Support ministries of education in Solomon Islands and Vanuatu in identifying and supporting children at risk of dropping out (Consultancy)

Do you have a demonstrable experience in teaching or teacher education field with focus on at risk and vulnerable children? UNICEF Pacific would like to hear from you!

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you.

For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children's survival, protection and development. The world's largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.

Purpose of the Assignment

The issue of out-of-school children and children at risk of dropping out in SI and Vanuatu remains a major challenge. According to Knoema 28.5% of primary school-age children in SI were not enrolled in 2013 and the cumulative drop-out rate to the last grade of primary school for Vanuatu in 2008 was 28.5% according to Koema. The primary net enrolment rate for Solomon Islands and Vanuatu is one of the lowest in the region with Solomon Islands at 88.7% and Vanuatu at 88%. To achieve SDG 4, there is a need to identify who are the out-of-school children and children at risk of dropping out and why they are not enrolled or are at risk of dropping out.

Assignment Tasks

Under the supervision of the UNICEF Pacific Chief of Education and with support from the Education Specialist based in Suva as well as the education teams in Honiara and Port Vila, the consultant will work in close collaboration with MEHRD and MoET staff to:

1. Develop an inception report detailing the approach to conducting rapid assessment, developing key indicators for identification of children at risk and proposing appropriate interventions, and developing the self-learning module.
2. Conduct a rapid assessment of the situation of children at risk of drop out (who are they, why are they at risk, what to date interventions have the ministry and schools taken to address the issue of children who are lagging behind and are at risk of dropping out). The assessment should also look at reasons children have been absent for more than five days per month and/or have dropped out of the education system all together. Discussions with ministries of education, provincial school authorities, teachers and families will need to be carried out to include their perspectives.
3. Hold in-depth consultations and discussion with the ministries of education in both countries to identify potential policy directions that would help schools developing key indicators and practical interventions that would support children who are lagging behind and are at risk of dropping out of school.
4. Hold a 4-day workshop with selected schools in targeted provinces in both countries to develop school specific indicators and interventions to reduce absenteeism and potential drop out, which could be included in their school improvement plans.
5. Hold at least 2 workshops (4 days each) per country with teachers on identifying learning difficulties among children and practical tips that they can actually do in the classroom to support the children with learning difficulties.  Second workshop should be deciding on the content of the self-learning module and how it should be designed to best support teachers.
6. Design the first draft self-learning module for teachers with proposed suggested illustrations/pictures that would help teachers better study the module.
7. Jointly with ministries of education and targeted schools in both countries develop indicators and a mechanism whereby children at risk of dropping-out are identified and provided support to stay in school until completion of Year 6 (end primary).
8. Provide a final report outlining findings and tools developed along with policy recommendations that can inform ministries of education in Solomon Islands and Vanuatu in making policy decisions regarding truancy and drop outs.

Expected Deliverable

The following deliverable have to be submitted for SI and Vanuatu separately:

1. Inception report outlining in detail the approach to carry out the tasks outlined in this TOR and methodology to be applied.
2. Draft report outlining the proposed key indicators and interventions that ministries of education have identified to support at risk children (at policy level), and specific targeted indicators used by schools and teachers to identify children at risk and with mitigation strategy and interventions to
3. Final drafts of the self-learning modules for teachers on identifying and supporting children with learning difficulties.
4. Final report that includes key indicators developed jointly with ministries of education and schools in Vanuatu and Solomon Islands (includes workshop report), key policy direction recommendations that would guide ministries of education with future policy development especially truancy policy.

Note: All reports and module need to be submitted to UNICEF electronically and the contractor is responsible for ensuring that the reports are edited and proofread.

Qualifications of Successful Candidate

Education

Advance degree in Education or Social Sciences with minimum of 8 years of demonstrable experience in teaching or teacher education field with focus on at risk and vulnerable children. Degree in special education would be an asset.

Years of relevant experience

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Strong background in education policy and addressing learning needs of children at risk of dropping out
• Proven experience in developing teaching and learning materials.
• Experience in participatory facilitation and training
• Similar experience in designing interventions for at risk children
• Experience of coordinating diverse teams and communicating with individuals/groups at all levels

 Personal Competencies of Successful Candidate

• Excellent communication skills; ability to explain complex concepts in a simple manner;

• Strong analytical, presentation and excellent report writing skills in English;

• Able to work effectively in a multi-cultural environment and a high sense of integrity.
• To view our competency framework, please click here.

Languages

• Fluency in English, verbal and written.
• Knowledge of French and Pidjin/Bislama is considered an advantage.
• Ability to use computer - Microsoft Word, Excel, Internet.

Detailed copy of the Terms of Reference is attached:  EXTERNAL Solomon Islands Vanuatu At Risk Children.docx

TO APPLY: Interested applicants are to include the following documents in their submission:

• A cover letter describing how you meet each of the requirements listed above (max. 2 pages)
• Most recent and updated CV/Resume 
• Completed Expression of Interest (EoI) form attached  Vanuatu & SI Chn at Risk 2017 EOI.doc
• Applications missing the above 2 required documents will not be considered.

For any questions or clarifications in relation to the above consultancy please contact us at pacificvacancies@unicef.org. DO NOT forward any applications to this email address as they will not be considered, all applications must be submitted online on the UNICEF Employment page.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organisation.