Circular 03/2016
Date: 22 January 2016
The use of the South African School
Administration and Management System
(SA SAMS) – 2016
Topic
Enclosures
Annexure A: Compulsory Data Fields for Safety,
Sport and Enrichment, Infrastructure
Annexure B: Guidelines for the Management of SA
SAMS Software Package
Annexure C: District Data Team Leaders
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Distribution
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Enquiries
All Chief Directors and Directors at Head Office
All Directors at District Offices
All Officials at Head Office and District Offices
Principals of all Public Ordinary Schools, LSEN
Schools and Independent Schools
Members of School Governing Bodies and their
Associations
Staff members in Public Ordinary and LSEN
Schools
Teacher Organisations and Unions
Relevant Non-Governmental Organisations
Directorate: Information Systems
Tel: (011) 355 0302
On request, this circular will be made available in Afrikaans, isiZulu or Sepedi within 21
days. It is also available on the GDE website at: www.education.gpg.gov.za.
Office of the Head of Department
Room 1009, 111 Commissioner Street, Johannesburg 2001
P.O. Box 7710, Johannesburg, 2000
Tel: (011) 355-1511 Fax: (011) 333-5546
E-mail: [email protected]
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1. THE USE OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION AND
MANAGEMENT SYSTEM – 2015.
1.
PURPOSE
1.1
To remind all officials of the legislated requirement to employ an electronic
School Administration and Management System to house and manage all
relevant school data; Section 8(3) of National Education Policy Act (1996) states
that the “Department shall undertake the monitoring and evaluation contemplated
in subsection (1) by analysis of data gathered by means of education
management information systems, or by other suitable means, in co-operation
with provincial departments of education.”
1.2
To advocate the use of the South African School Administration and
Management System (SA SAMS), developed by the National Department of
Basic Education, as the preferred and recommended management system for all
schools;
1.3
To instruct District and Head Office officials to ensure that schools capture SA
SAMS data correctly, and that they make use of SA SAMS data rather than
duplicate data collection;
1.4
To instruct responsible officials at schools which have been issued with SA
SAMS computers to ensure that data for all modules are captured and
maintained;
1.5
To inform the responsible officials at those schools who choose not to use SA
SAMS to ensure that all relevant data from their schools are compatible with the
SA SAMS format;
1.6
To inform all officials of the current plans to provide training and support for SA
SAMS, including the standard for SA SAMS compatible data;
1.7
To guide school-based officials and Departmental IT Technicians on how data
should be collected; and
1.8
This Circular supersedes GDE Circular 59 of 2008.
Common alternative electronic management systems include: Pencil Box; SASPAC; Microscope;
Smart; Edupac; Scadsys; EduAdmin; Principal Primary; Adam; FIZIEP; Smart Software and Vortex.
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2.
BACKGROUND
2.1
SA SAMS was developed and introduced by the National Department of Basic
Education (DoBE) several years ago as a means of standardising the electronic
capturing and management of school information.
2.2
Each Provincial Department has been tasked by DoBE with the design and
implementation of projects to ensure the universal use of this system.
2.3
Gauteng provides a computer and printer, with SA SAMS software, together with
training and support, to all public schools.
2.4
Public schools that have chosen to use other electronic management systems 1 will
be informed of how their data should conform to the SA SAMS format to be
exported to the Department.
3.
LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK
3.1
The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act No. 108 of 1996, as amended.
3.2
The National Education Policy Act, 1996 (Act No. 27 of 1996), as amended.
3.3
The South African Schools Act, 1996 (Act No. 84 of 1996), as amended.
3.4
Employment of Educators Act, 1998 (Act No. 76 of 1998), as amended.
3.5
Public Service Act, 1994 (Act No. 103 of 1994), as amended.
3.6
The National Education Information Policy (Government Gazette No. 26710 of
August 2004).
3.7
Minimum Information Security Standards, 1996.
3.8
Gauteng Schools Education Act, 1995 (Act No. 6 of 1995), as amended.
