Back in late April we published a blog about returning to school at the end of remote teaching and learning period. Little did we know that only a few months later schools across Victoria would be back in lockdown (along with our Melbourne team!)

While it is too early to say whether Victorian students will be returning to the classroom in the near future, Education Minister James Merlino has indicated that Victorian schools are on track for a return to face-to-face teaching in Term 4. Meanwhile, schools in states like New South Wales and Queensland are adjusting to a ‘COVID-normal’ lifestyle, with low case numbers addressed through their contact tracing system.

We know school leaders, teachers and administrators across the country have already put in the hard graft to ensure their schools are COVID-safe environments for students and staff, with a focus on identifying hazards, assessing risks, and putting in place control measures to limit unnecessary foot traffic and human interactions. This blog is designed to give you a few more pointers on how Compass can help you with these processes.

Contact-free payments for school fees

We can hardly believe it, but with Term 4 fast approaching so too is the end of the school year. It’s around this time that many school administrators are beginning to think about their processes for new enrolments and school fee payments. Using Compass it’s possible to make this process entirely contact-free: parents and carers can make payments for school fees for the year directly through the Compass app, which can then be processed straight into your SIS, saving time, increasingly the likelihood of payments being made, and - crucially - reducing footfall in your school from parents making payments!

We recently held a special live webinar focused on going contact-free for school fees and enrolments. If you weren’t able to make it, get in touch to receive a copy of our recording.

Paper-free, instant communication

In a pandemic good communication is key to ensuring the health and safety of your community. Compass allows you to keep staff, students and parents updated using bulk notification methods, including SMS, to ensure everyone is on the same page. In a worst case scenario, this may be quickly informing the community that a contractor, staff member or student has tested positive for COVID-19, but quick, easy and clear communication is also essential for ensuring the rules you have set in place are understood and agreed to by all. It’s better for the environment, too!

Remote parent-teacher conferences

Paired with popular tools such as Microsoft Teams, your school can use our PST Conference module to host a virtual parent-teacher conference. Let parents book into a slot that works for them and then share your virtual conference details directly through Compass. Not only will this result in a COVID-safe conference, parents and teachers will also benefit from avoiding those awkward handshake alternatives.

‍