Education Industry

How an SMS Bot Can Revolutionise the Education Industry

A report by Zion Market Research states that the U.S. education market was valued at around USD 1,350 billion in the year 2017 and it is expected to reach approximately USD 2,040 billion by 2026.

Parents will always want their children to be educated. Promises of providing universal access to education get governments elected. Educated and intelligent professionals run countries. The education industry is immortal.

The education industry has seen quite a growth ever since its inception. From ancient gatherings in an open field to modern-day high-tech schools with state-of-the-art architecture, schools and universities have changed their faces every passing year. Higher education is a multi-billion dollar industry. 

While there are huge inflows and outflows of cash here, there are still many areas that could use improvements. Imagine this – 

The number of working parents has never been higher, and while parents go to work, their children go to school. One particular morning the working parent was in an incredible rush to reach work early for an important meeting. Their partner was already out of the country on a business trip. Their child, on the other hand, needed to go to school. The parent saw their child board the school bus in the morning but had no clue when they reached school or were back home. It’s quite scary not to know the whereabouts of one’s kids. 

Now imagine if parents could receive a text message informing them if their children safely arrived at school. This is where SMS bots come into play. This guide shows how educational institutes can make life easier for students and parents.

What is an SMS Bot?

Imagine you send a text query to an official school number – ‘What is my admission number?’ and receive a reply that contains your admission number in a matter of seconds. There are three things to take note of here –

  1. You did not have to call the school administration.
  2. There was no waiting time to get someone to talk to you.
  3. You did not have to be transferred between departments for hours before receiving your admission number.

All you did was send a simple text and receive a response with the information requested. An official SMS-enabled number of the school is the recipient of this text query. Moreover, you weren’t conversing with a real human but an SMS Bot. SMS Bots provide conversational content support to anyone making queries via text message on your company’s SMS-enabled number.

What type of replies can the SMS Bot give?

An SMS bot gives three types of different replies –

  • Text
  • Menus
  • Dynamic Webhooks

Text replies can be static answers to questions. For example – 

Q – ‘When is the next PTA meeting?’

SMS Bot – 19th September 2019. 6 pm. Lecture Hall.

Menus can be a list of items someone is asking for. For example –

Q – ‘What are the courses for 10th grade?’

SMS Bot – The courses for 10th grade are 

  1. English
  2. Language Arts
  3. Mathematics
  4. Physics
  5. Chemistry
  6. Biology
  7. Social Studies
  8. Health
  9. Gym

Dynamic Webhooks are replies fetched from a live source in real-time. For example- 

Q – ‘What time was my child dropped off at home?’

SMS Bot – ‘3:02 pm was the drop-off time.’

Traditionally, an SMS bot will catch a particular key phrase in its message. This key phrase allows it to reply with an answer or a follow-up question based on the workflow automation set in the background. 

For example, consider a situation where someone asks the SMS Bot – 

‘What is my child’s admission number?’

The SMS Bot will catch the keyphrase’ admission number’. It will then send a follow-up question – 

‘What is your child’s name? Please provide the exact name as in school records.’

When the person replies with an answer, say – 

‘Golden Unicorn’

The SMS bot can look for this name in the database and send the admission number mentioned against this name. 

‘The admission number of Golden Unicorn is GU2019.’

This way, parents can receive a response to their query in just a minute or two at the most, saving parents and the school a great deal of time. 

Use cases of an SMS Bot in the education industry

SMS bots aren’t just helpful to parents; they can also be useful technology for students. To help you understand how an SMS bot can be useful to your educational institution, we’ve compiled a comprehensive yet non-exhaustive list of use cases. 

For Parents

An SMS bot can be extremely beneficial to parents, especially working professionals. Traditionally, school administrations required parents to come to school for everything, including simple clarifications. However, not everyone can take time off their schedules whenever needed. 

This is where an SMS bot comes in handy, as it can offer parents quick access to information in several situations, as illustrated below – 

Security Queries 

  • ‘What time did my child enter the school premises?’
  • ‘What is the drop-off time for Tats Tots?’

