Child-Friendly Education Evaluation Consultant. Muscat- Oman, 45 days, full-time (in duty station and remotely)

Consultant Teaching & Training Programme & Policy Monitoring & Evaluation

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UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfil their potential. Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone. And we never give up.

For every child, support.

The Government of Oman – UNICEF Country Programme is centered around two priority outcome areas, one of them is Enhancing Children’s Potential: Children of all ages have more equitable access to quality services in protection, education and health, and enhanced opportunities to realize their full potential. Under this goal area, UNICEF together with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth (MoCSY) built an investment case for a national coalition engaging the government, the private sector, the civil society, and young people to promote 4 strategic priorities related to the Vision 2040 of the Government of Oman. These are namely: 1) education and training that build skills for life, civic engagement, and work, 2) employment opportunities; 3) entrepreneurship mindset and 4) equitable access to quality education, training and employment, equipping young people as problem solvers and engaged members of society.

For every child, champion****.

The fundamental and primary mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias, or favouritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic, and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in child survival, education, and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. Therefore, the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

1. JUSTIFICATION/BACKGROUND

The UNICEF Oman Country Office was established 50 years ago with the intention to accelerate and expedite the results for the children in Oman. For the past 50 years, the economic situation in Oman has shifted to land at being a high-income country with a well-established level of public services and welfare state.

As of 2024, Oman's population is estimated to be around 5.1 million, with approximately 30 percent of the population aged 0 to 19. The country has made significant strides in education in recent decades, achieving universal access to education with gender parity. The Omani government has prioritized education as a key factor in its policies and programs.

The Education Vision 2040 in Oman is a comprehensive strategy that aims at transforming the educational system to meet the demands of a rapidly changing world and contribute to sustainable development. The vision focuses on key elements such as establishing an integrated and independent system to govern and evaluate the educational ecosystem against national and international standards and promoting inclusive education, lifelong learning, and scientific research leading to a knowledge-based Society.

Oman's commitment to fostering a child-friendly education system is a cornerstone of its Vision 2040, which aims to create a sustainable and diversified economy with equal opportunities for all. The alignment of the CFE initiative with Oman Vision 2040's goals highlights the Sultanate's proactive approach to educational reforms and its broader development agenda, that is stated in the new education royal decree 31/2023

Child-friendly education is a holistic approach that strives to create a learning environment that is safe, inclusive, and conducive to learning for all children. It aligns closely with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 4, which aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. This goal is embedded in UNICEF’s Strategic Plan[1] number 2, which aims to ensure that every child has the right to an education.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child further reinforces the importance of child-friendly education by recognizing education as a legal right for every child based on equal opportunity. It mandates free compulsory primary education for all, accessible secondary education, and the availability of higher education based on capacity.

The concept of child-friendly education encompasses various aspects such as child-centered teaching methodologies, safe and healthy learning environments, and the inclusion of life skills and values in the curriculum. UNICEF’s Child-Friendly Schools Manual [2] is a comprehensive guide that helps implement this model, advocating for quality education interventions that benefit every child. In practice, child-friendly education involves creating curricula that are relevant and engaging, promoting active learning techniques, and encouraging the participation of children in their own learning process. It also means involving parents, caregivers and communities in the educational journey, fostering practical learning experiences, and ensuring that schools are free of physical obstacles. This approach is crucial not only for the cognitive development of children but also for their emotional and social growth.

In the Sultanate, a central CFE team has been established within the Ministry of Education (MoE) to analyze educational policies and procedures in line with the CFE initiative. This team evaluated the educational achievements and identified areas for improvement to enhance educational outcomes according to the CFE indicators.

In 2016, an evaluation was conducted to assess the implementation of the pilot CFE initiative in nine public schools across three governorates. The evaluation aimed to determine the initiative's success in improving learning environments and outcomes for students, as well as enhancing community engagement with schools. The evaluation compared the performance of schools to reference schools since the initiative was launched in 2012 in collaboration with UNICEF Oman.

UNICEF Oman, in partnership with the MoE, is commissioning another evaluation to assess the scale up implementation of the Child-Friendly Education (CFE) model in Oman. This assessment aims to assess the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, cross cutting issues and documentation of CFE initiative.

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

The primary purpose of this summative evaluation is to assist the Government of Oman in assessing the CFE initiative in the Sultanate, to evaluate the CFE in the Sultanate after years of implementation to identify areas that need improvement and provide actionable recommendations to support decision-making in developing relevant policies and programmes.

The primary user of this evaluation is the government, particularly the MoE and its directorates across the 11 governorates. Secondary users include the Ministry of Social Development, Ministry of Health and the Vision 2040 Follow-up Unit.

