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Purpose of Activity/Assignment:
Support Preschool education projects in implementation and monitoring of the project activities aimed at raising the quality of Preschool Education in Uzbekistan (in particular, preschool curriculum, ELDS, teacher support and capacity development components).

Background:
Early Childhood Development and Education is one of the priority areas of the UNICEF Uzbekistan Country Programme. UNICEF has been providing technical assistance to the Government of Uzbekistan in its efforts to improve access to quality Early Childhood Education services.

UNICEF supports the Ministry of Preschool and School Education of the Republic of Uzbekistan in improving the quality of preschool education at the national level through curriculum reforms based on Early Learning and Development Standards (ELDS) and competency-based approach, through raising capacity of preschool teachers, enhancing methodological support through development of teaching and learning materials and resourced, teacher guidebooks, on-line resources and materials.

In the framework of the Islamic Development Bank (ISDB) funded project Enhancing Access to Quality Early Childhood Education in the Republic of Uzbekistan and IsDB/GPE funded SmartEd project, UNICEF is implementing several activities to improve quality of preschool education. With this partnership, UNICEF is expected to support the Government of Uzbekistan towards enhancing teachers’ professional development, improving quality of preschool education through the revision of the preschool curriculum and Early Learning and Development Standards (ELDS), providing capacity building of preschool teachers on revised curriculum and ELDS and development of teaching and learning materials (TLM) in support of Curriculum and ELDS.

UNICEF’s Education section requires a National Consultant to coordinate and facilitate the work related to enhancing quality of preschool education to ensure quality project implementation, monitoring and reporting on the project progress, and timely risk mitigations. The Consultant will provide technical support in the coordination of the work under the above-mentioned projects.

Under the overall guidance of the direct supervision of the ECD Officer the Individual Consultant will coordinate the activities related to revision of the preschool curriculum and ELDS, teacher training and development of TLM and teacher guidebooks in support of revised curriculum and ELDS. The Consultant will provide technical/operational support throughout all the stages of the project implementation and monitoring to facilitate the management and delivery of results and to strengthen process that ensure efficiency and quality assurance.

Duration of the current assignment is April 2025– April 2026 with possible extension depending on project needs.

Scope of Work:
1. Support and facilitate the work on the revision of the preschool curriculum and ELDS by:
2. Support in the development of capacity building of teachers on revised Curriculum and ELDS:
3. Support in the development of the teacher guidebooks and TLM in support of the revised Curriculum:
4. Support in developing online materials for in-service training programme and certification:
5. Support in operationalization of the Teachers’ Professional Standards.

Work Assignments Overview - Deliverables/Outputs - Timeline:

1. Support and facilitate the work on the revision of the preschool curriculum and ELDS: April – September 2025, 60 days

• In collaboration with the International Experts provide technical support in organizing the work of the working group of the National Experts in revision of the preschool curriculum and provide technical inputs based on the best international practices and recommendations of the curriculum review.
• Provide support in development of the digital courses based on revised Curriculum.
• Provide technical support in revision of the ELDS based on the best practices, like UK, Cambridge, Romania and other countries experience and make a clear linkage to the primary education
• Facilitate the work of the working group on revision of the ELDS through organizing the work, providing technical support and guidance together with the International Expert.
• Support in conducting of the validation of the ELDS based on tools and instruments developed together with International Expert in selected preschools (trips to the regions)
• Provide report on the findings and adjust into the ELDS.

2. Support in the development of capacity building package to train teachers on revised Curriculum and ELDS: August – December 2025, 50 days

• In collaboration with the International Consultant provide technical support in the development of the training course for teacher training on revised curriculum and ELDS.
• Provide support in organizing and conducting TOTs and capacity building activities in the regions (trips to the regions to conduct subregional trainings).
• Liaison with MOPSE all organizational issues related to the capacity building component 

3. Support in the development of the teacher guidebooks and TLM in support of the revised Curriculum: June 2025– April 2026, 50 days

• In collaboration with the International Experts provide technical support in the development of the Teacher Guidebooks and TLM
• Facilitate the work of the Working group of national experts in the development of the TLM and guidebooks 

4. Support in developing online materials for in-service training programme and certification: April 2025 – April 2026, 40 days

• Under the guidance of the International Consultant coordinate the work of the WG to develop courses under the LP platform and Platform of the ISTTI in support of the blended system with on-line courses.
• Work with ISTTI team to link LP and ISTTI platform for synergy and linkages

5. Support in operationalization of the Teachers’ Professional Standards: By December 2025, 20 days

• Provide support in preparation of the materials/instruments and training package by leading the work of NWG of experts;
• Support in piloting of the materials/instruments and in preparing report on piloting (trips to the selected regions);
• Support in organization of the workshop to discuss findings of the piloting;
• Support in organization of the TOT for further operationalization of the Standards at regional level. 

6. Provide regular monthly reports: 5 days

• Monthly reports 

7. Perform additional technical programmatic tasks as instructed by the supervisor and agreed by consultant: 10 days

• Additional tasks related to the assignment 

Total 235 days

Travel: At least two visits to each project site - at least 2 travels x 3 days each time.

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

• Advanced University degree in one of the disciplines relevant to the following areas: education, or any other social sciences. 
• More than 5 years of professional and relevant experience in education, preferably in ECD/E in curriculum development, teacher training/capacity development.
• Excellent written and spoken skills in Uzbek and Russian, with preferable working Uzbek.

For every Child, you demonstrate… 

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS). 

 To view our competency framework, please visit  here. 

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic background, and persons with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization. To create a more inclusive workplace, UNICEF offers paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. Click here to learn more about flexible work arrangements, well-being, and benefits.

According to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. In its Disability Inclusion Policy and Strategy 2022-2030, UNICEF has committed to increase the number of employees with disabilities by 2030. At UNICEF, we provide reasonable accommodation for work-related support requirements of candidates and employees with disabilities. Also, UNICEF has launched a Global Accessibility Helpdesk to strengthen physical and digital accessibility. If you are an applicant with a disability who needs digital accessibility support in completing the online application, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

Remarks:  

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. 

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws. 

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.