Great thread. Hope you aren't forgetting SAFSMS though. SAFSMS is currently being used by over 500+ schools to manage several processes. It's the leading solution in Nigeria and also very affordable. SAFSMS also offers a referreal program so you earn money by introducing new schools.

The system manages several processes like:

1. reporting,
2. assessments,
3. communication with parents
4. timetables
5. school fees billing
6. and lots more]

It helps school admin cut costs on many areas and also aids parents involvement with a simple parent platform with login access

It also comes with a mobile app for teachers to input scores and do a lot more on their phone.

You can login and try a demo on the website: www.safsms.com/demo-form

Check out the leading school management software in Nigeria right now - SAFSMS. SAFSMS is being used by over 500+ schools to manage several processes like:

1. reporting,
2. assessments,
3. communication with parents
4. timetables
5. school fees billing
6. and lots more]

It helps school admin cut costs on many areas and also aids parents involvement with a simple parent platform with login access

It also comes with a mobile app for teachers to input scores and do a lot more on their phone.

You can login and try a demo on the website: www.safsms.com/demo-form

Great thread. Y'all should also check out the leading school management software in Nigeria right now - SAFSMS. SAFSMS is being used by over 500+ schools to manage several processes like:

1. reporting,
2. assessments,
3. communication with parents
4. timetables
5. school fees billing
6. and lots more]

It helps school admin cut costs on many areas and also aids parents involvement with a simple parent platform with login access

It also comes with a mobile app for teachers to input scores and do a lot more on their phone.

You can login and try a demo on the website: www.safsms.com/demo-form

You're forgetting the leading school management software in Nigeria right now - SAFSMS. SAFSMS is being used by over 500+ schools to manage several processes like:

1. reporting,
2. assessments,
3. communication with parents
4. timetables
5. school fees billing
6. and lots more]

It helps school admin cut costs on many areas and also aids parents involvement with a simple parent platform with login access

It also comes with a mobile app for teachers to input scores and do a lot more on their phone.

You can login and try a demo on the website: www.safsms.com/demo-form

After a long and quite interesting school year, we tend to look forward to the holidays as an avenue to rest, catch up on some sleep and just have fun. These are all great, but then how many times have we seen holidays drag by before our very eyes, then in the last few days we’re left wondering where the long holiday went?

To truly make the most of your time, you’ve got to plan for it. There are so many things you could be doing over the long vacation. Here are just a few ideas:

1. Learn a New Skill
You’ve spent so much time with your books, this is the perfect time to gather skills that can put you a step ahead of your peers. You can look for holiday programmes that teach the skill you’ve been hoping to learn - whether it’s swimming, driving or cooking! You can even find books on the subject and teach yourself. Google is your best friend; and even if you don’t have the necessary tools, it would tell you how and probably where to get them.

2. Get-Together with old friends
Plan a couple of get-togethers to catch up. Some productive ideas include a library meet; where you get to choose a book and review, a game; scrabble, chess, world play, anything that is beneficial and would keep your brain cells alive and active.

3. Join a Club/Group
“An idle mind is the devil’s workshop’’ they say. So if the devil gets busy in your mind, then what’s your excuse? You need to find something that keeps you busy and what better way to do that than finding a group of people with similar interests as you? You can search on the internet or in your community for meet ups such as Book clubs, tech clubs, study groups, sports clubs, hiking groups etc around you and use them to keep yourself busy. Give yourselves projects - e.g for a book club, you can all agree to read a particular book for the week and discuss it in the next meet up.

And, hey, if you can’t find a group you like, maybe you can form one yourself!

4. Get a part time job
You’re never  too young to start learning what it’s like to get some experience. At this point, the stipend shouldn’t be your focus, instead think about the wealth of knowledge you can harvest. You get to see the practical aspect of what you’ve been learning within the four walls of your classroom. You also learn how to interact with others on a professional level, how to set goals, targets and all the little steps needed to achieve them.  The experience might be overwhelming at first but in few days you would begin to grasp the activities and play the role you’ve been assigned to with grace and poise.

