At the start of the school year, BCHS made the switch from Edficiency to Securly Flex. These two apps enabled students to request specific teachers and activities to be assigned to during our Lancer Block period. The change has been rather controversial among the student body, with many questioning why we switched at all.
According to Associate Principal Mr. Groshek, “the Edficiency platform was discontinued, so we transitioned to the Securly Flex system. Once we get used to it, I think most people will find it easier to use.” On February 1st, 2024, Edficiency was acquired by Securly in a strategic purchase. This allowed Securly to expand its program offerings into block scheduling by eliminating Edficiency as a competitor and incorporating Edficiency into the Flex platform.
There are a few key differences between Edficiency and Securly Flex. The main difference is the layout of the User Interface. While Edficiency used a simple table design with slots showing each of the Lancer Blocks, Securly Flex uses a calendar-based view that shows the available sessions for each day. 10th grader Sarah Wenzler says, “I would like a cleaner UI. It feels a bit cluttered, and it takes a long time to switch out of the default view.”
Another major difference is who you can sign up for. Although you could only be automatically assigned to a teacher you had, students could request a teacher they didn’t currently have in Edficiency. Securly Flex doesn’t have this option, which is disappointing for students who want to visit previous teachers for help or with questions. Ivan Casanova, Chief Marketing Officer at Securly says, “Two features that are unique to Securly Flex are Priority Driven Activity Scheduling and the Auto-Assign Feature. These two features enable your school to offer a broader range of Flex period options and the system makes sure that (a) students are assigned to the most important activities and (b) that every student is assigned to an activity during each period.” The most important thing for students to remember is that the software is meant to support your Block scheduling. Mr. Groshek wants to remind students that “any change comes with an adjustment period, but students and staff are already adapting well. We’re seeing the benefits of Securly Flex, and as everyone becomes more comfortable with it, we expect it to run even smoother than our old system. It just takes some time to get used to a new process.”
The first major update, the addition of email alerts in the morning, has already been implemented. Ms. Silver said, “I want to see the attendance list numbered for the phone caddies.” Sophomore Sarah also mentioned, “[Flex] is very laggy. Sometimes it takes me a couple of minutes to get it to process my selection, and I usually need to repeat the same action several times.” However, students and staff have found some things they enjoy about the new system. “I like that I can see the cap and the number of students that are in a block. It helps me know if I will be able to get into the block,” says Sarah. Ms. Silver says, “I can pull up a student and see what their schedule looks like for the week. I can see what they have already been scheduled for, like Blue Crew or a Biology Boost, so I can make better requests.”
Although adjustment takes time, the students and staff at BCHS have done a good job adapting to the change. “The learning curve is pretty severe, but I am optimistic that the clunkiness will turn into cool features. Hopefully we will find some interesting tools along the way,” said Ms. Silver at the end of her interview.
