardless of size. In addition to security concerns, managing servers and integrating student data from multiple applications can be a huge burden to small district IT teams. When you pile compliance and reporting requirements on top of that, the commitment can be more than a district can manage.

If your district IT department is overwhelmed with basic day-to-day data management, hindering their ability to focus on creating a modern digital community that would benefit your entire district, it might be time to consider a different way forward.

All-in-One School Systems Manage Data More Efficiently

An all-in-one enterprise management system not only saves money but also helps create a connected and secure school district. Teachers and administrators gain access to real-time data, which allows them to make better decisions in support of their students. Communications are secure and allow for improved engagement with students and parents. With improved resource efficiency, schools can spend less time focusing on data management and reporting and are able to focus instead on delivering the best learning opportunities. Districts are able to save money while meeting the increased need for administrative tracking, performance analysis, and detailed local and state reporting requirements.

All-in-One School Systems Ensure Safe Rostering of Student Data

One of the biggest data management challenges that districts face is the risk involved in sharing roster data with edtech vendors. Protecting personally identifiable information (PII) is not just the ethical thing to do; in many cases, such safeguards are legislated by federal and state governments. Schools must remain in compliance with student privacy laws and ensure that the vendors with whom they share data are also using strenuous measures to protect that information. By employing an all-in-one school management system, rostering student data can be governed using a centralized, secure process that governs how schools share PII.

Lumen™ Touch Bright SUITE™ All-in-One System Is More than Just Software

Lumen Touch offers to districts an all-in-one solution that is more than just programming and software. Bright SUITE also offers a dedicated partnership with Lumen Touch experts who are part of ensuring your school’s success. Don’t take it from us; hear from one of our Midwestern school district clients:

Not many companies can boast about having a single-platform solution like Lumen Touch that responds to the customer and market demands, that decreases the cost of a comprehensive digital platform in a time of financial crisis and provides the security in a world of cyber insecurity.

– Director of Technology

To learn more about how Lumen Touch empowers the future of learning, get in touch. Email us at mailto:sales@lumentouch.com, call us at 816.880.0066, or visit www.lumentouch.com.

The Opportunity in Education

The recent COVID-related learning-loss numbers are being lamented across the country, becoming yet another weight on the shoulders of teachers who are often working in less-than-ideal circumstances as staffing shortages continue to mount. While learning gaps in math and reading are something to be addressed, the opportunity to change our approach and revolutionize learning in education has never been closer to reality. So where do we go from here, and how do we leverage this opportunity to transform education in a way that benefits students, teachers, and districts?

Stop Measuring Against What “Should” Be

We’re all for establishing benchmarks and using data to obtain the insights necessary to personalize education for each student. However, holding students to a standard based on previous test scores or outdated benchmarks isn’t fair to students or teachers. Instead, we must strive to meet the students where they are and move them forward.

From early on in a students’ education, we focus on measuring failure. Spelling and math tests are administered so that we can mark what they get wrong. Standardized tests focus on how far beneath the average they are. We then assume that wherever students are measured at that moment academically is where they will remain. This places an undue burden on students and teachers to always approach education as if it is remedial. Instead, we should focus on student successes and strengths, on each student’s interests, and on finding ways to improve motivation, engagement, and subject matter expertise by teaching to their passions.

Employ the Right EdTech to Help Improve Skills Quickly

Not every student is going to be in the same place academically – and that’s probably the greatest challenge for teachers. How do you teach to a classroom full of students who have all made different levels of progress in the previous two years while mostly schooling from home? Instead of adding that kind of stress to educators, let edtech play a role in individualizing the education of each student. Encourage students to work on personalized tracks, measuring their individual progress against their own starting point. This will free teachers to spend more one-on-one time with students who need additional instruction and support without holding back those who are ready for more.

Recognize the Opportunity Rather than the Adversity of the Moment

We are being presented with an opportunity to revolutionize education – to move away from standardized testing and toward individualized learning; to move away from grade level placements and toward individual education goals; to move away from changing classes and teachers every year to assigning students to the same education team across multiple years. The education system was completely disrupted by the pandemic, but why would we want to return to a system that was already outdated and underperforming?

Redesign the Curriculum – Eliminate Standardized Tests

We are doing our students a complete disservice by clinging to the old way of doing things, simply because we’ve always done it that way. We’re not preparing them to get a job in the workplace. The future of learning should look and feel radically different. Placing the priority on learning instead of on meeting standardized test score benchmarks is only the first step in recognizing that standardized testing does not test students for the functional education that they need to succeed in society.