5. Volunteer
If you’d rather not be in an office setting, you can also put your already existing skills (or passion to work) by volunteering for something you’re good at. Is there something you have passion for, that you can sacrifice your time, energy and perhaps money (if you have some)? A lot of organizations are in search of volunteers who are willing to go the extra mile. Whatever group you end up volunteering for, make sure you give at least a 100% more than you would a paid job. The experience gathered would help prepare you for the future. Know that some of these organizations are quite flexible and if the workload isn’t too much, you can combine with school or return to them during the next holiday, which is very different from a paid job.

6. Continue reading here: https://safsms.com/blog/tips-productive-holiday/

What Makes a Good Curriculum?

The educational system, and schools in particular have a responsibility to children and the society at large to prepare future ready learners for the world.

This is why a standards based curriculum is very important – All good curricula[font=Lucida Sans Unicode][/font] are based on certain requirements and standards usually outlined by a controlling body. So what are the characteristics of a good curriculum? Let’s quickly take a look:
10 characteristics of a good curriculum

1.)Stand.org puts it best: At the heart of a high quality curriculum is the premise that all students are able to learn and are capable of being successful. In effect, a standard curriculum is built on high expectations and should be rigorous to undertake.
2.) Because the curriculum prepares learners for life in the society, a curriculum obviously should be dynamic and evolve regularly to meet the needs of learners as well as the society. –
3.)A curriculum should gradually build the learning experience. This means that it should allow for continuity of experiences as the learner progresses and grows.
4.)Every curriculum should meet the needs of individual learners – whether it’s for private or public schools, every student’s needs should be considered while choosing a curriculum.
5.)Because it caters to a wide variety of people, a good curriculum should be developed democratically. This means educators representing all grade levels and disciplines should be included in order to achieve cohesiveness that targets the success of every child.
6.)Every aspect of the curriculum should have a clear objective or end goal to achieve.
7.) A good curriculum is not rigid- it allows room for flexibility, monitoring and evaluation by administration.
8.)It should provide sufficient scope for the cultivation of unique skills, interest, attitudes and appreciations.
9.)It should be psychologically sound. It should take into account the theories of learning relevant to the fields of study. As such, a broad range of possible learning styles must also be considered.
10.)Lastly, a Curriculum should be responsible for personality development of the learners.

What other trait do you think must be required in a good curriculum?
Courtesy of [https://safsms.com/blog/makes-good-curriculum/]safsms blog

Study groups can be simply formed by a few peers who study and gather together to revise and report their findings. It is usually an effective way to study as members get to share points that may have been missed out by others during a lesson or even explain confusing topics to each other. Also, remembering what you learned with your study group is easy as your memory may take you back to keywords you kept repeating during your session.

How do you set up an efficient study group?

Here are some tips to help get you started.

Who

the most effective study group comprises of students with common goals. Find your peers who are most motivated as you and committed to succeeding as friends aren’t always the perfect fit. The best type of people to include in your study group are those who are always alert, take notes, and ask questions.


How many


it is recommended to keep your study group to about 3-6 people. The study group shouldn’t be a teaching session, rather a small space for peers to share knowledge. With more people, organization can be an issue and fewer people tend to contribute.


How long


a session of about 2-3 hours at a time is just enough to be productive without being distracted. Longer hours encourages socializations and many unnecessary breaks and in shorter time, studying may be rushed and unproductive.


Where



friends can study in open spaces where they can communicate freely without being distracted


When


Setting your study group sessions the same time and location, weekly/biweekly will allow for members to fit it into their schedule and give time to prepare beforehand.


What makes Study groups successful?

-Work with people who are motivated and committed to achieving your common set goals for success.
-Set clear objectives for what you hope to achieve with every study sessions to help keep you productive.
-Make sure to be prepared before a study session. Members should complete any assignments, reading and lecture notes. Members can also use technology and present questions to ask before hand to add value to the study session.
-Stick to set rules and guidelines to help keep study sessions organized.
-Communicate freely in order to get the most out of the session. For instance, you can ask for a theory to be explained again and/or by another member if you still don’t understand it.

