Job: National Researcher on Secondary Education

Location: Myanmar 
Deadline: Monday, 07 October 2013 

Description

Note to interested candidates: The following Asian Development Bank (ADB) individual consultancy—with terms of reference (TOR) outlined below—is currently advertised on ADB's Consultant Management System (CMS) at the following web-link: https://uxdmz06.adb.org/OA_HTML/adb/xxcrs/jsp/ADBCsrnFwd.jsp?sel=110171 If you wish to be considered please log on to the above website to submit an expression of interest (EOI) before the deadline of 10:30PM (Yangon time) on Monday, 7 October 2013. Please note that:

• The advertisement is for an individual consultancy (not for a firm), although individuals associated with a firm or non-government entity are eligible to apply;
• Civil servants are not eligible for consideration;
• EOIs should be submitted using the above CMS website; and
• Candidates not yet registered in ADB's Consulting Management System (CMS) will need to register before they can proceed to submitting an EOI. CMS registration can be done via the EOI page (by clicking on 'Register as an Individual Consultant' near the upper right corner of the entry screen). It's also advisable to click 'Save' frequently during various CMS-related processes, to avoid possible data loss. Thank you for your potential interest in this position. ,

OUTLINE TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR National Researcher on Secondary Education (national; 6.0 person-months)

Objective and Purpose of the Assignment

The technical assistance (TA) project—to be administered by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), in partnership with the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID)—directly supports Myanmar's Comprehensive Education Sector Review (CESR), which is led by the Ministry of Education (MOE), coordinating inputs from other agencies and many development partners (DPOs). The TA will mobilize international and national experts to support analyses, policy dialogue processes, conceptualization of potential investments, and other agreed activities under the umbrella of the CESR, with a focus on post-primary education (PPE): i.e., the secondary education subsector (SES), technical and vocational education and training (TVET), and higher education subsector (HES).

To flexibly meet varied and shifting needs for international best practice and in-depth local knowledge within the CESR process, experts inputs will consist of (i) formal consultants, to be recruited as individuals; and (ii) resource persons needed to provide focused, short-term inputs (up to 10 working days maximum). Experts will be recruited by ADB in dialogue with the MOE and other relevant agencies involved in PPE work under the CESR, and will work closely with the CESR Office, to ensure linkages with other elements under the CESR. A knowledge plan will be developed early in the TA (and updated periodically, as needed) to provide an overall framework for reports,workshops, and other knowledge sharing and dissemination interventions under various suboutputs. To ensure responsiveness to evolving government needs and harmonization with inputs from other DPOs during Phases 2 and 3 of the CESR, the TA involves a flexible design, which specifies a total of six initial sub-outputs that will directly support CESR Phase 2 (in-depth assessment), while allowing subsequent sub-outputs to be added later in Phase 2 (if needed) and after priorities for ADB support to CESR Phase 3 (formulation of a Costed Education Sector Plan [CESP] laying out sequenced priority investments) have been clearly identified. Three initial international experts and three initial national researchers will collectively support initial sub-outputs under CESR Phase 2, centering on:

(i) SES analysis, under sub-output 1.1;

(ii) TVET analysis, under sub-output 1.2;

(iii) HES analysis, under sub-output 1.3;

(iv) formulation of an SES curriculum reform framework and implementation plan, under sub-output 2.1;

(v) a policy note series, under sub-output 2.2;

(vi) a policy forum series, under sub-output 2.3.

Scope of Work

The National Researcher on Secondary Education (national; 6.0 person-months) will work under guidance from the ADB-mobilized Expert on Secondary Education Policy and Curricular Reform, and will principally support data collection, field study, and analytical elements under sub-output 1A to support CESR Phase 2 and Phase 3 analysis on SES.

Detailed Tasks and/or Expected Output

Subject to a detailed work plan to be agreed with ADB and the CESR Office, the Researcher will provide the following types of technical inputs, as well as any other tasks as may be reasonably be requested by ADB or the CESR Office:

(i) Based on a detailed review of the overall terms of reference for CESR Phase 2 and other relevant planning documents, work closely with international Expert on Secondary Education Policy and Curricular Reform and CESR sub-team responsible for SES to develop a detailed work plan for inputs during Phase 2 (to be updated prior to Phase 3 and more frequently as needed);

ii) Based on the detailed work plan agreed with ADB and the CESR Office, support the noted international Expert, CESR Team, and ADB staff in the design, organization, and implementation of data collection related to various dimensions of SES related to access, quality, and management. This may include compilation of existing reports, supporting dialogue with relevant department and institutions, small-scale surveys of representative institutions offering secondary education, and/or other forms of collection;

iii) As needed, take a lead in or support systematic management of relevant data and information collected, potentially including data entry and data cleaning, summary translation of information, etc.

iv) Support the international Expert, CESR Team, and ADB staff in carrying out analysis and developing relevant reports, tables, etc., as an input to broader CESR Phase 2 and 3 reports. Take a lead in elements of the analysis, based on an agreed division of labor;

v) Make related contributions to relevant policy notes (under output 2), workshops, etc.

Minimum Qualification Requirements

The Researcher should have relevant educational credentials (preferably at least at a masteral level), and shall have significant experience and demonstrated capacity in quantitative and qualitative analysis, preferably including prior experience in activities involving policyrelevant analysis and/or field investigation related to the education sector.

He or she should have strong skills in data and information management and quantitative analysis (including using spreadsheet and preferably also statistical analysis software), as well as good spoken and written English skills.

More Info and Application