Classter and Microsoft Office 365 can create a powerful end-to-end infrastructure that improves the educational experience. Student information systems are prevalent throughout the academic world. And every institution’s objective when deciding to implement such a system is to streamline operations and improve communication between stakeholders.

Although Student Information Systems, such as Classter provide a series of operation-critical functionalities they can be even more effective when integrated with the most popular productivity cloud-software out there: Microsoft Office 365.

Microsoft Office 365 for education

Microsoft Office 365 is Microsoft’s cloud and subscription-based service that delivers all the productivity application tools that businesses and educational institutions all over the world have come to depend on: Web versions of Word, PowerPoint, Excel, OneNote, and Outlook.

Additionally, it provides a desktop version of OneNote and the digital communication hub, Microsoft Teams, among others.  More than that, Microsoft has undertaken many initiatives on promoting education and empowering students to achieve more, free of boundaries set by location. That’s why they offer the Office 365 for free to students and teaching staff to accredited academic institutions all over the world. This edition is web-based only and additionally to office web applications it offers also a number of web services such as One Drive, MS Teams, SharePoint, Forms etc.

Classter Student Information System

On the other hand, Classter is one the most powerful Student Information Systems (link to news post) that provides all key features required by all academic institution for effective administration: Elementary, High school, College or University or even any kind of academy. Its modular and web-based architecture offers complete automation for all operations of educational institutions Also, it Combines administration, learning, teaching and assessment, in one single platform. Finally, an educational institution that has implemented Classter can supply personalized web portals to any type of end-user (student, teacher, parent, applicant, employee, alumni).

So, here are a few ways that these 2 cloud-based tools, Classter and Microsoft Office 365, can work in sync, creating a powerful and integrated platform that enhances learning inside and outside the classroom.

Single Sign-On mechanism

By enabling Office 365, end-users will log on using the secured and reliable Microsoft Authentication service for Office 365. Using this single sign-on mechanism, end users can access any Office 365 application from within the Classter portal. Single sign-on with Azure Active Directory using OAuth 2.0 allows students and teachers to authenticate with their existing Office 365 credentials.

Email Provisioning

With Classter, email inboxes are automatically provisioned by Classter. With the term automated provisioning, we mean that every account created in Officer 365 will have the same security access as was configured on the Classter platform.

Integration with MS OneNote

Students in Classter can be associated with students in OneNote and assignments created in OneNote are automatically created in Classter. Any OneNote mark is sent directly to Classter.  This integration takes advantage of OneNote’s Class Notebook which is a versatile add-on that gives teachers and students an unlimited canvas to collaborate and create rich content. The integration between Classter and Class Notebook can be implemented in 4 easy steps:

1. Connect Classter with OneNote
2. Map your Notebooks
3. Create an Assignment
4. Review and Submit Grades

You can review the whole process in this Youtube video.

Classter is proud to be a Gold Microsoft’s Education Partner,  providing homework/marking assignments via the Class Notebook add-on and integrating its Academic module with Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI).

Integration with MS OneNote

Any subject in Classter is associated with Office 365 SharePoint libraries or OneDrive, allowing the creation of personalized digital libraries that can be accessed only by the students assigned to a Class or Session. OneDrive and SharePoint enable seamless collaboration within and beyond the classroom. Individual students or staff can store, sync and share documents, photos and videos with ease. It enables the creation and organization of classroom content.

Integration with MS Teams

This powerful integration creates a digital hub than enables communication between educators and students. Teachers can manage assignments and marking from Class Notebooks. On the other hand, students can have open communication and collaboration

Wrap-up

The integration between Classter SIS and Microsoft Office 365 enables the flow of data from Office 365 directly to Classter. Students, Teachers and Parents information will sync automatically, staying accurate and up to date. The Single Sign-On mechanism allows users to sign-in to their Office 365 accounts with their Classter account credentials. That allows users to access educational material without leaving the Classter environment.