Study groups are meant to be a bonus to your class sessions. Peers get to improve their notes by sharing with one another and cover more lesson material since different members can be assigned to reading and explaining a topic. By doing this, members can support and benefit from the knowledge of one another creating a strong support system.

Are you preparing for Jamb? Why not include timed sessions on www.distinction.ng with friends as part of your study group?

Read more posts on www.safsms.com/blog

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination has become feared amongst the many students seeking admission into universities in Nigeria. In years past, the stress and anxiety that follows the exam writing combined with poor preparation has led many to sub par results.

With Jamb exams, preparation is key. We all know majority of students prepare, but How do they stop making the same mistakes and ensure success in their exams?

Here are 3 top preparation tips gotten from [http://blogs.flexisaf.com/preparing-for-jamb/]flexisaf blog[http://blogs.flexisaf.com/preparing-for-jamb/] [http://blogs.flexisaf.com/preparing-for-jamb/][/url] to help you realize your goals. By the time you’ve read through this post, you should feel a renewed sense of motivation.

1. Create a study plan: Without a study plan, you may be studying the less relevant topics instead of focusing on the area of concentration. A study plan is your guide to make sure you study as much as you should, at the most appropriate time. This means it will help you stay organized and achieve your learning goals. You should take time to create a personalized plan based on your time management and schedule. Also find out what times of the day you study best and assimilate. For instance, if your study best at the early hours of the day, then make sure to squeeze in as much study time in the mornings before your day gets busier.



2. Study efficiently: We have established that JAMB exams are no joke. So why not arm yourself properly. Study to understand what your topics are telling you, so even with common sense you can answer some questions. Studying with past questions is your key to passing your exams. Even if it's a few days away from your exams, it’s never too late to start studying. One tip is to get a study partner. If they are as motivated, you can both cover more ground while studying and understand more efficiently and quickly!!

3. Practice past questions:Looking for where to practice previous JAMB questions for free? Try out www.distinction.ng

We all know 80% of JAMB exams are based on past questions, there’s your key to success. Past questions are available online and offline. After studying, the next thing to do is practice! practice! practice! past questions. It will not only make you familiar with the format of the exams including how to approach a question, but also test your knowledge on what you have already studied. Practicing past questions also show you the areas of concentration for each subject which you should pay more attention to.

These are the 3 tips you can use to ace your JAMB exams. Use them wisely and you’ll soon be on your way to the university! What other method is effective in preparing for your exams? Kindly Comment

Tools for research writing cover a broad range of purposes for the user. From plagiarism checkers to reference databases and grammar tools, here are 5 research-made-easy tools for 21st century students and researchers, that are very simple to use.

1. Citavi
Citavi is tool for students to manage research sources and search for new ones around the world. It is useful for helping students avoid chaos — and plagiarism. It can help in creating a chapter by chapter outline for your paper without even trying. Citavi is a recommended tool for students who need to write papers more efficiently and faster.

2. Grammarly

Grammarly is an online proofreader tool that checks for spelling and grammatical errors faster and with ease. At the end of writing a paper, it’s important to proofread for errors before finally submitting it. Grammarly can be installed as a web plug-in or used on site. It helps you crosscheck your work and can also spot unoriginal text by checking against an 8 billion page database.

3. ReadCube

ReadCube is a research tool that help to manage and cite documents (such as downloaded pdfs). It enables the import of files from the computer and allows one to search for them online. It also sends notification of new published articles related to searches made.

4. Continue reading on [https://safsms.com/blog/tools-research-writing/]

What is a project?

A project is a temporary endeavor or work performed on time by an organization to create a unique product or service. It has a definite beginning and a definite end.

Who is a project manager?

Project managers are change agents, i.e. they make project goals their own and use their skills and expertise to inspire a sense of shared purpose within the project team.

What is an IT project?