Preparing Students for the Future

Our education system literally has not been updated in over a century, so the changes that have happened in the last two years out of necessity are ones we should sustain. A well-educated society is the backbone of an economically strong, socially engaged country – but today’s students need more than just great math and reading scores on standardized tests. They need to be prepared for a future that is inimitably more progressive than the one that any generation before them has experienced.

The future of learning should be individualized. Assessments should not be used to penalize students but rather to help encourage and customize learning. And what students learn should be modernized and revolutionized so that the students moving through the education system today are prepared to live, work, and engage in the society of tomorrow. Learn more about how Lumen™ Touch is contributing to the future of learning.

Don’t Be Scared to Embrace the Future of Learning

The spooky season might have left us all feeling a little frightened, but when it comes to preparing students for the future workforce, we can’t be scared to embrace the future of learning. The future of learning is not going to be anything like our current schools. The future of learning is exciting, innovative, active, and continually evolving. Here’s what we’re excited about:

More Individualized Learning

Right now, a student must be on an IEP or a 504 to be guaranteed individualized learning. Educational accommodations are often too labor-intensive, and if they are not required, they are typically not provided. However, technology is making it easier for educators to deliver the basic curriculum using digital content, edtech solutions, and automated grading and testing. This leaves time for teachers to engage more personally with each individual student, fostering their interests and allowing a more individualized experience across the board for all students.

Smarter Classrooms, Smarter Tech

We need to move away from education that is based on 100-year-old ideas. As we learn more about how technology can be used to enhance education and prepare students for the future workforce, we’ll see refinements in the way it is incorporated in the classroom. There will be more hands-on education – think robotics, programming, AI and VR – as well as better means of understanding and assessing which tools are actually impacting overall student achievement. Data will be the key to understanding what’s next, but technology will give us the information we need in a clear and easy-to-understand dashboard.

A New Generation of Digital-Savvy Educators

New graduates entering the teaching profession are digital natives who have spent their entire lives using technology. They will bring unique perspectives about how to teach the students of the future and provide insights on what those students will need to become more engaged. These digital-savvy educators will help revolutionize the classroom – if they are given the opportunity and freedom to lead us all into the future we need. Experienced teachers who are given the opportunity to improve their tech skills will bring the best of both worlds – in-depth pedagogical experience and modern tech savviness.

Buy-In from the Top

Administrators will begin to see the numbers and make connections between the programs they provide in the K-12 setting and the increased graduation rates, increased college attendance rates, and higher wages. It will create enthusiasm and excitement for the potential that every student has and how the K-12 school’s role will become integral in their lifetime success.

The future of education is bright, and Lumen™ Touch is excited to be a part of the education evolution with you. To learn more about how Lumen Touch empowers the future of learning, get in touch. Email us at sales@lumentouch.com, call us at 816.880.0066, or visit www.lumentouch.com.

Looking Forward: Top Challenges for School Administrators

As we approach the end of another year, the top challenges for school administrators remain largely unchanged. While challenges related to the pandemic are subsiding, other challenges as a result of the pandemic, namely extreme teacher shortages, continue to be a growing problem. Protecting student data and enacting the right policies and procedures to address student data privacy are also a huge challenge for school administrators, as well as IT leaders. And finding ways to evolve school curriculums to reflect the changing demands of the workforce requires innovative and creative approaches.

Addressing Teacher Shortages

Addressing teacher shortages is one of the top challenges administrators will face in the next few years. The two-pronged approach required to address this issue – increasing retention and attracting new teachers – is only partially in the control of the administration. Right now, there are fewer students choosing to go into the teaching profession, so there are systemic issues that can only be addressed through community and congressional action that ensure higher teacher pay and improved teacher support systems. At the district level, however, administrators can retain and attract educators by offering four things:

1. A seat at the table when decisions are being made about curriculum
2. A pathway to career development
3. Support in and out of the classroom
4. Tools that make managing education easier

Protecting Student Data

Data security in schools will be an ongoing discussion. Cyber criminals continue to find new ways to attack critical infrastructures; schools and other organizations must continue to find ways to thwart them. But there are specific actions schools can take to better protect their data:

1. Enact policies that require every person who works in or with your school to complete regular and ongoing cybersecurity training.
2. Insist on multi-factor authentication to access your network.
3. Employ the use of an all-in-one school system.

Evolving School Curriculums

CTE programs can be a great way to instill the technical knowledge K-12 students will need. But the future of education is not just about technology; it’s also about teaching the soft skills that students will need to navigate the future workforce. There are several edtech solutions that can help in that regard.