The evaluation objective aims to ascertain the effectiveness and sustainability of the child-friendly inclusive approach in enhancing children's learning, development, and wellbeing. Additionally, it aims to evaluate the program's effectiveness and document the lessons learnt that can be disseminated to other GCC countries, as well as at regional and global levels.

2. THE KEY OBJECTIVE OF THE EVALUATION ARE:

• Assess the alignment of the CFE intervention with the national education policies and programs, focusing on Oman Vision 2040 priorities.
• Examine the educational interventions are child-friendly and beneficial for enhancing children's learning and improving the educational system.
• Ascertain to what extent the CFE initiative in Oman supports inclusive learning for all children.
• Document lessons learned in the implementation of CFE initiative in Oman.
• Provide with actionable recommendations in the implementation of CFE initiative in Oman.

2.1. Evaluation Scope:

Timeline: The evaluation will focus on the CFE initiative in Oman from 2012 to 2023. It is expected to be conducted between August and December 2024.

Participation: The evaluation will seek responses to the evaluation questions from the Omani government and relevant stakeholders including educators, parents and caregivers and communities.

Location: The assignment can be done remotely with the possibility of travel to Oman for data collection.

Language: All deliverables must be provided in English and Arabic.

2.2. EVALUATION CRITERIA AND KEY QUESTIONS:

The evaluation aims to follow a selected OECD DAC evaluation criterion, focusing on relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability. The impact criteria were excluded as the current initiative is relatively new, making it difficult to assess its impact at this time. It will also address cross-cutting issues, including children with disabilities.

The evaluation aims to answer key questions, which will be further refined by the consultant with an approval from the steering committee during the inception phase.

The consultant will develop sub-questions, indicators, and data collection methods as part of the evaluation matrix.

Specific Evaluation Questions are formulated below as sub-questions:

Relevance

• To what extent does the CFE intervention align with the vision of the Omani government and the CFE framework set by UNICEF?
• Were the three-stage mechanisms suitably adapted to the context for implementing the CFE in Oman?
• Do the CFE indicators, based on the CFE principles, effectively monitor the progress of the CFE program in Oman?

Efficiency

• How have the teaching methods and resources been used in implementing the CFE initiative?

Effectiveness

• To what extent intended and unintended output level results have been achieved or not achieved and what are the factors contributed to achieve these results?
• To what extent the CFE mechanisms in the Ministry and directorates contributed to implementation of the CFE intervention?
• To what extent have the capacities of the educators to implement the CFE principles and implementation stages are strengthened?
• Are the teaching methods aligned with the learning outcomes and the resources provided to support the educational needs of the students?
• To what extent are parents, caregivers, students and communities engaged in the Oman CFE initiative?
• The extent to which the CFE interventions changed the students’ skills and knowledge?
• How well the monitoring system tracked the progress and mitigated the challenges encountered?

Coherence

• To what extent is the CFE intervention coherent with child-friendly education interventions in the Sultanate?

Sustainability

• How does the organizational structure of the CFE initiative in Oman support the institutionalization of the initiative?
• How can the CFE interventions be consistently maintained in all governorates and scaled up for the long-term benefits of the educational interventions?

Cross-cutting Issues

• To what extent are children with disabilities and in remote areas included in the CFE system in Oman?

Documentation of lessons learnt

• Document lessons learned in the implementation of CFE initiative in Oman.

2.3. LIST OF STAKEHOLDERS:

Key stakeholders in the CFE intervention in the Sultanate include the Ministry of Education, which initiated and managed the programme. Other crucial government stakeholders involved in ensuring sustainability and alignment with national child-related policies and programs are:

• Ministry of Education.
• Ministry of Social Development.
• Ministry of Health.
• Oman Vision 2040 Follow-up Unit.
• UNICEF Oman.

Secondary stakeholders are:

• Ministry of Finance.
• Environment Authority.
• Sultan Qaboos University.
• Non-Profit Organizations in Oman.

2.5. LIMITATIONS

Oman, like in many countries, conducting evaluations can be challenging due to various limitations that can impact the scope, quality, and applicability of the results.

One such limitation is the collection of quantitative data, typically done through the National Center for Statistics and Information (NCSI) as required by law. This process can be time-consuming, costly, and subject to delays due to the Center's current workload. As a result, the consultant will rely on secondary quantitative data collection in collaboration with the Ministry of Education (MoE) to access available data. This limitation underscores the importance of establishing a robust framework that ensures the availability of relevant data, fosters collaboration among researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders, and promotes a culture of continuous improvement and accountability.

