App makes every school day count

School attendance matters, and a missed school day is a lost opportunity to learn. A daily flow of reliable data can measure not only attendance, but also student progress; evaluate instructional effectiveness; guide resource allocation; promote accountability; and, most importantly, ensure that every child learns. But, it is nearly impossible to collect this data in schools with little or no internet connectivity.

To facilitate data collection in every school, FHI 360 developed an Android-based app, the m360 School Information System (SIS), that gathers information on schools in real time and reports this information to higher administrative levels with or without an internet connection. The system has the capacity to send an entire school database via SMS. SIS tracks information on school infrastructure, attendance, classroom performance and financial information. It performs recordkeeping chores previously done on paper, sending daily updates via Bluetooth, the internet or SMS to a main database. National-level data is presented via dynamic dashboards.

In 2016, SIS was operating in more than 4,400 schools and 1,100 administrative and support offices in Tanzania. It helps to reduce absenteeism, support school-level decisionmaking and promote efficient planning. The data shifts education information use from occasional policymaking to continuous improvement in performance. Local actors and national policymakers alike are now empowered to make informed decisions that affect school, and student, success.