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SchoolTool

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SchoolTool
Developer(s)The Shuttleworth Foundation
Initial release2004; 20 years ago (2004)
Stable release
2.8.4 / July 4, 2015; 9 years ago (2015-07-04)
Written inZope (Python)
Operating systemUbuntu
TypeSIS
LicenseGNU GPL v2

SchoolTool is a GPL licensed, free student information system for schools around the world. The goals of the project are to create a student information system, including demographics, gradebook, attendance, calendaring and reporting for primary and secondary schools, as well as a framework for building customized applications and configurations for individual schools or states.

SchoolTool is built as a free software/open source software stack, licensed under the GNU General Public License, Version 2, written in Python using the Zope 3 framework.

The sub-projects of SchoolTool are as follows:

  • The SchoolTool Calendar and SchoolBell are calendar and resource management tools for schools available as part of the Edubuntu Linux distribution.[1]
  • A SchoolTool student information system is being developed and tested in collaboration with schools
  • CanDo is a SchoolTool-based skills tracking program developed by Virginia students and teachers to track which skills students are acquiring in their classes and at what level of competency.[2]

SchoolTool is configured by default to act as what is often called a student information system or SIS. The focus is on tracking information related to students: demographics, enrollment grades, attendance, reporting. It is a subset of a complete "management information system" (MIS) for schools, which might also cover systems like accounting.[3]

SchoolTool is not a learning management system, or LMS, such as Moodle, although they share some overlapping feature sets, such as a gradebook. SchoolTool does not contain curriculum or learning objects.

A post on the product news page in October 2016 titled "The Future of SIELibre and SchoolTool" indicates that the primary SchoolTool developers have moved on to other things.[4] This was accompanied by a google document explaining the decision and thanking contributors for their efforts.[5]

SchoolTool Features

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  • Customizable demographics;
  • Student contact management;
  • Calendars for the school, groups, and individuals;
  • Resource booking;
  • Teacher gradebooks;
  • Class attendance;
  • Report card generation.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "SchoolTool (as included with Edubuntu)". Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
  2. ^ "Cando Student Competency Tracker". Archived from the original on 2013-02-08. Retrieved 2011-08-19.
  3. ^ "Basic Use of SchoolTool". Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
  4. ^ "News and announcements : SchoolTool Project". April 2016.
  5. ^ "The Future of SIELibre and SchoolTool".
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