Another limitation is the evaluation budget, as UNICEF Oman has allocated a limited budget for this assignment due to the office’s budget constraints. This may restrict the number of evaluation questions that can be addressed, so the focus will mainly be on effectiveness and sustainability questions that align with the evaluation’s objective.

Overcoming these limitations with alternative solutions is crucial for improving the efficiency, effectiveness, oversight, and stakeholder engagement in evaluations, ultimately contributing to the development of a culture of evaluation in Oman and the wider Gulf Council Countries.

2.6. ETHICAL CONDUCT AND CONSIDERATION

The evaluation report to be produced must be compliant with the UNICEF Evaluation report standards And must also be written in a style that is compliant with the UNICEF-Adapted UNEG Evaluation Reports Standards https://www.unicef.org/evaluation/media/816/file/UNICEF-Adapted-UNEG-Evaluation-Report-Standards.pdf and the GEROS Quality Assessment System https://www.unicef.org/evaluation/global-evaluation-reports-oversight-system-geros.

The inception report, data collection tools and consent forms will go through an independent ethical review. Data collection will only proceed after ethical approval is granted.

The consultant must obtain verbal consent from participants before conducting any FGDs or KIIs. The inception report, data collection tools, and consent forms will undergo an independent ethical review before the evaluation enters the fieldwork stage. All data collected and confidential information shared during the evaluation must be securely stored in a password-protected system by the evaluation consultant.

2.7. DISSEMINATION AND DELIVERABLES CLEARANCE

The evaluation consultant will present preliminary findings and recommendations to relevant stakeholders as part of quality assurance processes and validation. Stakeholders will have the opportunity to reflect on the preliminary findings to enhance their relevance to the CFE programme.

Following the finalization of the report, a dedicated dissemination workshop will be conducted to discuss the findings of the final report.

Primary stakeholders will be actively involved in all stages of the evaluation, including planning and design.

3. EXPECTED RESULTS:

The consultant is required to produce the following deliverables:

3.1. The Inception Report.

3.2. Presentation of preliminary findings and recommendations.

3.3. Draft evaluation report.

3.4. Final evaluation report.

3.5. Final evaluation presentation

Following is the proposed structure for the inception and evaluation report:

• Structure of the Inception Report (Tentative – to be discussed with the consultant for the final outline):

-Response to the Evaluation ToR.

-Evaluation matrix.

-Methodology included a detailed workplan with timeframe.

-Potential limitations of the evaluation according to data availability and reliability.

• Structure of the Evaluation Report (Tentative):

-The report shall be structured as per the UNICEF-Adapted UNEG Evaluation Reports Standards:

-Executive summary.

-Evaluation purpose, objectives, and scope.

-Evaluation methodology.

-Findings.

-Conclusions and lessons learned.

-Recommendations.

5. LOCATION AND DURATION

The work will be conducted for 45 days, in full-time mode. The selected consultant may work remotely except for the data collection to be done in Oman.

6. OFFICIAL TRAVEL INVOLVED

• One round-trip ticket.
• Local travel based on the consultant data collection plan

7. CONTRACT MANAGEMENT

The evaluation will be managed by the Planning, Monitoring, and Evaluation Officer who will also be the Secretariat of the A steering committee (SC) that will be established for the evaluation. The SC comprises UNICEF internal and external primary stakeholders from the government and other relevant entities. The committee will be chaired by the UNICEF Oman Programme Manager. Its role is to provide technical guidance and approve and or endorse key deliverables.

11. CONDITIONS AND ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES

• The contractor will work on its own computer(s) and use his/her own office resources and materials in the execution of this assignment. The contractor’s fee shall therefore be inclusive of all office administrative costs
• All persons engaged under a UNICEF service contract, either directly through an individual contract, or indirectly through an institutional contract, shall be subject to the UN Supplier Code of Conduct: https://www.ungm.org/Public/CodeOfConduct
• Please also see UNICEF’s Standard Terms and Conditions attached.

For every Child support, you are expected to demonstrate:

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter:

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

12.3. UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment.

12.4. Shortlisted candidate remark: Only shortlisted candidates who provide a technical proposal and financial proposal will be notified and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

12.5. All deliverables should be in English and Arabic

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[1] UNICEF Strategic Plan 2022-2025: https://www.unicef.org/reports/unicef-strategic-plan-2022-2025

[2] For more information: please visit: https://www.unicef.org/documents/child-friendly-schools-manual

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Added 3 hours ago - Updated 2 hours ago - Source: unicef.org