Consultant - Communication and Information

OVERVIEW

Parent Sector : Communication and Information Sector (CI)

Duty Station: Paris

Job Family: Communication and Information

Type of contract : Non Staff

Duration of contract : From 1 to 6 months

Recruitment open to : External candidates

Application Deadline (Midnight Paris Time) : 06-OCT-2020

 

UNESCO Core Values: Commitment to the Organization, Integrity, Respect for Diversity, Professionalism

 

OVERVIEW OF THE FUNCTIONS OF THE POST

 

Background:

 

This request for proposals calls for a desk review and the organization of a UNESCO consultation to examine the feasibility to piloting blockchain technology to promote the mainstreaming of Open Educational Resources (OER) content and practices for knowledge sharing and learning.

In the field  of OER , blockchain technology may be relevant to  creators, adapters, curators and end users of OER as a means to permanently affirm the authenticity of authorship; incentivize and increase OER revisions and remix through assigning of value to collaborative work; and promote transparency and improve discoverability.

 

Blockchain is an immutable, time-stamped digital ledger that records the creation of and all changes to content: through a hash value assigned to each event (these are recorded in “blocks”). In the case of OER, blockchain technology can affirm all examples of authorship, revisions, and remixes. It can also be designed to record most cases of reuse or redistribution of OER among institutions and publishers. Blockchain ledgers rely upon decentralized nodes such as among educational institutions, school systems, research networks and repositories.

 

In  this regard, the Communication and Information Sector, in line with its mandate to support Innovation and Digital Transformation, and in the framework of the UNESCO OER Recommendation 2019, is undertaking a review of the potential of blockchain to support the effective use of OER for knowledge sharing and learning. 

 

Under the overall authority of the Chief of Section for Innovation and Digital Transformation (CI/DIT), and the direct supervision of the Programme Specialist responsible for Open Educational Resources (OER) and digital competencies, the individual consultant shall undertake the following tasks in the area of OER and blockchain:

 

 

1.  Conduct a desk review of past and ongoing papers, activities, implementation, actors and emerging issues as they relate to both educational and non educational  matters
    
2. Based on the above, identify key issues to be considered in the implementation of blockchain on OER, including in the framework of the UNESCO OER Recommendation. These issues include: potential challenges to blockchain application in OER, energy consumption, platform choice, investment requirements, the possibility of automated solutions and any other technical or educational issues of concern for the implementation of blockchain on OER.
    
3. Provide a list of key experts to be invited to a consultation on the use of blockchain for OER (name, title, institution, country, email)
    
4. Present the outcomes of points 1 and 2 at a consultation of experts on blockchain and OER
    
5. Consolidate the outcomes and recommendations of the consultation of experts on blockchain and OER (point 4)

 

 

Deliverables and timeline

Deliverable 1 – draft points 1 to 3 - 15 November 2020
Deliverable 2 – final draft points 1 to 3, presentation of point 4 - 30 November 2020
Deliverable 3 – point 5 ‘Outcomes and recommendations of the consultations’ - 15  January  2021.

COMPETENCIES (Core / Managerial) Accountability (C) Communication (C) Innovation (C) Knowledge sharing and continuous improvement (C) Planning and organizing (C) Results focus (C) Teamwork (C) - For detailed information, please consult the UNESCO Competency Framework. REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

• Advanced university degree (Masters or equivalent and above) in education, communication, social sciences or related field with experience with the use of blockchain for educational purposes.

 

Work Experience

• At least 5 years of relevant experience, at least one at the international level in education with a focus on OER and  ICT &Education
• At least 1 year of relevant work experience related to the use of blockchain, preferably for educational purposes

 

Long Description

Skills/Competencies

• Ability to work efficiently in a multi-cultural and multi-lingual environment and team spirit
• Demonstrated experience in communicating project implementation actions and results in a Multilanguage context.
• Knowledge of UNESCO/UN rules and procedure
• Ability to implement communications and publications strategies
• Advocates effectively
• Communicates sensitively and effectively across different constituencies
• Excellent communication skills, excellent writing skills
• Demonstrated ability to conceptualize issues and analyze data to compile and synthesize information in coherent and succinct formats;
• Sharing knowledge across the organization and building a culture of knowledge sharing and learning. Promoting learning and knowledge management/sharing
• Excellent coordination and negotiation skills;
• Demonstrated ability to use office equipment with computer literacy in graphic design, publication design, multimedia products development, web design, web content, etc.
• High attention to detail and ability to work under tight deadlines
   

Languages

Excellent knowledge of English (oral and written).
 

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

Interested candidates should click on “Apply Now”, and or if the button is not visible, look for, download and complete the Employment History form (Word file). At the end of the Word file, insert extra pages with the following required information:
 

• A letter indicating how their qualifications and experience make them suitable for the assignment.  
• CV
• A competitive fee to be charged for the assignment, which should be quoted in USD (maximum total fee for this contract 10 000 USD).

Additional Information

• No travel to the duty station is supported 
• This contract is for a period of 3 months.  Estimated start date is: 15 October 2020
   

Assessment

• Only applications providing the information requested under application procedure will be considered.
• Evaluation of qualified applicants may include an assessment exercise and a competency-based interview

SELECTION AND RECRUITMENT PROCESS

Please note that all candidates must complete an on-line application and provide complete and accurate information. To apply, please visit the UNESCO careers website. No modifications can be made to the application submitted.

 

The evaluation of candidates is based on the criteria in the vacancy notice, and may include tests and/or assessments, as well as a competency-based interview. 

 

UNESCO uses communication technologies such as video or teleconference, e-mail correspondence, etc. for the assessment and evaluation of candidates.

 

Please note that only selected candidates will be further contacted and candidates in the final selection step will be subject to reference checks based on the information provided.

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