Some students at Brentwood High School are now tapping in for class using the MOOV attendance system. The pilot program, which launched Sept. 26, is currently being tested in several classrooms by teacher volunteers and at school entrances.
MOOV is an attendance taking system used in schools to monitor and automatically record a student’s attendance. MOOV works by allowing students to scan their ID to be marked automatically present once they enter the school building and their individual classes. This software also gives administrators and teachers access to track students’ late arrivals and absences.
“It helps us update attendance in real time,” said Dr. Dulin, principal. “In an event of an emergency where we need to lock down the building, we can very quickly and safely let families know where their children are…This is the time stamp and location of where they are.”
Before transitioning to MOOV, attendance would need to be taken digitally through eschool by manually marking who was present or absent using their computer. This method was slower and also left room for error.
MOOV was added to improve accuracy of tracking student attendance. The high school wanted more time efficiency and to move away from manual record keeping of each student.
“It is beneficial because it cuts down teaching time usually taken up for secretarial purposes,” said Mrs. Opisso, an English teacher who is piloting the software this school year. However, Mrs. Opisso noted that inconsistent Wi-Fi can sometimes be an issue.
Over the course of the school year, MOOV has been introduced in other locations around the building.
“We are using it more than just for classroom attendance,” Dr. Dulin said. “We’re using it at the cafeteria, the bathroom, and we are now also using it for events in school and after school.”
Students feel that MOOV makes attendance faster and easier compared to taking attendance by calling for names. Some students notice the software can be slow or the process can be inconvenient if they forgot to bring their ID.
“I don’t mind MOOV because it’s simple to use,” said Kimberly Peralta, a high school senior “MOOV makes attendance so much faster than calling out names.”
MOOV also helps improve school safety by showing who is in the building. Administration can quickly notice if someone is in school who shouldn’t be, helping keep students and teachers in a safe environment.
“With our school being so large and safety always being our number one priority, we want to make sure we are aware of who is in the building and in every space at all times,” Dr. Dulin said.
It’s worth noting that the MOOV attendance system has not yet been approved for full implementation. The pilot program’s results will be reviewed in the spring by the Superintendent and the Board of Education’s Security Committee to make decisions about its future use.
