Facilitate Implementation of National Assessment Framework for Afghanistan NAFA through Development of Standardized Test Items Item Bank Summative Classroom Examinations for Grades 3 and 6 as Well as Review of End Year Examinations Policy

Request for proposals are invited for Facilitate Implementation of National Assessment Framework for Afghanistan NAFA through Development of Standardized Test Items Item Bank Summative Classroom Examinations for Grades 3 and 6 as Well as Review of End Year Examinations Policy UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN S FUND UNICEF Wishes to invite you to submit a proposal forFacilitate implementation of National Assessment Framework for Afghanistan NAFA through development of standardized test items item bank summative classroom examinations for grades 3 and 6 as well as review of end year examinations policy Issue date 17 May 2020pre bid meeting 21 May 2020 at 10 a m through skypeClosing opening date and time 08 June 2020 at 02 00 PM Afghanistan TimeAnnex A General Terms and ConditionsAnnex B Technical Evaluation CriteriaAnnex C Financial evaluation formatIMPORTANT NOTE Interested vendors must respond to this tender using the UNICEF e submission system via the UNGM portal In order to access the full UNICEF tender details request clarifications on the tender and submit a vendor response to a tender using the system vendors need to be registered as a UNICEF vendor at the UNGM portal and be logged into UNGM For guidance on how to register on UNGM and submit responses to UNICEF tenders in the UNICEF e submission system please refer to the user guide and other resources available under this tender document By completing and signing the Bid Form the Bidder acknowledges that they have read and agree with the attached Annex A on General Terms and Conditions and especially Article 7 on UNICEF s Ethical Standards in regards to prevention of fraud and corruption child labour and any form of sexual exploitation or abuse These ethical standards are equally applicable to the Bidder and its personnel agents affiliates and subcontractors10 Facilitate implementation of National AsSHORT TITLE OF ASSIGNMENTFacilitate implementation of National Assessment Framework for Afghanistan NAFA through development of standardized test items item bank summative classroom examinations for grades 3 and 6 as well as review of end year examinations policy PROPOSED START DATE END DATE 01 July 2020 31 December 2020LOCATION OF REQUIRED SERVICESKabul AfghanistanBACKGROUNDOverall education situation in Afghanistan Afghanistan is a war torn country that has suffered from ongoing conflict for almost four decades with recurrent natural disasters and large population movements These conditions have adversely affected the country s education system which lacks human and financial resources to provide quality basic education services The UNICEF Ministry of Education MoE Out of School Survey 2018 report estimates that 3 7 million children are out of school 60 percent or over two million are girls The reasons for this trend are multiple such as poverty insufficient relevant learning teaching resources capacity limitations in formal schools to take on additional children social norms affecting girl s education shortage of competent teachers especially qualified female teachers only 38 of teachers in Afghanistan meet the minimum grade 14 requirement 34 female thus affecting the participation of girls in learning opportunities because of reluctance of parents communities to send their daughters to schools dominated by male teachers Furthermore the Monitoring of Trends in Education Growth MTEG assessment in 2013 has revealed that only 12 of primary school students reached the minimum proficiency level MPL level of reading Proficiency in language and mathematics for grade 6 students in Afghanistan is equal to that of grade 4 students in neighboring countries like Iran Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan Despite the above challenges considerable progress has been made over the past couple of years in terms of access to education Enrolment has increased from 1 million in 2002 to 9 million by 2018 EMIS 2018 The priority of the MoE and partners is therefore to improve education quality and relevance ensuring that learning is focused on the results and competencies outlined in the National Education Strategic Plan 2017 2021 NESP III UNICEF through the 2015 2021 Country Program of Cooperation with the government of Afghanistan has committed to help MoE strengthen the National Assessment Framework for Afghanistan NAFA which entails strategic focus on formative assessment tools test items design and development as well as revision of examinations policy Background to learning assessments in Afghanistan In 2017 UNICEF supported through a consultative process led by the Australian Center for Education Research ACER the elaboration and set up of a National Assessment Framework for Afghanistan NAFA provides strategic direction to enhance Afghanistan s learning assessment system by 2021 in line with the NESP III Its development process considered several potential components of a national learning assessment system and resulted in the prioritization of five areas over the next four years 2017 2021 The five goals are outlined below 1 Strengthening classroom based assessment for formative purposes with emphasis on promoting learning of students 2 Developing standardized end of year classroom assessments 3 Supporting the development of a national survey based assessment to monitor the education system with regard to producing high quality learning outcomes 4 Investigating future opportunities to participate in international comparative assessments 5 Exploring options for the development of a standardized national examination for Grade 9 students By November 2019 NAFA implementation plan was completed after a series of consultations with many stakeholders alongside trainings for Key MoE staff as a Core Technical Team CTT to be engaged in all processes of NAFA implementation The plan provides strategic guidance on how each component of NAFA goals is to be addressed The MoE has prioritized strengthening capacities of its staff in the development of standardized test items for different grades 3 and 6 initially actual creation of the bank as well as revision of policies guidelines related to examinations for formative assessment The next step will focus on standardizing mid and end year classroom assessment system across board in Afghanistan OBJECTIVEThe objective of this assignment is to facilitate the implementation of National Assessment Framework for Afghanistan NAFA through development of standardized test items item bank summative classroom examinations for grades 3 and 6 as well as the review of end year examinations policy SCOPE OF WORK ACTIVITIES TASKS DELIVERABLESThe technical assistance proposed is part of the joint 2020 21 UNICEF MoE rolling work plan 2020 21 aimed at strengthening and streamlining learning assessment in Afghanistan The assignment will be led by an international Institution supported by a national team appointed by the lead firm The institution is responsible for the performance of the national team and is accountable for the quality assurance of its deliverables in addition to reporting and coordinating with UNICEF The assignment will involve close coordination and collaboration with the MoE s Core Technical Team CTT composed of representatives from Teacher Education Academic Council General Education Policy and Planning Academic Supervision Curriculum Development and Learning Assessment Directorates The assignment will be coordinated by General Directorate of Academic Supervision which will subsequently report to the office of Deputy Minister for General Education The specific tasks and deliverables to be completed by the institution firm are Activities Tasks 1 At the application stage the firm should detail their clear understanding of the assignment against each of the deliverables as well as a detailed timeframe for each activity the proposed approach they will use to undertake the assignment and attach the CVs of all the team both international and national that will be working on the assignment to be submitted with the proposal clearly indicating relationship to specified tasks and deliverables 2 The firm should prepare a financial proposal to be submitted with the technical proposal please note that the financial proposal should not be part of the technical proposal but a separate document submitted as part of the call for proposals 3 The successful firm will prepare and present an inception report clearly specifying their understanding of the assignment the process and methodology they will use undertake the assignment that will be presented to MoE taskforce for their approval to ensure that both parties are on the same page as far as the assignment is concerned 4 Develop an item test bank for all subjects grade 1 6 through a hands on mentorship training approach to strengthen MoE capacity around in depth understanding of item response theory development assessment lifecycle and role of an item bank in a national assessment program 5 Support the MoE with the development of standardized end of year classroom examinations for all subjects in grades 3 and 6 The process should include developing a subject based assessment framework writing items of high technical quality using peer based quality assurance process piloting items on a sampled number of children using cognitive laboratories refining items based on feedback from cognitive laboratories 6 Provide technical support to the MoE to review amend guidelines and policies related to national examinations and develop a system to ensure effective monitoring and mentorship of teachers on formative assessment applications at national provincial district and school levels

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