Expression of Interest nb. 83422393 Short term expert to configure and assist with tablet devices for E-Learning - 18.2208.9-001.00 QuA-VET

Brief information on the project

The project "Improving the Quality and Attractiveness of Vocational Education and Training in Lebanon" aims to increasingly align vocational education and training in sectors with sustainable employment potentials with the needs of the Lebanese economy.

Emphasis is placed on improving the partnership between vocational training institutions and the private sector, strengthening human resource capacity in vocational training institutions, and developing practice-oriented training programs. The target groups of the project are young people, unemployed and underemployed adults who want to improve their employment prospects through qualifications relevant to the labor market.

The implementing partner is the Directorate General for Vocational and Technical Education (DGVTE), which lacks capacity at various levels to involve the private sector in vocational education and training. This concerns curriculum development, teacher training and the expansion of practical elements in teaching. The project's advisory approach includes establishing and advising coordination bodies with representatives of the state vocational training sector and company representatives at the macro and steering levels, piloting cooperation models between vocational training institutions and the private sector, systematic human resources development in public vocational training institutions and testing competency-based, modularized training programs.

Context

Background – E-Learning

Considering the current COVID-19 pandemic and the stumbling economic situation that are affecting Lebanon at several levels, TVET schools and institutes are not opening on a regaluar basis since March 2020 and are likely to stay closed most days of the week during the whole academic year 2022/23.

Based on the experience in e-learning which the GIZ project’s ProVTE and VTE4all have collected, and considering that the teaching and learning at distance will be a constant in the future in the form of blended learning, the QuA-VET project intends to develop the technical theoretical subjects of the following two sectors in e-learning modality:

• BT1 and BT2 “Maintenance of Manufacturing Machines
• TS1 and TS2 “Health Inspection and Food safety”

This will ensure that students are receiving the necessary support to access the technical theoretical subjects as e-lessons and that their learning is not interrupted due to the instability in the country. Moreover, the lessons in EL modality will be a support for teachers for in presence lessons, whenever more face to face teaching will be taking place. 

Outline of the mission

To assure the equal access of students, from all the technical schools involved in BT “Bâtiment et Travaux Publics”, to the e-lessons uploaded on the Learning Management System (LMS), 500 computer tablets have been distributed during 2020-21 academic year, under the EU-funded ProVTE project. Additionally, the EU-funded VTE4all project will be equipping all BT1 students from 16 TVET school with tablet devices, to access the e-lessons of general subjects currently being developed. 

QuA-VET project will develop and launch the technical theoretical subjects of the above mentioned specializations in BT and TS as e-learning lessons for the academic years 2022-23 and 2023-24. In order to allow approximately 500 students and teachers from 14 TVET institutions, to access and complete the e-lessons on the LMS, 500 tablets and power banks are being procured to be distributed.

Therefore, a junior expert is required to configure, set-up and perform the necessary adjustments on the tablets devices to function properly and fullfill the purpose of supporting education from distance. Also, assisstance with any potential technical issue related to the tablets as well as building the capacities of tablets focal points in the 14 schools will part of the assignment.

GIZ shall hire the contractors for the anticipated contract term, from 01.11.2022 to 30.06.2023

The contractor shall provide the following work/service:

• Meet with project Team Leader, project Team Members, staff of the DGVTE and of other organisations involved in the project as considered necessary.
• Inform and regularly consult the project Team Members.
• Configure 250 tablet devices, create Gmail accounts, add restrictions on certain websites and applications defined by the project team.
• Ensure the download of all applications needed on the tablets as requested by project team (such as Moodle, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, etc.)
• Report all installations, configurations and accounts created on the tablet devices in an Excel sheet to the project team.
• Assist project team in preparing necessary documents for the handover of tablets and power banks to the schools.
• Draft guidelines to train tablets focal points (TFPs) in the schools on maintaining and solving technical matters related to the tablets.
• Visit up to 5 schools located in different regions of the country, when necessary and required, to reset, remove/edit restrictions and perform adjustments needed on the devices. 
• Remain available for any technical support needed in relation to the tablets distributed to schools, if required.
• Carry on all activities necessary for the accomplishment of the required outputs / results.
• Write mission report and required administrative deliverables.
• Be accessible after the short-term mission through internet for follow-up discussions.

Outputs/Results

• 250 tablets configured.
• A report on the tablets configured (in Excel format): gmail accounts created (usernames and passwords) for each tablet, applications downloaded and restrictions applied.
• A short guide, of max. 2 pages, on how to properly maintain and solve common technical issues related to tablet devices, in English and Arabic.

 Administrative Deliverables:

• A comprehensive end of mission’s report submitted to team leader for revision and approval following the structure:

• Scope and objectives of the mission (incl. preparation of training with the school and training itself)
• Approach adopted for conducting the mission
• List of outputs produced during the mission (including meetings and people met)
• Description of the outputs produced during the mission
• Problems and challenges encountered during the mission (incl. preparation of training with the school and training itself)
• Recommendations for the follow-up of the mission
• Recommendations for the improvement of project implementation

• All documents produced should be delivered in hard copy and in digital form using exclusively Ms-Office applications