This is the application of both the science and art to planning, organizing, implementing, leading, and controlling the tasks performed to create an information system to meet the goals and objectives of an organization.

IT project management involves 3 key processes which are:

1.) The process of defining: a project, developing a plan, executing the plan, monitoring progress, and taking corrective actions.

2.) The process of managing: the competing demands and trade-offs between the desired results of the project (scope, performance, quality) and the natural constraints of the project (time and cost).

3.) The process of leading: a team that has never worked together before, to create a system within a given time interval within a stipulated budget and resource constraint.

There are many IT project management phases being used, but the most common phases implemented are as follows:

Visit -> http://blogs.flexisaf.com/brown-bag-series-effectively-manage-project/ to read more

Before traveling, most people figure out the most efficient route to their destination. If they hit the road without consulting a map or GPS and just try to wing it, they’ll end up wasting valuable time and resources, and more than likely, they will get lost along the way. This same concept applies to your career. It will take you much longer to get to where you want to go if you don’t know how to get there. That’s why many career experts recommend taking the time to create a formal “career plan” to guide you through your professional life.


Building your career is exciting because it provides an opportunity to shape your life in the way you want.It can also be scary when you do not know what it is that you want to do and when you are not sure how you can make a living.This is especially true for recent or soon-to-be graduates, who may end up taking a different path than they originally intended.The more you are in charge of your process the better you will feel

Below are few factors to account for as you create your career:

1. Know your values/value proposition: The place to start building career success is with yourself.Values are the core principles that run your life. Value proposition on the other hand are things that make you marketable e.g critical thinking,communication,volunteer work,etc.

Read more here -->> [http://blogs.flexisaf.com/navigating-route-career-success/]

This is one of the most asked questions about learning to program. I have had countless number of people ask me this question and I’m sure a lot more will in the future. Before I give my honest opinion, it would be important to understand what programming language means and how to go about choosing a language.

A programming language is basically a way to tell your computer what to do. To tell your computer what to do involves writing certain instructions. Learning a programming language involves understanding the syntax and semantics of a certain programming language.

So what factors must be considered before choosing a programming language?
One of the most important factors to consider is which section of programming you want to take on. Do you want to be a web developer, an application developer or a mobile developer? A web developer basically develops applications for the web. An application developer developers application for Desktop or other media and mobile developers develop for mobile devices.

Continue reading here -> [http://blogs.flexisaf.com/programming-language-learn-thoughts-abdulazeez/]

There are a lot of educational apps out there. Not many of them are easy to use or even relevant. We searched through a lot of stuff to find these apps that teachers and students can use to solve some important challenges in the classroom and beyond. Most of them are free and suitable to the Nigerian learning environment. All you need to download from iTunes or the Google app store.

Read list here -> [https://safsms.com/blog/16-best-educational-apps-teachers-students/]

There are some things New Teachers should Know, whether starting out a career or moving to a new school. Beginning as a new teacher in a new school could be nerve wracking, especially if you don’t know what to expect. It’s not always a rosy job; students may be difficult to handle and no amount of preparation beforehand will prepare you for actually standing in front of a classroom to interact with students everyday.

Some common new teacher worries may include questions like “How should I greet them?” “What do I say to each student as they walk in?” “Did I overdress today?” “What if they think I’m boring on the first day?”

Nevertheless, here are 7 important tips that every new teacher has to have at the back of their mind.

Find out these important tips here -->[https://safsms.com/blog/tips-new-teachers-7-things-new-teachers-know/]

What a shame. As a country, we need to work towards empowering teachers if we ever want to progress [https://safsms.com/blog/5-great-ways-empower-teachers-build-positiveinnovative-school-culture/][/url] - 5 ways to empower teachers to build positive, innovative school culture

Nice!We have soo many brilliant young minds in Nigeria. Too bad the country doesn't support them

[http://blogs.flexisaf.com/meet-david-autodidact/l][/url]

Why do you teach?

The debate has been on for a while about which type of Nigerian Universities is better – Private universities or Public universities? What do you think??

