September 2012, Maryland – WebFirst, Inc. and the HavServe Volunteer Network (HavServe) have formed a strategic partnership to improve classroom instruction and better evaluate teachers by collecting student data in rural communities in Haiti, using mobile technology for the upcoming school year. WebFirst will be designing, developing and implementing an elementary school data system for rural communities in collaboration with HavServe in Haiti and will expand data collection for multiple student outcomes and help educators and stakeholders find areas for improvement.
The goal is to improve data collection and analysis, which is needed to comply with the Millennium Development Goals 2 in Haiti and HavServe CEO, Joyce M. Hunter believes it will accomplish three major goals on the country’s education reform agenda:
- The data collection will help evaluate the effectiveness of teachers and administrators,
- Provide information to help legislators make well-informed decisions and
- Predict primary school students difficulties to improve learning and encourage career readiness among students.”
The data also will be available for legislators and other stakeholders, so they can address educational issues with an accurate picture of student challenges and performance in rural communities. Carline Brice, HavServe, Executive and Founder along with Kristin Derry, HavServe Education Program Coordinator will launch the data collection project in September 2012 and look forward to the metrics it will produce. “I am proud of the work of HavServe in Haiti to promote access to primary education for all children and we are working to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for education reform in rural communities in Haiti,” Ms. Brice comments on the program. “Utilizing mobile technology and the use of high quality data will increase the ability of stakeholders to improve instruction and student outcomes.” “We are very excited to be working with HavServe in applying mobile technologies to helping increase access to education in Haiti,” said Sanjay Patel, President and CEO of WebFirst, Inc.
“We feel strongly that mobile will play a key role in helping organizations to streamline data collection and assessment efforts, while increasing their ability to deploy resources where they are needed most.” WebFirst and HavServe look forward to this partnership that will empower villagers with the education, training, and basic services necessary for them to play an ever-increasing role in determining their own futures and creating a sustainable Haiti.
