RFP Evaluation of STEM Education Program in Intervention Schools of Rajasthan, Odisha, and Jharkhand

Background – A member of ChildFund International, ChildFund India has been representing the voice of underserved children in India since 1951. It is the only development organization of its kind that continuously supports children from birth to young adulthood, through unique intervention models designed around a complete life-cycle approach.

The organization’s interventions are aligned with age-specific and contextual needs, based on children’s experiences of deprivation, exclusion, and vulnerability. Its work embraces the following three life stages while the themes of child protection, gender equity, and disaster risk management are integrated into ChildFund India’s programs.

  • Maternal health and early years (age 0-5)
  • Childhood and adolescence (age 6-14)
  • Youth and young adults (age 15-24)

Brief about the project

ChildFund has been implementing STEM Education Program in 12 selected schools in Odisha, Jharkhand, and Rajasthan intending to foster curiosity, creativity, problem-solving, and logical thinking in young minds and inculcate skills such as design mindset, computational thinking, adaptive learning, etc. Young children are getting a chance to work with tools and equipment to understand what, how, and why aspects of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math). Through STEM projects, we have been impacting children’s and young adults’ lives and focusing on enhancing scientific temperament.

The positive outcomes of the STEM Education program are

  • Enhanced learning, critical thinking, problem-solving, hands-on experimental, and computation skills.
  • Increased participation and attendance of children due to interactive learning program
  • Less drop-out at the secondary and higher secondary level due to a shift from rote learning to experimental learning.
  • Bridging the gender gap in the STEM field by providing STEM education opportunities to girls at the early age of learning.
  • Increased self-confidence in tackling science & Math classes and projects
  • Shift in attitude about careers in STEM
  • Gains in 21st-century skills, including communication, teamwork, and analytical thinking
  • Improve teaching pedagogy by use of models in conducting the science and math class
  • Trained teachers on STEM Skills and pedagogy.

The key objectives of the program are –

  • To equip schools with the necessary infrastructure, training, and resources for STEM education
  •  To encourage scientific thought and learning among children
  • To create an enabling environment for the education of girls in schools and communities
  • As part of this project, we engage with government-run and low-income schools. These schools are typically under-resourced and have poor learning outcomes. Each of the schools undergoes a comprehensive program wherein infrastructure, teacher capacity, and student learning opportunities are developed or upgraded.

Scope of Work for the Agency

  • The agency will be responsible for the overall evaluation design, development of data collection instruments (including both quantitative and qualitative tools), data collection (both primary and secondary), data entry and analysis, and report writing.
  • Development of a detailed methodology for the study that includes both quantitative and qualitative methods along with the detailed study plan (list of interviews, focused group discussions, beneficiary surveys, etc.)
  • Development and finalization of data collection tools mapped to the outcome indicators of the program objectives.
  • Undertake timely fieldwork for the data collection in the targeted population as per the agreed timeline.
  • Ensuring high-quality data management and adherence to quality assurance mechanisms as per agreed protocols, plans, and schedules.
  • Data analysis and submission of data summarization separately for each school.
  • Submission of final reports and dissemination of the key findings as per the agreed timelines.

Proposal Submission Process:

The consultant/agency will have to submit only relevant work experience and resumes of key team members. ChildFund will shortlist the consultant/agency and will call for discussion and will finalize the consultant/agency for the proposed action.

The proposal should be submitted in English and contain three main parts:

1. Executive summary
2. General and Technical
3. Financial Proposal:
4. Annexures:
a. CVs of key personnel involved
b. Sample evaluation report for reference
Part 1 & 2 may be clubbed together but part 3 must be kept separately to facilitate the separate independent evaluation of technical and financial tenders.

Application Process

Please submit the technical and financial proposal at centralpurchase2@childfundindia.org

Only the shortlisted agencies will be contacted for the final presentation before the screening committee.

Note: Please do mention the reference number in your proposal i.e. “PRA-CFI-DEL-2022-23-53”

Last date for submission: 08 February 2023