Empowering teachers, parents, and students with a smart digital platform for seamless school administration

Context & Challenge

Education stands at the core of a nation's development, yet challenges persist in delivering widespread education due to corruption and manual inefficiencies, impeding national progress.

Education is particularly prone to corruption. Corruption is a fact of life in many schools in Niger. Money changes hands between parents and administrators or principals so that an unqualified student can access a higher grade level or change a test score to receive a scholarship. Such forms of bribery give those with means an unfair advantage over better-qualified students. In some areas, students often loose several days per month to absent teachers. The administrator of an average Nigerien school with 2’000 students spends several weeks per year to manually prepare the yearly class enrollment lists. A teacher spends on average 3 minutes calculating and recording a homework and overall grade for a student.

For a school of 2’000 students with 24 classes each, this takes 1’200 hours. Additionally, an administrator spends 30 minutes per student calculating final grades and rank, or a total of 1’000 hours per school. They spend another 500 hours compiling student lists and recording by hand ID cards, and certificates of enrollment. Schools are understaffed and teachers are overworked. Due to the manual admin work, they lose valuable time that they could better spend with the students and their parents. This affects student learning outcomes negatively.

The Solution

One of the cheapest and most effective ways to increase transparency and accountability in the fight against corruption is the introduction of school management software. Properly implemented, school management software has the ability to promote technology in schools, reduce corruption, lower school operating costs, and increase administrative efficiency and the utilization of existing resources. It gives schools a clear example of how IT can improve their lives and communities.

• Software increases transparency: It enhances digital and physical data security.

• Software boosts productivity: Teachers and administrators automate the usual time-consuming tasks like time-table creation, attendance, etc.

• Software improves communication: Parents stay updated on children’s education. The Parent Portal stimulates engagement and participation.

Gabera builds a free, open-source and flexible school management and learning platform to reduce corruption and increase student learning outcomes. In a pilot phase we work with 10 schools with a total of 20’000 pupils.

The Process

Armed with firsthand insights, we noticed a digital gap in regional school administrations. Extensive consultations with school principals underscored the pressing need for a digitized administrative solution. Our engagement with diverse education stakeholders provided invaluable insights into the nuanced requirements of administrators, teachers, and students, facilitating a more efficient school year organization. Leveraging this profound understanding, we meticulously crafted a cutting-edge, fully digitized school software. Upholding a commitment to ongoing, proactive communication with school representatives, we swiftly address emerging needs and challenges. This approach ensures our school software remains robust, sustainable, and seamlessly empowers school administrations, setting a new standard for efficient educational management.

Development and Design: In the inaugural version of our school software, paramount emphasis was placed on ensuring user-friendly accessibility across all educational institutions. Hence, an initial local installation is conducted, enabling proactive training sessions for schools to harness the software efficiently. The software boasts a customized user management system catering to administrators, teachers, students, and parents, delivering comprehensive insights into the school year. Beyond overseeing academic calendars and timetables, the software seamlessly digitizes all grades, ensuring unparalleled transparency for all stakeholders. User experience stands at the forefront, guaranteeing intuitive operation without exhaustive guidance. The design mirrors interfaces of globally acclaimed software, cultivating an immediate sense of familiarity and ease upon the first interaction.

The Result

Our innovative school software presents a cutting-edge open-source solution accessible to all school administrations. Beyond the digital transformation of school operations, our software establishes unparalleled transparency within a nation's education system, eradicating any potential exclusion of children from schooling. By embracing our digital school software, schools and students become active participants in the ongoing digital revolution. This transformative initiative empowers educational institutions and students alike, emphasizing the importance of inclusive education for all. Through our efforts, we contribute positively to sustainable national development.

What is coming next

Next phase in 2023 and 2024 includes testing and project expansion.