4.
ACQUISITION OF SA SAMS SOFTWARE
4.1
In order to implement the SA SAMS programme, and increase the use of the
management system by schools, Principals of schools that currently do not use any
computer-based school administration application must contact the District Data
Team leader (Annexure C) as soon as possible.
4.2
A computer, printer and the SA SAMS software will then be installed in these public
school and arrangements will be made to provide adequate training for two admin
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officials and members of the School Management Team.
4.3
After delivery of the equipment, and to secure final sign-off, the Principal must
ensure that:
4.3.1 The SA SAMS programme is functioning correctly (GDE IT Technicians will
assist);
4.3.2 All school officials are informed of their responsibilities, and school data are
correctly captured (see Annexure B);
4.3.3 A deployment report is signed and dated with the correct version of SA SAMS
indicated; and
4.3.4 An error and omissions certificate is signed, dated and stamped.
4.4
Schools that are using third party software and wish to change over to SA SAMS
should also contact the District Data Team leaders to request the software to be
loaded onto the school’s computer.
4.5
Independent schools qualify for “free-for-ever” SA SAMS software, training and
support. Independent schools interested in accessing the SA SAMS software
should contact the relevant District Data Team Leader.
5.
TRAINING AND SUPPORT FOR SA SAMS – 2015
5.1
The Department has appointed a service provider to provide training and support
for the SA SAMS project.
5.2
Over a period of 15 months, the service provider will provide:
5.2.1 Training for two admin staff per school on the use of SA SAMS (up to five schools
will be clustered and the training will take place at one of the schools);
5.2.2 Training for SMT Members on the management of SA SAMS;
5.2.3 Training for up to 600 District and Head Office Officials on the management of SA
SAMS;
5.2.4 Training for the IT Technicians on how to provide functional support for SA SAMS;
5.2.5 The development of a standard to ensure Third Party schools provide their data in
a format that is compatible with SA SAMS data;
5.2.6 A channel through which requests for change or additions to SA SAMS can be
made; and
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5.2.7 A Help Desk to provide functional support (see below).
6.
A HELP DESK TO ASSIST SCHOOLS
6.1
The Help Desk will be the central point of communications regarding SA SAMS
training and functional support. This number (086 126 2783) and email
address ([email protected]) will be further communicated to all
relevant GDE officials.
6.2
The GDE IT Help Desk (number 011 355 0212) will continue to accept calls and
emails ([email protected]) regarding hardware problems.
6.3
Both Help Desks will operate from 08:00 to 16:00 Monday to Friday.
7.
RESPONSIBILITIES OF HEADS OF INSTITUTIONS
7.1
Principals of schools must ensure:
7.1.1 that forms forms (learner registration forms; educator registration forms and PS
Staff registration forms) are distributed to, completed and collected from learners,
ps staff members and educators;
7.1.2 The selection of two administrative staff and all SMT Members to undergo training;
7.1.3 The training, data collection and full functionality of SA SAMS are signed-off with
the service provider;
7.1.4 That the SA SAMS is functional, and there is continuity if trained staff leave the
school;
7.1.5 The ANA, Finance, Assessment, LTSM, Physical Resources, LURITS data are
submitted quarterly or whenever required, to the relevant line functions; and
7.1.6 That the compulsory Data Fields required by the National Department of Basic
Education for: School Safety; School Sport and Enrichment Programmes; the
National School Nutrition Programme; and School Infrastructure are completed as
soon as possible (Annexure A).
7.1.7 That Learner and Educator attendance data are captured daily and that all schoolbased assessments are recorded in SA SAMS.
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8.