We asked this question on @FlexiSAF Twitter account a while back and the answer was a little different from what we expected. 68% of people picked "going abroad" as the best option...

Regardless of what the poll suggests, graduates of private universities in Nigeria still believe they are better off. They claim that graduates from private owned institutions receive a better quality education and are more employable than those who passed through public institutions. These claims are supported by job recruiting (middle man) companies like Stutern and Jobberman.
One popular reason why the quality of education is suggested to be higher in private institutions is that due to the high fees (compared to public universities), the number of students are often much less than in public universities. Consequently, they are able to have fewer students per class and all facilities in general are able to go round more evenly.

Another thing is that these private institutions are not affected by labor union strikes which plague our public higher institutions. So a student is guaranteed to complete their education hitch-free, if they can survive the overly harsh rules and regulations that are often applied in these private universities.

Those who attend public universities have their own strong reasons why they claim to be better off. The age and prestige of most of these public institutions is a major factor, coupled with the experience of lecturers & alumni staff. This leads a lot of people to insist that standards of learning are higher in public universities. Especially because students who may have failed JAMB and can’t get into public institutions often find it easy to gain admission into private universities.

Moreover, students of public universities seem to take pride in the hardships they go through; viewing it as character building. Many of these hardships, however are simply a consequence of lack of proper record management, shortage of committed staff and the refusal to automate several core processes that can be easily managed.

Putting sentiments aside, it is clear that this private universities vs public universities debate is a losing one for both sides.

Finish reading post here [http://blogs.flexisaf.com/private-universities-vs-public-universities-in-nigeria/]

what do you think?

We all aspire to find meaning and purpose in our careers, whatever our line of work maybe, but the question is how do you actually do that?

Through this post, I’d like to share some practical steps you can take to make sure that you don’t stay stuck in a career that’s not meant for you but rather you are empowered to find a career that allows you to do what you genuinely care about.

1. Define what “meaningful” is to you

Conventional wisdom may indicate that a meaningful and successful career is one that brings loads of money, recognition, and fame. And maybe that is true for some people, but is that true for you?

You need to take a moment of self-reflection and truly consider what a meaningful career looks like for you and how that fits into the context of a meaningful life.

When trying to decide what a meaningful career looks like, try to consider how your intended career weighs against the following factors: legacy, mastery, freedom, and alignment

2. LEGACY

Look at the list of things you will have to achieve on this job and ask yourself if these are things you enjoy doing and can see yourself doing for an extended period of time. It’s not always going to be rainbows and roses, so even on the mundane days, you have to ask yourself if you would be willing to stick it out.

Are you creative and like to think outside the box? Do you like to follow rules and preserve order? How well do you handle uncertainty? Do you like being told what to do or do you prefer to be left to your own devices most of the time? Are you good at convincing others to do things or do you prefer to let the numbers do the talking?

Will your career allow you achieve the things you want to professionally while allowing you to stay true to yourself?

Continue reading full post here: [url][https://safsms.com/blog/4-principles-follow-meaningful-career/]

Are you curious to find out what kind of teacher you are; how your students see you or perhaps what type of teacher you would make if you were one? Then take the quiz below!

A child’s education depends a great deal on the quality of the teacher. The primary trait of a good teacher is the focus on student learning. He/She forms a connection with the students that makes the students open to learning.

According to greatschools.org, some characteristics of a good teacher include:

1. Great teachers set high expectations for all students.
2. Great teachers have clear, written-out objectives.
3. Great teachers are prepared and organized. They are in their classrooms early and ready to teach. Their classrooms are organized in such a way as to minimize distractions.
4. Great teachers engage students and get them to look at issues in a variety of ways. Effective teachers use facts as a starting point, not an end point; they ask “why” questions, look at all sides and encourage students to predict what will happen next.
5. Great teachers form strong relationships with their students and show that they care about them as people.
6. Great teachers are masters of their subject matter. They exhibit expertise in the subjects they are teaching and spend time continuing to gain new knowledge in their field.
7. Great teachers communicate frequently with parents. They don’t hesitate to pick up the telephone to call a parent if they are concerned about a student.

