A paper sheet needs no setup and works in any room. A digital roll call needs phones and a connection; in return it ties each signature to a person, a device and a time.
Short answer
A paper sign-in sheet needs no setup, phone or connection, but it does not verify who signed, lists are typed into the SIS by hand and later changes leave no trail. In DAS students sign by QR code from their registered phone, corrections carry a reason and roll calls reach the SIS nightly. This needs phones, a network and setup.
Signing for someone else
Paper sign-in sheet
The sheet moves from desk to desk; nothing on paper shows that a student signed for a friend.
DAS digital roll call
Students sign with their own account from their single registered phone. Signatures from the same phone in one roll call are marked as a shared device.
Time spent in class
Paper sign-in sheet
The sheet goes through every student’s hands; the bigger the class, the longer it takes.
DAS digital roll call
The QR code is projected and students scan at the same time. The lecturer sets the roll call to 3, 5, 10 or 15 minutes.
Tools and setup
Paper sign-in sheet
Paper and a pen are enough; no phone, connection or setup is needed.
DAS digital roll call
Students need a phone, the mobile app and a network connection; every signature is checked on the server. Setup connects the SIS and institutional sign-in.
Getting records to the SIS
Paper sign-in sheet
Sheets are collected, read and typed into the SIS by hand.
DAS digital roll call
Roll calls are written to the SIS every night, and unchanged rows are not resent. Today DAS runs with the Proliz SIS.
Corrections and their trail
Paper sign-in sheet
A signature added later or crossed out may be impossible to spot, and nothing says who changed it.
DAS digital roll call
After the class hour, changes go through a request approved by student affairs. Manual adds, removals and approved corrections keep the previous and new record, who did it, when and why.
Location and device data
Paper sign-in sheet
Paper holds no record of when or where a signature was made.
DAS digital roll call
A student’s signature is tied to the registered device and stored with its time. The institution sets the location rule to off, informational or required; location alone is not treated as proof.
Reports
Paper sign-in sheet
Sheets are collected and counted by hand during or at the end of term.
DAS digital roll call
Lecturers download the course attendance report as Excel or PDF. Student affairs follows class hours opened week by week across the units in its scope.
If the network or power goes down
Paper sign-in sheet
No effect; the sheet keeps going round.
DAS digital roll call
Signing needs a network. If no roll call could be opened, a late opening is requested; if signatures are missing, a correction; a paper sheet can be attached to the request.
A paper sheet works for small one-off meetings whose records never go to the SIS, or at a moment with no connection at all. It needs no setup and anyone can sign without a phone.
For regular class attendance, where records must reach the SIS and later changes must be traceable, a digital roll call fits. Signatures are tied to a person and a device, corrections need a reason, and student affairs no longer collects sheets.
The two are not exclusive. In DAS a paper sheet kept during an outage is attached to a correction or late opening request and enters the record once student affairs approves it.
Daily roll calls are taken by phone. A paper sheet kept during an outage can be attached to a correction request as a PDF or image.
