Automation of the candidate registration for school examinations in Zambia using the cloud model

Abstract

Registration of candidates is one of the activities examination bodies undertake in order to fulfil their mandate of conducting examinations and awarding certificates to deserving candidates. In today’s world, utilisation of information and communication technology (ICT) has become an integral component in organisations to improve efficiency and effectiveness. This study’s focus is on the candidate registration process at the Examinations Council of Zambia (ECZ), a body mandated to conduct public examinations in Zambia. A baseline study was conducted in order to understand the challenges faced by ECZ in the registration of candidates for school examinations. The results of the baseline study show that 80 percent of the challenges were attributed to the current desktop application’s failure to capture all candidate entries leading to omission of candidates, duplication of entries and loss of data. The study also revealed that 91 percent of the respondents use internet and 92 percent submitted that using a web based system for registering candidates for national examinations would improve efficiency. Based on the results of the baseline study, a candidate registration model based on the cloud architecture was designed and used to develop a prototype that integrates mobile application, the bulk short message service (SMS) and barcode technology. The test results of the proposed system showed improved efficiency and reduced cycle time in the candidate registration process.