Being a school administrator demands a lot of responsibility, and these upcoming and ongoing challenges for administrators will require the partnership of vendors, the community, the government, parents, and students. Lumen Touch is here to help. Our goal is to connect every student to opportunity.

To learn more about how Lumen™ Touch empowers the future of learning, get in touch. Email us at sales@lumentouch.com, call us at 816.880.0066, or visit www.lumentouch.com.

What to Look for in an All-in-One School System

An all-in-one school system is the framework for an entire educational operation, freeing every person who has a role to play in education from some of the minutia of running a school. Here are the key factors to consider when selecting an all-in-one school system.

Benefits of an All-in-One School System

At its very highest level, a comprehensive all-in-one school system makes decision-making easier, by providing real-time data about everything from the edtech solutions that students are using to how many students require vaccinations before the next school year.

For Districts

Your choice of an all-in-one system should provide your district with the ability to easily plug in and organize data, using next-generation data analysis, reporting, and dashboard solutions that help districts make informed decisions. Look for a system that offers the ability to integrate real-time data, reporting, compliance, and tracking in a safe and secure environment.

For School Boards

Your all-in-one system should enhance productivity and be cost-effective. School board members should have their own portal through which they can access meeting minutes and other relevant information to accomplish their duties.

For Principals

Your all-in-one system should allow you to track your students from pre-K through high school and beyond. The advantages of this approach include tremendous cost- and time-saving efficiencies and the ability to accelerate the learning trajectory and wellbeing of each student in a just-in-time manner.

For Administrators

The all-in-one system you select should include a comprehensive communications tool to procure and disseminate all kinds of content, as a means of managing communication and learning for all stakeholders. Look for features that include:

• Prohibited manual uploading of data by external systems
• Curtailing of undo processing and manual entry by staff
• Scheduling of daily student absence notifications, student assignments, progress reports, etc. that may be automatically sent for any school and grade level
• Automatic tracking of all attempted and successful communications made to parents and guardians
• District and school notifications, such as inclement weather reports, cancelled activities, etc.

For Health and Safety Staff

Your all-in-one system should provide you with an efficient student medical record management system that makes available immediate and historical information. All areas of student medical record keeping will be accessible from one screen, including a comprehensive student medical summary to review or print. Look for systems that allow you to record emergency contact information, manage immunizations, handle reporting requirements, and enable Medicaid billing.

For School IT Leaders

Security and compliance are key factors to consider when evaluating an all-in-one system for your school. The system should offer built-in full HIPAA and FERPA compliance, SSL certificates, inherent record locking features, and interoperability. The system should ensure compliance and maintenance of data integrity with little administrative oversight, secure remote access through portals, remote updates from original data sources, large file and directory processing capability, and secure disk storage.

For Teachers

Any all-in-one system your district chooses should be designed to support teachers in their efforts to not only meet standards but also give them the freedom to better engage with their students. Look for an integrated learning solution that focuses on student achievement and teacher peace of mind when it comes to standards-based grading and alignment with Common Core State Standards. This solution should provide an integrated grade book and lesson planner that enables teachers to perform all tasks and access all dashboard information from a single location, including letter grades and student mastery.

Your all-in-one system should also include integrated support for SPED – a comprehensive, federally and state compliant, special education system that manages the complexities and changing dynamics of special education reporting and supports both IEP and 504 management.

For Students

The all-in-one system should empower students to take control of their own education trajectory, allowing them to collaborate with mentors, teachers, and school counselors, as they journey toward college and career success. Students may build a profile that captures accomplishments and follows them throughout their school career.

For Parents

The all-in-one system should make managing a child’s education easy for parents, from facilitating a wide range of communications to paying fees and buying lunches online with ease and security. Information about their students, including report cards and progress reports, school communications, and schedule updates should be readily accessible.

Supporting Education from Every Angle

An all-in-one system provides relevant insight and data about students, to better support their education, health, and safety. A day in the life of a student is managed through the system: The student may be in the cafeteria line and the kitchen staff are immediately alerted to a food allergy when the student buys lunch; the student may be completing an assignment at home on a device of any kind at any time and the assignment becomes immediately available to the teacher; the student may be in the library and the teacher, parent, and mentor are aware that the student has checked a book out; the student may be with a counselor or school nurse and immunizations and transcripts are readily available.

Every stakeholder throughout the school district has access to a portal, and all information is secure and confidential with distributions by permission only. Reports and score cards are available at your fingertips and all students, including those with special education requirements, are catered to in one system.

To learn more about how Bright SUITE, Lumen Touch’s all-in-one system, achieves all of this and more, please get in touch.