THIRD PARTY SCHOOLS
8.1
Principals of schools that are using one of the proprietary school management
systems (i.e., Third Party Schools) must inform the Data Team Leaders of the
electronic management system they are currently using and any changes they
may make. They are further urged to consider changing to SA SAMS for the
following reasons:
8.1.1 SA SAMS is developed by the Department of Basic Education specifically to
support the South African public school system; it is constantly being developed to
fulfil the changing requirements of the schools and Department;
8.1.2 It is free-of-charge, and so are all future upgrades;
8.1.3 Training and support are also provided free-of-charge; changing to SA SAMS will
therefore be straightforward;
8.1.4 If you do choose to adopt SA SAMS, you will be given a new laptop computer and
printer to be dedicated to SA SAMS free-of-charge; this comes with full warranty
and support from a Help Desk and Departmental IT Technicians;
8.1.5 In the near future all GDE District and Head Office will have received SA SAMS
training and be able to provide you with assistance;
8.1.6 All schools, even those not using SA SAMS, are required to submit data that are
SA SAMS compliant.
Note: Since the Department is willing to provide the software, hardware, maintenance,
training and support, all free-of-charge, if you continue to use your school funds to pay an
outside service provider/vendor for all of these goods and services, it may be construed
as a waste of scarce resources.
9.
RESPONSIBILITY OF THE DISTRICT DATA TEAMS
The District Data Teams will be responsible for:
9.1
Ensuring that SA SAMS is fully utilised in the schools;
9.2
Establishing the level of usage and ensure all the Schools and District officials are
necessarily trained to use and support the SA SAMS system;
9.3
Reporting on the state of SA SAMS delivery (general reporting), usage, short
comings and patch roll out;
9.4
Developing the management plan for the SA SAMS roll out and training;
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9.5
Supporting schools where necessary;
9.6
Ensuring that schools report on all the required SA SAMS modules;
9.7
Monitoring and reporting on the delivery and usage of SA SAMS in the District;
and
9.8
Quality assuring the data submitted by schools.
9.9
The use of the Valistractor tool to generate district specific reports on the data
captured under the different modules.
10.
RESPONSIBILITY OF THE IT TECHNICIANS
The IT Technicians will be responsible for:
10.1
Providing technical functional support to schools;
10.2
Ensuring that all necessary procedures for approving data towards data quality
are followed e.g. Principals Deployment Report and Errors and Omissions
Certificate;
10.3
Ensuring that the Principals run the errors and omission tool, clean and approve,
by signature, the report data before submission to the District;
10.4
Collecting datasets from schools and submitting them to District Data team;
10.5
Uploading and configuring computers and systems at schools; and
10.6
Updating the software by uploading of all new patches and other software related
to SA SAMS.
11.
CHANGE MANAGEMENT
11.1
Change Management is essential in introducing such a system as SA SAMS to
maximise its adoption and use. Once all schools have received both the hardware
and software, and the functionality has been indicated by the IT Technician and
Principal, and training has taken place, all Principals and District Officials are
required to ensure the implementation of SA SAMS.
11.2
The effective use of SA SAMS will produce efficiencies, and improved service
delivery in a number of ways:
(a) Financial controls will be tightened and improved;
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(b) Timetables will be generated electronically to improve curriculum delivery;
(c) The automated EMIS reporting function will save time and reduce frustration;
11.3
Annexure B provides further guidelines for the management of SA SAMS.
If responsible officials ensure the universal usage of the SA SAMS in our schools, it will
result in enormous improvements in administrative efficiency.
_________________________
SIGNED: EDWARD MOSUWE
HEAD OF DEPARTMENT
DATE: 17/12/2015
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Annexure A
Compulsory Data Fields for:
School Safety, School Sport and Enrichment Programmes, National School
Nutrition Programme (NSNP) and School Infrastructure.
