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Introduction. School administrators are currently responsible for more information than ever. New state testing and reporting requirements make retrieving and processing needed information even more cumbersome and time consuming. These new data required for every student, multiply the amount of information school administrators are held accountable for.
Problem. Part of the solution to this problem lies in selecting appropriate data-management software. Administrators are confronted with unsystematic information about which software is most useful. This study evaluated Apple Macintosh compatible software from the administrator's perspective. The Apple Macintosh was selected for this study in light of: (1) its predominance in the school environment; (2) the perception of its being more "user friendly"; and (3) the perception less training and vendor support is required.
Procedure/methods. One hundred secondary school administrators were surveyed to determine their perceived data-management needs. Software directories, trade and professional journals were researched to find which software was available to respond to those needs. I then selected the five most widely used packages to evaluate. Finally, ten "users" of each package evaluated their respective software, using a four-point rating scale.
Results. The appropriate selection of computer hardware and software can assist school administrators. The key components and the Macintosh packages rated best were: (1) ease of use--Modular Management Systems; (2) error handling--Administrative Answer; (3) ease of learning/installation--Inspector, Classifier, Reporter; (4) documentation--MacSchool; (5) system security--MacSchool; (6) vendor support--Modular Management Systems; (7) overall performance--Modular Management Systems.
Conclusions and policy implications. Because evaluations of the latest computer software are highly perishable, the following structures should be established for long term evaluation, selection and support: (1) increase computer training for administrators--software vendors should provide regional training programs for administrators, (2) make the best software affordable for all schools--while software vendors need to decrease prices, federal and state monies need to increase, (3) improve graduate computer education for administrators--graduate level institutions must update their curriculum to reflect the latest technology, (4) form software sharing networks--Departments of Education should publish annual comprehensive software reviews, (5) simplify evaluation and selection procedures--trade and professional journals should publish comparative software review instruments.