Administrative Queries

  • ‘What is the status of the fee payment?’
  • ‘What is my child’s admission number?’
  • ‘Who teaches English to 8th grade?’
  • ‘When is the next PTA meeting?’

In all these scenarios, the SMS bot will further ask questions if needed and, eventually, provide the parent with the information they are looking for.

For Students

Next, we look at some common queries an SMS bot can answer in the case of a student. 

General queries

  • What is my class and section?’
  • ‘Where is Mr. Pounce’s office?’
  • ‘What is my timetable for this semester?’
  • ‘When is the next bake sale?’
  • ‘What time is lunch?’
  • ‘Are my exam results out?’
  • ‘What are Mrs. Shade’s office hours?
  • ‘Is the library open on Sunday?’
  • ‘What time will bus no. 6 arrive at the 6th and 66th cross?’

Course/Subject queries

  • ‘Who teaches Biology to 9th grade?’
  • ‘What is the exam schedule for the Monsoon Semester’19?’
  • ‘Do I have a Chemistry test today?’
  • ‘What are the available arts electives for 10th grade?’
  • ‘Where is the Mathematics class for 9th grade held?’
  • ‘Is the SAT book available in the library now?’

These are just a few of the questions an SMS bot can answer. There is no limit to the type of questions that can be catered to. Moreover, suppose the person is unsatisfied with the reply and requires further assistance. In that case, they can be redirected to talk to a human agent or their school’s administration member. 

SMS Bots: The Benefits of Technology in Education

An SMS bot offers several benefits to various stakeholders in the field of education. Some of these are mentioned below. 

Improved Communication and Engagement with Students

SMS bots make communication quicker and more dynamic while eradicating any instances of miscommunication that can stem from interacting with humans. Since students interact with technology now more than ever, an SMS bot can also help increase student engagement.

Increased Efficiency and Productivity

Education technology tools can improve students’ and teachers’ productivity and help make learning more efficient. Students can access these bots at any time to help with their studies, while they can also serve as effective aids for teachers who rely on their instantaneous responses. 

Reduced Workload for Teachers and Staff

Teachers and staff care for several aspects of an educational institution, such as administrative tasks, fee payments, assessment schedules, examinations, and more. SMS bots can help automate several tasks to reduce the burden on teachers and staff members.

Seamless Integration With LSM and SIS

Educational chatbots can also be integrated with Learning Management Systems (LMS) and Student Information Systems (SIS). Integration can significantly improve the teaching process and make accessing information easier, making the whole experience seamless and efficient for students and teachers.  

How To Make An SMS Bot

There are five crucial steps involved in the making of an SMS bot. These include –

  1. Create an account with the SMS Bot providing the software. A good SMS bot provider is JustCall.
  2. Select the ‘SMS Bot’ option in the menu and give it a name. 
  3. Set up a workflow of questions that can be answered via text replies. Simply type a question and the response to it. 
  4. Do the same for menu replies.
  5. Dynamic Webhooks can be set up in the same way.

To read more about how to make an SMS Bot, check out – ‘How to make an SMS Bot with JustCall’.

How to Integrate SMS Bots with Other Educational Technologies

An SMS bot can be integrated with other educational technologies, such as a Learning Management System, for great results. It can create schedules, handle assessments, manage deadlines, and more. It can also help students with their research, reducing their dependence on teachers and allowing them to access information at any given point. 

What to Consider When Implementing SMS Bots

There are three main factors to consider when implementing SMS bots in education. These include – 

Privacy and Security

The first and most important factor to consider when implementing chatbots in education is ensuring the highest standards of privacy and security for all stakeholders involved. This is because bots are privy to all kinds of data, especially when integrated with other tools such as an LMS or SIS. 

Scalability

An SMS bot should be scalable to offer a good return on investment. For instance, if a bot is introduced with the ability to handle administrative tasks to a certain degree, it should be customizable to take on new functions for a larger group of beneficiaries. These tasks or roles could be administrative or educational.