The following fields must be captured immediately and used for data management and
reporting:
NSNP
School
Infrastructure
School
Governance
School Safety
School Sport
School
Enrichment
1. Survey question in General School Information (Menu 1.1 tab 2)
2. Updating the status of the learners participating in NSNP (Menu 3.1 tab 3)
3. Completing learner weekly attendance (Menu 3.3.3)
4. Print summary weekly/monthly/quarterly attendance statistics as required evidence
(3.3.14/15/16)
1. Infrastructure register (Menu 14.5)
1. Completing the SGB membership (menu 14.5)
1. Completing the Safe School Committee membership
2. Capture and maintain serious incidents on Menu 5.5
3. Maintain Demerit/Merit system (Menu 3.7) for managing demerits and reporting on
type of assigned/reported incidents per quarter
1. Assign school houses to learners (Menu 1.14)
2. Assign and maintain sport types and teams to learners (Menu 3.1)
3. Assign competitions for sport types and learners (Menu 1.14)
1. Assign school houses to learners (Menu 1.14)
2. Assign and maintain extra-curricular to learners (Menu 3.1)
3. Assign competitions for enrichment programmes and learners (Menu 1.14)
The following documents need to be signed-off by the school principal to verify the
correctness and status of the required data:
LURITS deployment
report (Menu 17)
Errors-andomissions report
1. Confirms the school data as correct
2. Confirms the number of learners per grade and their biographical data as required
3. Identifies the data fields that are NOT captured
4. Confirms the data fields that are wrongly captured according to a specified format
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Annexure B: GUIDELINES FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF THE SA SAMS
SOFTWARE PACKAGE
1.
A member of the SMT must be the supervisor for SA SAMS. This is required
for planning, implementation, accountability, and to ensure deadlines are met
and databases are backed up according to the Information Security Policy.
2.
It is required that all staff members should be familiar, and be able to work with
SA SAMS.
3.
The SA SAMS must be used by Administrative staff and School Educators.
3.1
An administration staff member must be appointed as the SA SAMS
administrator. This person must be thoroughly trained in SA SAMS. Three
quarters of her/his time will be involved in the administration of SA SAMS.
3.2
The appointment of an administrative staff member is necessary because:
(a) work can be done throughout the day;
(b) one person can be held accountable for the operation of SA SAMS; and
(c) one person can develop in-depth skills in SA SAMS.
4.
An operational schedule must be drawn up according to the needs of the school,
to ensure that:
(a) All new learners are captured;
(b) Subjects are assigned to all learners;
(c) The School Calendar is drawn up;
(d) Learning Programmes for all subjects are added and printed for the parents;
(e) Class lists for all subjects/learning areas are printed for educators;
(f) Deadline dates are fixed for teachers to hand in their learners’ marks (this is
critical and must be spread out to avoid slow periods and congested periods);
(g) Absenteeism is recorded;
(h) The school accountant is given sufficient time to complete financial matters;
(i) Assets are managed correctly;
(j) A new time-table for the following year is drawn up in good time;
(k) Administrative staff are adequately supported by an SMT member.
5.
Educators must work as a team under their HoDs to capture data on learner
performance.
6.
School users must be allocated unique User ID’s and Passwords for security
reasons. They may not share these credentials.
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Annexure C
District Data Team Leaders
EN Freddy
011 746
Mokhachane 8070
ES Ramoepi
011 389
Maboa
6365
GE Praneeta
011 736
Aheer
08887
GN Saul Pila
012 846
3799
GW Thea
011 693
Coetzer
4904
JC Mashooda
011 983Ismail
2170
JE
Portia
011 666
Mngenela
9198
JN Caroline
011 694
Raphael
9353
JS
Lawrence
011 247
Rikhotso
5711
JW Dumisani
011 831
Tshabalala
5452
SE
SW
Olivia
Raphael
Joe Burke
TN
Margaret
Kgaffe
TN
Jacob
Modzuka
Phumza
MakgathoKhunou
TW
016 440
1779
016 594
9159
012 543
1032
012 401
6388
012 725
1318
072 222
3839
083 582
8669
082 332
2558
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
083 564
5146
083 704
1230
076 865
4816
071 560
2970
084 820
1866
082 259
0381/071
577 6380
083 765
1232
073 600
6591
082 710
7401
072 514
7880
072 565
6565
082 758
5039
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]/nom
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
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