So what kind of teacher are you?

Take the quiz here: [url][/http://blogs.flexisaf.com/kind-teacher-free-quiz/]and find out your answer!
I got "boring teacher"

As a teacher, as with anything else you will definitely face some unique challenges. These challenges, small or major may sometimes make you consider quitting. In such times, it helps to remember why you started out in the first place and why you really love doing what you do.

Recently, for one of our weekly Teacher's Challenges on Instagram (@flexisaf), we decided to put out this Question to our community on Instagram:

Why do you Teach?



We were surprised by the number of truthful, inspiring responses we got, so we decided to share some of them with our readers.

If you're in need of some inspiration, check out what other teachers like yourself have to say about why they love their job!

1. "I teach because it broadens my own knowledge as I impact the students" - @tolulopewalters
2. "I teach because I always wake up with the motivation of making a difference in the lives of the children I come in contact with. I teach to inspire children to become something they never thought they could be" - @maryhamkimberly
3. "I teach to impact the next generation. We were helped along by our teachers and it's simply a joy to help the next generation become who they were meant to be" - @lincy_c
4. "I am a teacher so that I can be able to make a positive difference on the future of children. I feel I should contribute what I have learnt and experienced over the years. this way, I am paying back and also fulfilling my desire of enhancing the education system" - @iam_kokokopa
5. "The idea  that you can help shape a generation by teaching; to believe that you can indeed build a nation without having to contest for a post is really amazing" - @azibit

Continue reading here[https://safsms.com/blog/why-do-you-teach-answered-by-11-teachers/] and if you're a teacher, we'd love to hear your comment: Why Do You Teach?

P.S You can also Join our Teachers Challenge on Instagram @flexisaf. Weekly prizes of N5,000 and more for teachers

Being a teacher has it’s ups and downs. Despite the joy and satisfaction that comes with impacting the next generation of learners, there are some challenges on the job. Every teacher faces one of these 6 problems at some point in their career. Below are some ways to tackle them:

1. Lack of resources/training:

The truth is that many schools are not as supportive to the teacher as they should be. Teachers need to be empowered in order to foster a good learning environment for the student. In many of our Nigerian schools, the burden falls on the teachers to seek out appropriate learning resources that will engage students and pass across the subject properly. This shouldn’t always be the case.

One easy way for teachers to find creative project/assignment ideas is by searching Pinterest. Also, teachercreated and webanywhere have tons of free teaching resources on many different subjects.

Continue reading post here [url][/https://safsms.com/blog/6-challenges-teachers-how-to-handle-them/] on safsms blog; Nigeria's No1 educator's blog

One of the challenges of the 21st century for educations is the role of technology in the classroom. Technology has now occupied the centre stage and continues to have a strong influence on everyday life. It is therefore important for teachers to educate students to leverage the best ways possible to use digital resources online and via new devices readily available for learning.

Despite the fact that Internet and smartphones can cause distractions in the classroom, teachers can play a vital role in teaching students how to use technology in the classroom effectively.

Here are 10 (ten) of the modern skills that teachers of any grade level need in today’s classroom.

1. Online Collaboration
Creating and sharing a YouTube video of a classroom experiment or using blogs to teach the fundamentals of trigonometry, teachers can work together and gain peer support through collaboration on the web.

2. Time Management

Teachers these days have to cover more materials and take on more responsibility, it’s critical to use every minute efficiently. Planning for breaks as well as lessons can help classrooms stay on schedule consistently.

3. Organization

Organization is key for effective creation of appropriate lesson plans and also classroom materials. Organisation pays off in the long run by saving teachers time and allowing them focus more on content delivery to students.

Read full list here [https://safsms.com/blog/10-skills-modern-teachers-need/] on safsms blog; Nigeria's no1 blog to follow for teachers

Another good one is http://safsms.com/blog. They have nice resources for students, teachers and even school admin