Ease of Use

An SMS bot should be intuitive for teachers, staff, and students. Since two of its primary purposes are to increase efficiency and reduce teachers’ workloads, an SMS bot must be able to seamlessly handle queries or carry out tasks to make the whole process beneficial. 

Successful Implementation of SMS Bots

SMS bots have already been integrated into various educational institutions worldwide. Two fantastic examples of this are given below. 

Edsby

Edsby is a fantastic example of a chatbot that can engage students, teachers, and parents. It can be used to answer all kinds of queries while offering a personalized learning experience for students, like texting a student their class schedule.

This chatbot is often used as a customer support tool for students and teachers. If it can’t answer a query, it’s programmed to notify a human agent with the relevant information so they can take over. 

Loyola University of Chicago

The Loyola Institute of Chicago piloted its chatbot LUie in 2019 to provide students answers to questions that otherwise required them to make a phone call. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for instance, LUie took in nearly 100 questions about the status of the pandemic, its symptoms, building access, and more, thereby efficiently increasing access to information. 

Challenges of Implementing SMS Bots in Education

While SMS bots can already transform the education industry massively, their implementation brings certain challenges to the fore. Some of these are described below. 

Resistance to Change

The first challenge that stakeholders will have to face is resistance to change. Prior experience has shown that the sudden shift to a heavy reliance on technology wasn’t the easiest during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, if implemented correctly, SMS bots can be extremely beneficial to students, teachers, and parents alike. 

Privacy Concerns

Privacy concerns arising from the bot’s access to so much data could impact the adoption of SMS bots. Developers and educational institutions alike will have to ensure that the data captured is stored securely and not misused in any manner whatsoever. 

Technical Difficulties

New technology brings about technical difficulties in adapting to it. While this can be a challenge, especially for teachers and parents, the right training and information can go a long way in easing the transition to chatbots. 

Final Thoughts: The Future of SMS Bots in Education

When manual work becomes too inefficient, automation can become your best friend. One way is to set up an SMS bot to help students and their parents gain information. Further, SMS bots can ease the burden on teachers and staff by automating several processes. 

Overall, given their extensive capabilities and scalability, SMS bots are bound to become an integral part of education in the years to come. Several institutions worldwide are already realizing the immense potential of these educational chatbots and tools, paving the way for others to follow. After all, efficiency and quality are key, and chatbots have proven they can help achieve these results. 

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an SMS bot, and how does it work?

An SMS bot is a tool powered by artificial intelligence that facilitates effective communication between teachers, students, and parents. It works by taking over administrative tasks or providing learning aids.

What are the benefits of SMS bots for the education industry?

SMS bots offer several benefits in the education industry. They can help improve communication and keep students engaged, increase efficiency, seamlessly integrate with LMS, and reduce the burden on teachers and staff.

How have schools and universities successfully implemented SMS bots?

Several schools and universities have successfully implemented SMS bots by seamlessly integrating them with their LMS and training the stakeholders involved to use them to their benefit effectively.

How can SMS bots be integrated with other education technologies?

SMS bots can be integrated with education technology tools such as LMS and SIS to aid students and teachers in accessing information, tackling administrative tasks, and making these processes more efficient.

What are the best practices for implementing SMS bots in education?

The best practices to remember when implementing SMS bots are ensuring they’re secure and maintaining user privacy. They’re scalable when required and are easy to use for people with varying technical skills.

 

What challenges may arise when implementing SMS bots in education?

Some challenges with implementing SMS bots include resistance to change from the stakeholders involved, technical difficulties in operating these bots, and privacy and security concerns.

What is the future of SMS bots in the education industry?

With several education institutes worldwide implementing SMS bots and building their own, one can expect an increase in their use worldwide, given their ability to improve efficiency and make education more seamless.

Saya Augustin serves as the Associate Director of Marketing at SaaS Labs, bringing over a decade of expertise in diverse marketing disciplines. Her career encompasses successful Go-to-Market launches, Customer Engagement strategies, Account-Based Marketing, Demand Generation, and streamlined Marketing Operations. Shaped by the fast-paced and innovative environment of start-ups, Saya has honed her skills through practical experience with cutting-edge marketing technologies and platforms.

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