Abstract:

EduTrac is a mobile phone-based data collection system under pilot by UNICEF and Ugandan Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES).

The Ministry is using EduTrac to monitor priority indicators that need to be collected on a more frequent basis than the annual school census allows. This data guides primary school support efforts, even as it feeds into planning activities for the education sector and programs with development partners. Head teachers, P3 and P6 teachers, members of school management committees (SMCs), and members of the Girls’ Education Movement (GEM) respond to periodic polls via SMS. The reports they send are visible to District Education Officers (DEOs) and national officers through a web-based reporting dashboard. SMS messages are sent free of charge from any mobile network in country through short code 6200.

At the district level, the DEO is accountable for EduTrac. The DEOs manage and promote the use of EduTrac within schools, make follow-ups with schools, and take action based on information submitted by reporters in their district. EduTrac aims to support districts in their efforts to improve planning for education, as well as enable them to provide targeted responses more quickly to schools. At the school level, different groups of reporters respond to different polls. The data collected through EduTrac monitors a range of indicators, including: pupil and teacher attendance, violence cases reported in schools, SMC meetings, curriculum progress, and the functionality and availability of latrines and water points.

EduTrac is currently deployed in 34 districts. It has roughly 10,000 valid reporters and is in over 3,500 schools. Thanks to funds from the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), it is anticipated that EduTrac will be fully managed by the MoES in 2015, and will be scaled to all districts in Uganda shortly thereafter.

This paper will seek to highlight lessons learned and best practices noted during the design, roll-out and transition phases. Geared towards practitioners, it will focus on practical recommendations and strategies for working effectively with government and INGO partners.

Keywords:

Mobile, SMS, UNICEF, development, education, primary, data.