Government of Antigua and Barbuda Public and Social Sector Transformation Project (Ln 8269-AG) Curriculum Development Specialist (PP 4.4.5) Labour Department, Ministry of National Security and Labour Terms of Reference
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BACKGROUND
1.1 The Government of Antigua and Barbuda has received from the World Bank a loan in the amount of US$10,000,000 (ten million dollars) to implement the Public and Social Sector Transformation (PSST) Project. The objectives of the Project are to: (i) strengthen the management of the public sector and make more efficient use of its human resources; (ii) enhance the government capacity to develop coherent and efficient social sector policies and interventions on the basis of evidence; and (iii) strengthen and increase the coverage of intermediation services and competency-based training programs to enhance its effectiveness in increasing the ability of persons between the ages of 17 to 50 years to find and maintain a job. The objectives of (iii) above will be realised with activities under Component 4 of the PSST Project - Supporting active labour market programmes. 1.2 The Labour Department will receive assistance to transform its existing One Stop Job Centre into a fully functioning One Stop Employment Centre (OSEC) with interventions to increase the employability of the low-income unemployed population between the ages of 17 to 50 years. Under the PSST Project, the Labour Department is introducing the Antigua and Barbuda Skills Training and Empowerment Programme (ABSTEP) with the objective of improving the income and employability of the vulnerable population through temporary employment and training programmes. ABSTEP includes two interventions: Temporary Employment Programme (TEP) and Training Programme (TP). The TEP will provide income support to the less experienced, low-income and unemployed through a temporary job plus lifeskills training module, while the TP will provide re-training and competence certification to the more experienced among the low-income unemployed population. Both programmes will offer life skills training (LST). 2.0
CURRENT SITUATION
2.1 There are LST curricula and experienced LST facilitators in Antigua and Barbuda. However, the curricula and materials are not individually or collectively suitable for the purposes of the ABSTEP. For instance, the Antigua and Barbuda Institute for Continuing Education (ABICE) has an e-literacy programme but it falls short of the needs of ABSTEP. A coherent, professional, and comprehensive LST curriculum is required for ABSTEP. In this regard, GOAB wants to engage a consultant to develop an electronically-administered curriculum and to prepare the available and experienced LST facilitators to deliver the ABSTEP-specific curriculum. PSST Project: TOR for Curriculum Development Specialist (3 Dec 2013)
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2.2 This consultancy therefore focuses on developing a curriculum that is contextually relevant and ABSTEP-specific. It could be new, or adopted or adapted to an existing curriculum, or the result of adjusting the existing e-literacy programme. It should be administered electronically. 3.0
PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this consultancy is to support the Labour Department in institutionalising a national LST curriculum to be used for the ABSTEP. The objectives of this consultancy are: (a) To produce a core life skills training curriculum for adults 17 to 50 years old; (b) To develop a cohort of experienced LST facilitators to deliver the curriculum; (c) To assist in strengthening OSEC capacity to offer services for life skills training. 4.0
CONSULTANT’S ACTIVITIES
The Curriculum Development Specialist is therefore expected to conduct the following activities; (a) Review the ABSTEP Operational Manual to understand the TEP and TP and the life skills training requirements; (b) Review the ABICE e-literacy curriculum and other existing LST tools and material to determine the extent to which they can be adapted for ABSTEP; (c) Consult with the management staff of the four leading training institutions and other relevant stakeholders to gather, evaluate, and organise content tailored to the targeted cohort; (d) Use learners and facilitators to conduct mock/pilot test of the curriculum’ training methodology, tools and materials; (e) Incorporate into all course work the learning objectives, instructional design methodology, adult learning principles and testing/evaluation methods; (f) Assess the capacity of available and experienced LST facilitators against the desired competences to deliver the ABSTEP LST curriculum; (g) Develop and administer the LST Train-the-Trainer programme; (h) Solicit feedback from key persons on products arising from this assignment. The consultant will execute these activities in collaboration with the relevant departments within the Ministry of Education, Sports, Youth, and Gender Affairs; Ministry of Health, Social Transformation, Community Affairs and Local Government; and with the identified training institutions. PSST Project: TOR for Curriculum Development Specialist (3 Dec 2013)
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DELIVERABLES
The consultant’s activities are expected to produce the following: (a) An inception report with an assessment of the current situation and an action plan to deliver the listed products; (b) An outline (skeleton) of a one hundred twenty (120) hour LST curriculum submitted to LDTU for feedback and further guidance, and should include: a. Course outline: Course objectives, trainers, course duration, training outcome, course topics, training methodology, testing and certification conditions; b. Course structure and content: Time table and content for each training session for every training day of the whole training duration; c. Lesson plans: Lesson/ session title, lesson objectives, teaching methodology, main activities of each training session. (c) Training material: training material for the trainers/facilitators and learners including visual presentations, assignments, handouts, etc. which are required for the lesson plans; (d) A draft of the full LST curriculum that incorporates feedback from LDTU and the key training institutions on the skeleton curriculum and the training material; (e) A mock exercise to test the delivery method and contents of the LST curriculum; (f) A second draft curriculum that incorporates feedback from the learners who participated in the mock exercise; (g) A final LST curriculum for ABSTEP endorsed by LDTU; (h) Training sessions for: i.
at most five (5) skilled LST facilitators and two (2) OSEC employees on the core curriculum and how to deliver it electronically;
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at most four (4) teachers/tutors to deliver the adult literacy curriculum to the ABSTEP beneficiaries;
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at most two (2) facilitators to become master trainers of new facilitators to enable the master trainers to teach the training programme for the target group.
(i) An ABSTEP LST Facilitator Guide for Adult Learners that incorporates course outline, course content, lesson plans and relevant and useful resources; (j) An ABSTEP LST Learner Workbook that includes learning objectives, exercises and assignments and other learning resources; (k) A Train-the-Trainers Manual for the master trainers. 6.0
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
PSST Project: TOR for Curriculum Development Specialist (3 Dec 2013)
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The consultant will possess the following:
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At least a master’s degree (or equivalent) in Curriculum development, Instructional Design and Technology or related field relevant to LST and literacy training;
A minimum of three (3) years’ professional experience in curriculum review, design, and implementation preferably for adult learning, and in a developing country context;
Teaching credentials, with sound knowledge of the needs of adult learners, interactive educational programmes and behavioural interventions;
Proven experience in programmes involving skills transfer and trainer training;
Excellent cross-cultural communication skills, both oral and written;
Ability to establish strong working relationships with a range of government and community stakeholders;
Excellent facilitation and presentation skills preferably with adult learners.
Proficient skills in Microsoft Office applications: Word and PowerPoint; REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
The consultant will report directly to the Assistant Labour Commissioner and consult with the ABSTEP Programme Coordinator for all technical guidance and quality assurance during the assignment. In addition, the Assistant Labour Commissioner will facilitate the consultancy process by certifying deliverables and the quality of outputs produced by consultant. The consultant will, as required, submit written reports to the Assistant Labour Commissioner and the Project Coordinator in the PMU. 8.0
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
The contract duration will be for thirty (30) days between 1 January to 30 March 2014. The contract may be subject to extension for a period of time and subject to terms and conditions agreed to between the Bank, the Government and the consultant. The consultant will need to make no more than three (3) visits to Antigua and Barbuda one of which should be at most ten days (10) days. These visits will be used to collect information through consultations, for training, and to deliver presentations to stakeholders. The assignment should start as soon as practicable. 9.0
PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS
The assignment is a lump sum contract and the consultant will receive payments according to a payment schedule linked to deliverables.
PSST Project: TOR for Curriculum Development Specialist (3 Dec 2013)
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