The Global Education Cluster (GEC) seeks to develop an improved recommended methodology to estimate the number of people reached by Education in Emergencies (EiE) interventions both at the country and global levels. In countries where Education Clusters are activated, Education Cluster Coordinators and Information Management Specialists are in charge of setting approaches to monitor the implementation of EiE activities, and to estimate the total number of children and teachers reached through these activities. For that, the teams propose standard EiE activities and the corresponding indicators to their Cluster members, include and monitor them in the 5W tool (Excel or ActivityInfo), and aggregate data from these few indicators by using simple formulas such as the maximum number at the lowest administrative level for the same category of people. These activity indicators can but are not necessarily linked with the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) output indicators that Education Cluster teams have to provide at the beginning of a year’s humanitarian cycle and report on during the following year.

The lack of standardized indicators and a common approach to aggregating numbers of people reached by different activities makes the aggregation of the 30+ country figures challenging at the global level. Because activities, indicators and formulas used differ from one country to another, the global figure of children reached by EiE activities and the comparison of country achievements cannot be considered reliable.

Conversely, the provision of a standardized methodology would reduce the time spent by country teams devising indicators and adapting their approach every year. Furthermore, the alignment of HRP output and 5W response indicators would also help save time by having to adapt and select these indicators only once during the HNO-HRP process. It would also provide Education partners with a longer-term visibility on these indicators, allowing them to improve their monitoring and facilitate this exercise over time, resulting in a better reporting. Most importantly, this would contribute to improving the monitoring of partners’ interventions performance, the analysis of gaps, and adapting the response and funding requests accordingly. At the global level, the implementation of one methodology would support the analysis of EiE activities and link them with SDG 4 reporting, allow comparison of country achievements and the production of a more reliable figure of children and teachers reached.

While there are a few existing country cluster methodologies which the consultant will review and use to inform the recommended methodology, the choice of indicators and calculation method will be done through a comprehensive review of the indicators which are most used by country teams and most pertinent to report activities, outputs and people reached in HRPs and 5Ws. In addition to using relevance and quality criteria to screen these indicators, the consultant will consult country Education Cluster Coordinators and IMOs to provide advice and confirm the selection of the recommended indicators, while ensuring that the data is widely available for these indicators, that they complement each other, and that overlap is minimized. The selection of relevant activities and indicators will also take into account People in Need (PiN) dimensions and indicators to align response activities with the nature and severity of the humanitarian situation.

As part of the recommended methodology, the consultant will also consider different options to estimate the numbers of children reached in relation to numbers of teachers reached, and vice-versa. While the ideal scenario will rely on specific activity indicators for each, in some cases the number of teachers reached will be estimated on the basis of children reached and vice-versa (ratios). Similarly, the consultant will have to propose solutions for different units of analysis, most likely the child and school levels, for which different services and ratios will need to be considered.

While this outline is the best combination between feasibility and reliability, the consultant will have to propose an alternative for situations where country Clusters start their activities and do not have a monitoring tool (5W). In these situations where Education Cluster members are not able to provide numbers of children and/or teachers reached by the different activities, the consultant will propose an alternative methodology using proxy indicators such as numbers of schools supported, water points built/rehabilitated, etc. and apply a standard beneficiary/facility ratio.

In addition to this work on people reached, the consultant will also develop GEC guidelines to calculate numbers of people targeted for humanitarian response by reviewing existing documentation from the GEC (People in Need methodology and presentations on targeting options), country Education Clusters (methodologies on people targeted), OCHA (HPC Response Analysis and Prioritization Guide) and having consultations with country Education Clusters teams, GEC data specialists, OCHA NARAS & APMB teams to identify realistic and relevant options for calculating numbers of people targeted.

Work Assignment Overview

Tasks / Milestone******Deliverables / Outputs******Timeline / Deadline Analysis of available country clusters 5W (Who does what, where, when and for whom) and Humanitarian Response Plans (HRP) response indicators for the years 2019, 2022 and 2023 (these will be shared by the GEC).Descriptive and exploratory analysis of 5W and HRP response indicators and the relationship between the two (Excel and narrative formats – maximum 8 pages).8 working days;

By 28 July 2024

Analysis of 3-4 country Education Clusters people reached methodologies.Narrative summary of findings, including relationships with the key activities and indicators recommended and practical recommendations for monitoring the response (maximum 5 pages).3 working days;

By 28 July 2024

Selection and recommendation of key activities, indicators and units of analysis to use for response monitoring and people reached using relevance and feasibility criteria, improvement and standardization of these indicators and ratios for units of analysis, covering the most important components of EiE response. The selection of activities and indicators will be done in consultation with the GEC Deputy Coordinator for Operational Support and IMO. As much as possible, it will also take into account People in Need (PiN) dimensions and indicators to align response activities with the nature and severity of the humanitarian situation. Out-of-school children will be included through specific indicators.Narrative using findings from the analysis to recommend key activities and indicators which can be used for 5W and HRP response monitoring both at the country and global levels (maximum 20 pages).10 working days;

By 25 August 2024

Consultation with 4-6 country Education Clusters teams (same or different than above) to review and confirm the proposed activities and indicators, ensuring that the data is available for these indicators, that they complement each other (EiE response), and that overlap is minimized. Together with the review of country methodologies, these consultations will also help the consultant to propose aggregation methodologies for the country and global levels.Narrative summary of findings, including potential changes to the key recommended indicators and practical recommendations for monitoring the response, including solutions to improve the level of reporting by Education Cluster members (maximum 8 pages).6 working days;

By 25 August 2024

Consultation with country Education Clusters during GEC country clusters retreatPresentation of recommended indicators, draft methodology for monitoring the response, and solutions to improve reporting. Summary of feedback from participants and adjustments to the methodology.3 working days;

By 01 October 2024

Final version of the methodological guidelines to estimate numbers of children and teachers reached by EiE activities, including list of key indicators to use for 5W and HRP response monitoring, the articulation between the two, solutions for different units of analysis, response monitoring, solutions to improve reporting by partners, and aggregation methodologies for both the country and global levels. The guidelines will include an alternative methodology using proxy indicators such as numbers of schools supported, water points built/rehabilitated, etc. and apply a standard beneficiary/facility ratio.Methodological guidelines in Word format and Excel (key activities, indicators and formulas in template).10 working days;

By 20 October 2024

Review of existing documentation from the GEC (People in Need methodology and presentations on targeting options), country Education Clusters (methodologies on people targeted) OCHA (HPC Response Analysis and Prioritization
Guide) and having consultations with country Education Clusters teams, GEC data specialists, OCHA NARAS & APMB teams to identify realistic and relevant options for calculating numbers of people targeted.Guidance note on different options and preferences for calculating numbers of people targeted for humanitarian response.15 working days;

By 20 October 2024

Requirements:

• Master’s degree in Education, Data Analysis, International Affairs, International Development.
• Minimum five (5) years of relevant experience including technical skills in data collection, analysis, development of indicators, and response monitoring essential.
• Previous experience with the IASC Cluster Approach an asset.
• Experience in Education in Emergencies programming or the humanitarian sector an asset.
• Strong communications skills.
• Fluency in English, working knowledge of French or Spanish is considered an asset.