Consultant to Produce Core Teaching and Learning Materials (TLM) Package for Foundational Literacy and Numeracy in Basic Education at UNICEF

Under the supervision of the Chief Education, the consultant will be responsible to produce core teaching and learning materials (TLM) package for Foundational Literacy and Numeracy in Basic Education over the course of the 4-month contract.

Scope of Work:

• Collating all TLMs identified by Field Office staff which are used by UNICEF for procurement and distribution across pre-primary education through junior secondary education;
• Reviewing relevant guidance (including but not limited to the Nigerian curriculum, international guidelines and guidance from programmes such as RANA and TaRL which are currently implemented in Nigeria) to develop a checklist of criteria for selecting quality, relevant TLMs which are age- and developmentally appropriate, gender transformative, disability inclusive culturally relevant and contextualized;
• Mapping all of the collated TLMs against this checklist to identify whether each meet the required quality standards and to identify gaps where further materials may need to be identified;
• Working with FO and NCO colleagues to identify relevant materials as needed to fill the identified gaps;
• Curating core TLM packages based on the identified materials which:
• cover different age/grade groups (pre-primary education, primary 1-3; primary 4-6; and junior secondary)
• are differentiated for use by the whole class, small groups and individuals
• are differentiated according to learners’ diverse needs and can accommodate disabilities and special educational needs
• are available in mother tongue and English as relevant by grade level
• Meeting with Field Office colleagues to review the curated packages and revise them as necessary based on at least one round of FO feedback;
• Develop a cover-page note for each package to guide teachers and school personnel on how to use them; and
• Developing a brief guidance note for UNICEF FO colleagues to guide their procurement and distribution of the packages.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… 

• An advanced university degree (Masters or higher) in Primary and/or Secondary Education/Pedagogy, Education Development, Education Policy, Social Policy, International Relations, or a related field
• A minimum of 10 years of experience in education sector policy, with a focus on learning quality, including education sector plan development and implementation and education policy.
• A minimum of 8 years of experience in improving learning quality, ideally with a focus on curriculum or learning materials development, teacher professional development, quality pedagogy, and teaching and learning approaches in basic education
• Demonstrable experience supporting the development, implementation, and scale-up of effective approaches for improving learning quality, ideally focused on developing and rolling out quality, curriculum-aligned content for basic education focused on foundational literacy and numeracy.
• A minimum of 5 years working experience working in or as a direct consultant for UN organizations and/or Ministries of Education
• Strong working knowledge of key international guidance on curriculum and teaching/learning content development
• issues, including the status of the humanitarian-development nexus nationally and at the state level in Nigeria, particularly as it relates to education for girls and marginalized populations.

Other skills and attributes:

• Experience working in Nigeria, West, and Central Africa region, or other similar development contexts
• Strong knowledge of the Nigerian political landscape and recent developments in education
• A good understanding of UNICEF’s programmatic areas, namely Education (especially Education in Emergencies), social policy, and child protection
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, with experience translating evidence for and communicating with a broad range of actors (including government) on sensitive issues
• Ability to present ideas concisely for diverse audiences and to give practical, actionable advice grounded in evidence