INTERNATIONAL CONSULTANT – Teacher Education Curriculum Development

I. Background:

UNESCO, in partnership with the Ministry of Education (MoE), is working to strengthen pre-service teacher education in Myanmar within the framework of the “Strengthening pre-service Teacher Education in Myanmar (STEM)” project which addresses four fundamentally important aspects of pre-service teacher education: to formulate a policy framework of pre-service teacher education and identify standards for quality assurance; to improve a system of pre-service teacher training institutions - Education Colleges (ECs) - by restructuring and redesigning the curriculum and building networks amongst them for knowledge and experience sharing; to develop institutional and human resource management capacities of ECs; and to mainstream inclusion and equity issues in teacher education.

Under the project, UNESCO is supporting MoE to produce syllabi, student teacher textbooks and teacher educator guides for the new four-year pre-service teacher education degree, to be implemented in 25 ECs across states and regions in Myanmar. The first and second years are considered to be foundation years, focusing on preparing student teachers to acquire basic knowledge and develop skills to teach primary and middle schools respectively while the third and fourth years provide primary and middle specialization tracks for student teachers to choose to get more in-depth knowledge and experience in teaching students of the particular schooling levels. The curriculum of the four-year pre-service teacher education degree is to align with the new basic education curriculum, which is being implemented gradually in Myanmar.

In 2017, UNESCO International Bureau of Education (IBE) collaborated with UNESCO Myanmar Project Office to support MoE in conducting three week-long training workshops to a team of MoE-appointed national teacher educators (known as Curriculum Core Team (CCT)) in curriculum development skills, drawing on a draft EC Curriculum Framework to develop a detailed course programme, subject syllabi, student teacher textbooks, and teacher educator guides for a new competency-based teacher education curriculum for the four-year programme in 25 ECs.

The national CCT consists of around 100 teacher educators from the 25 ECs and three Universities of Education. This ensures that the skills they acquire during the training of curriculum development skills will benefit Myanmar for continued revisions and improvement of the teacher education curriculum for years to come.

UNESCO facilitated a team of international and national experts to support the curriculum development process. The Year 1 student teacher textbooks and teacher educator guides were successfully developed in both Myanmar and English language versions and were reviewed and revised several times as part of a comprehensive national consultation process. The CCT, together with MoE, UNESCO, and other supporting development partners, guided the drafting process through review of drafts. The MOE Department of Higher Education (DHE) has provided overall guidance of the work. Over 2,000 teacher educators of 25 ECs were trained to deliver the new Year 1 curriculum in October and November 2019. The Year 1 curriculum of a total of 14 subjects/ learning areas was rolled out in December 2019.

The development of Year 2 subject syllabi, student teacher textbooks and teacher educator guides started in July 2019 to follow the same process as the Year 1 student teacher textbook and teacher educator guide development. With a team of international and national experts and CCT, the first draft of Year 2 curriculum of a total of 14 subjects/ learning areas has been developed.

Upon receipt of feedback, the third and final drafts of Year 2 student teacher textbooks and teacher educator guides will be completed by May and June 2020 respectively. After the necessary approval process by the relevant Government committees, teacher educators will be trained on the delivery of the Year 2 student teacher textbooks and teacher educator guides between September and November 2020 and the new Year 2 curriculum will start being used in all 25 ECs in December 2020.

In addition to the curriculum development process, UNESCO will support MoE to plan, design, and deliver necessary professional development activities for teacher educators to prepare them for teaching the new competency-based EC curriculum.

An international consultant is sought to provide technical expertise and quality assurance and to provide contributions to the Year 2 and 3 curriculum development process by December 2020.

II. Work Assignment:

Under the overall authority of the Director of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education, the direct supervision of Head of Project Office in Myanmar, the day-to-day guidance of the Senior Education Project Officer and in close collaboration with the STEM project team, the Individual Specialist will provide critical input to the curriculum development process for the new four-year pre-service teacher education programme through performing the following tasks:

· Ensure Year 2 student teacher textbooks and teacher educator guides are of good quality, relevant to the Myanmar context and in line with international standards in close collaboration with a team of international and national experts and CCT through the organization of workshops and subject group meetings;

· Update draft Year 2 subject syllabi reflecting any changes in the first, second, third and final drafts of Year 2 student teacher textbooks and teacher educator guides and, if applicable, any changes in the basic education subject syllabi;

