data_guy

How does it work? I've tried to speak to someone about it but they didn't get what I was after.

We roll our timetable up early each year, usually for the last couple of weeks of the summer term. In the past, for example, using NT6 we labelled Y10 as J11 (July Year 11) and left them as Y10 as the the taught year. Does anyone roll up early using BROMCOM and how do you do it? Do you use J codes like we did in SIMS or just upload the new timetable on top of the old?

Are the iPads being managed centrally or are they stand alone albeit connecting to the wifi?

I have done the same today. We are coming to the end of our external exams so I will have a short spell in which to prepare for August. Getting a jump on it would be great.

I think it may be time to look at NT6. NT4 has not been supported for many years. The functionality of T6 is much better. For a seasoned T4 user the change doesn't take that long.

Used it without issue. Usual precautions apply.

Sorry to pull this thread back up but there have been a few schools represented in my local IT support group that have been contacted/had a hard sell from DataSec Education. A couple of them had looked into the company and the other companies that had the same owner/director. https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/officers/4qBGTtfoXr2u2nWO_BwiLev7Ppk/appointments https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/officers/il91Tn3kPYhhGhtYPfsvD3nno7U/appointments

Just to add you are looking at £5 - £6k per year for the DataSec product.

4matrix and SISRA are two good choices. We went with SISRA but I really liked the 4 matrix interface. We did have Dataset for three years. We don't have it now and started to run SISRA before the Dataset contracted ended. If thinking about it I would consider very carefully.

SISRA would be my choice (in fact it is) and invest some time in training HODs to get a hold of the stuff they need. This along with software will save you lots of time (and stress). Over 1500 schools use SISRA, and I have heard great things about 4Matrix but have never used it myself. I would avoid some of the smaller players, and always check for customer testimonials.

That cable routing plays havoc with my OCD.

What about timetabling, student details etc? Will you still require this type of system? You could probably use a variety of stand alone systems to fulfil your requirements but it will not be integrated. My school is part of a MAT. SIMS is used for everything bar finance and HR. That is done at trust level, but we still need the MIS for the day to day stuff.

I think that is correct. I'll have a check on Monday when back infront of sims.

Emerge works well. The latest updates have improved the system. We had issues with iPads freezing if they dipped in between wifi access points and dropped signal for a time. This seems to be resolved.

From the sales pitch it looks great and seems to cover all of the basis, there is some series gaps. As you get further into to it and wish to create more detailed reports it gets exponentially more complex. If you are really good data manager with plenty of time it is OK to use. However the amount of time needed to invest in the product is far too high and the training not sufficient to give you the start you need. Beyond creating the kind of reports you can do in assessment manager anyway it isn't very logical at all. It feels as though its been built by someone who hasn't worked in school and that each time there has been an"improvement" or "upgrade" it is a bolt on. If you have the skills the handle this software fully then you have the skills to develop your own system within the MIS itself or in a spreadsheet. If you don't you could always spend a fraction of the cost of the software £5-6k pa on getting someone in from MIST or Capita for example to build the reports that you need. The other concern I had is that the software taps in to the MIS database direct. I'm not sure if my schools sims licence would be valid. It's not something I have pushed with Capita as I didn't want to create a costly issue at our end. Suffice to say I am now using SISRA which gives me the data I need when I need it. For just over £1k it is well worth it.