My mom, a high school teacher, recently got some barcode scanners and wants to use them to take attendance efficiently. I can generate student IDs as barcodes with the 3 of 9 font, but I'm not sure how to collect and organize the scans into a readable document. I came across a few online solutions that involve mobile apps and spreadsheets, but many of them come with subscriptions or seem too complex for her. I'm looking for simple and effective ideas to help her out!
4 Answers
This sounds kinda dehumanizing, tho. You’re turning students into numbers with barcodes. I get that it’s practical, but it feels like they’re being treated like cattle sometimes.
Why not just stick to good old pen and paper? I'm surprised schools aren't more inclined to go digital with it, but teachers have been running attendance with just names for ages. Maybe there's something old-school to be said about that!
You’d be surprised! With time constraints in classrooms, going digital could save a lot of hassle. If it’s quick and effective, it can help a teacher focus more on teaching than admin tasks!
Honestly, using an online system might be simpler in the long run, but I understand schools can be tight on funds. If you can find a basic spreadsheet template where you just list the students and check them off when they scan in, that should be a quick fix. Plus, it's a lot less overhead than setting up a full app!
You can actually use a basic USB barcode scanner that works like a keyboard. Just set it up in auto mode, and when students scan their IDs, it inputs the data directly into a Google Sheet. From there, you can create a list of students and use conditional formatting to highlight who’s present or absent. You might need to add asterisks around the barcode content if you're using the 3 of 9 format, but it's pretty straightforward!
I get your point, but the goal is efficiency in a busy classroom. It's not about reducing students to numbers, just streamlining the attendance process to maximize teaching time.