· Support the coordination of the Year 2 curriculum training from September to November 2020 by planning, designing and conducting training of trainers and training workshops with Ministry of Education-assigned curriculum core team members, EC principals, vice-principals and teacher educators;

· Support the coordination of the translation of the subject syllabi, and the translation and copy-editing/proofreading and layout design of the Year 2 student teacher textbooks and teacher educator guides, together with the project team and other contractors;

· Revise draft Years 3 and 4 subject syllabi based on the updated Year 1 and 2 learning outcomes on the EC subject syllabi and basic education subject syllabi;

· Support the coordination of the Year 3 curriculum development process from September to December 2020 by providing technical support on planning, designing and conducting necessary workshops and consultation meetings with curriculum development contractors, Ministry of Education-assigned curriculum core team members, curriculum writers, resource persons and curriculum reviewers for different subjects;

· Provide technical guidance on planning the piloting of Year 3 curriculum in selected ECs, together with the project team and other international and national experts;

· Contribute to the design, development and delivery of necessary professional development modules tailored to prepare teacher educators to teach the new competency-based curriculum, with due consideration to teacher educators’ professional development needs identified through implementation of the Year 1 curriculum and consultations with stakeholders;

· Participate in relevant sub-sector working group meetings and/or other coordination mechanisms relating to curriculum development reforms with the Ministry of Education and other development partners and provide input to ensure alignment of teacher education curriculum and basic education curriculum; and

· Provide timely advice to the project team and the Ministry of Education on ensuring the curriculum planning, development and implementation process is as effective, efficient and inclusive as possible.

III. Deliverables and Timeline:

1. Monthly progress reports on the achievements and challenges encountered in delivering the outputs related to the work assignment by the end of each month between July and November 2020.

2. A final report summarizing the activities carried out, achievements, challenges and lessons learnt over the contract period to be completed by the end of December 2020.

3. A mission report, indicating the purpose of the mission, main activities including what was done during the mission, persons met and main points discussed, outcomes of the mission and follow up action points, is required to be submitted within two weeks after the end of each mission.

IV. Location and travel:

1. The Individual Specialist will be based in UNESCO Myanmar Project Office in Yangon.

2. The Individual Specialist will be provided with a round-trip economy class air ticket between his/her place of origin and the duty station Yangon, Myanmar, in addition to the terminal fares as per UNESCO rules and regulations.

3. During the contract period, the Individual Specialist's necessary visa and stay permit fees will be reimbursed by UNESCO.

4. The Individual Specialist is responsible for obtaining UNDSS security clearance prior to each approved mission.

V. Fees:

· Senior level international consultant;

· The lump sum is established on the basis of a daily rate based on UNESCO rules and regulations and depending on qualifications; and

· Travel costs for missions undertaken within the context of the assignment will be reimbursed as per UNESCO rules and regulations.

VI. Required Qualifications for Specialized Knowledge/Experience:

Education and experience:

· At least Master’s degree with specialization in education, international development or a related field;

· At least ten years of experience in the field of education development, preferably relating to curriculum development, inclusive education, assessment, teaching and/or educational research. Previous experience in teacher education reforms, preferably at the international level, would be desirable; and

· Good knowledge of the Myanmar country context would be desirable.

Skills and competencies:

· Proven research and analytical skills; excellent organizational skills; proficiency in using common office ICT productivity tools; ability to work independently on delegated tasks and collaboratively in a multi-cultural environment; excellent communication skills; and excellent writing and speaking skills in English.

How to apply:

Interested applicants are invited to submit in writing to the UNESCO Myanmar Project Office:

a) A cover letter (in English) and clearly referencing “International Consultant – Teacher Education Planning, Management and Monitoring”, indicating how your qualifications and experience make you suitable for the assignment, and the methodology and approach(es) to be adopted to carry out the assignment;

b) The expected consultancy fee;

c) An up-to-date CV, with contact details including telephone numbers and email address;

d) The contact details of three referees; and

e) A writing sample.

UNESCO places great emphasis on ensuring that the objectives of the work assignment, as described in the Terms of Reference, are met. Accordingly, in evaluating the proposals for the assignment, attention will focus first and foremost on the technical elements. From those proposals deemed suitable in terms of the criteria in the Terms of Reference, UNESCO shall select the proposal that offers the Organisation best value for money.

Your application should reach yangon@unesco.org by email (please mention “International Consultant: STEM Outcome 2” in email subject line) no later than 17:00 Hours Yangon time, GMT +6:30, on 31 May 2020.

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.