What Are Unduplicated Counts?
An unduplicated count is an aspect of a practice used to accurately account for all active children involved within a particular school district or, any other designated early childhood activity. The practice in which unduplicated counts are a facet is using unique identifiers for each individual participant of a system, otherwise known as UIDs (unique IDs). However, although they have suitable applications in multiple fields, the practice of using a unique identifier will fall most often within the purview of school districts. In that education, unique identifiers are more commonly used to establish an unduplicated count.
What Exactly Are Unduplicated Counts Used for, and How Do They Work?
Unduplicated counts are ideally assigned as early as possible. Depending on the area in which a child lives and/or what school their parents intend to enroll them in, the assignment of a UID can come as early as birth or as late as enrollment in school or any other activity that would happen to fall within the umbrella of the school district administering said UIDs.
When considering the assignment of a UID, it is also essential to consider the fact that a school district or department of education’s methods of assigning and controlling UIDs may differ based on what method they use to control this aspect of education.
Once a child is enrolled in a school district, for example, their UID will be assigned and allow for their unduplicated count, insofar as their unique ID will not be changed, replaced, or, in any way duplicated. That ID will be used for the remainder of that student’s time within the said school district to identify and account for them. This unduplicated count ensures that the school district will have an accurate and up-to-date database of students at their disposal to use for decision-making within the school and district itself.
Having unduplicated counts of students allows schools to have a much easier time with organization and other mundane daily tasks and dramatically helps in the grand scheme of things. Unduplicated counts supply schools with data regarding their student body, the distribution of students across different grades and ages, and much more. With data like this, schools are able to get the accurate and necessary funding for existing or additional programs and budget accordingly based on the number of students accounted for via UID and their needs. Having a clean-cut and reliable system such as using unduplicated counts in education makes life much easier for students, parents, teachers, and all staff involved in the administration and management procedures within school districts.
How Are UIDs Assigned and Monitored?
Depending on the state or school district, a UID can be assigned or monitored in various ways. However, with the growing influence of cloud computing and information technology being used in education, many school districts have turned to the use of SaaS (software as a service) solutions for their UID assignment and management. Using a high-quality software product for monitoring and assigning UIDs not only ensures that the risk of manual error is mitigated when accounting for students but also makes organizing and collecting data based on UIDs alone much simpler.
Read our Case Study with New Mexico and how our unique identifiers helped NMPED every child in New Mexico an equal opportunity for success by building an integrated data system that would enable policy makers to make informed decisions about early childhood programs and policies.
