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UNESCO is inviting proposals from individuals and organizations for the following work assignment. 

1. Background

The Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report is an editorially independent, evidence-based annual report hosted and published by UNESCO. Established in 2002, its current mandate derives from the 2015 World Education Forum and focuses on monitoring education in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the implementation of the strategies outlined in the Education 2030 Framework for Action. Accordingly, each report has two parts: 

• a monitoring part reviews the SDG 4 targets, education in the other SDGs and education finance.
• a thematic part focuses on a relevant theme in the international education agenda, which is selected by the GEM Report’s Advisory Board; the last six themes in the GEM Report series have been: education and the other SDGs (2016), accountability (2017/8), migration and displacement (2019), inclusion (2020), non-state actors (2021/2) and technology (2023). The theme of the 2024/5 report is leadership in education.

Between the 2019 and 2023 GEM Report cycles, all SDG regions were covered through regional reports that examined all aspects of the global report in individual regions in partnership with regional organizations and partners. Based on that experience, a new series of regional editions has been launched beginning from the 2024/5 GEM Report cycle, linked to selected aspects of the theme of the global report. 

Three regional editions of the 2024/5 GEM Report are envisaged: 

• on education leadership and inclusion in Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia; 
• on distributed leadership in Latin America; and
• on education leadership and digital transformation in East Asia, to which this call refers. 

2. Objectives

The Work will focus on the preparation of a case study on education leadership and digital transformation in Japan. Digital transformation is one of several areas in which education leadership is exercised, a concept described in the . While ambitious digital transformation reforms are being introduced all over East Asia, which aim to introduce not just new digital infrastructure but also ensure that curricula and pedagogies are adapted to improve learning, the role that education leaders can play in accelerating their implementation receives insufficient attention. 

A common conclusion of the education leadership literature is that there is no evidence of a school that has turned itself around without an effective leader. It is therefore to be expected that the same should be true of schools that have undergone successful digital transformation. School principals are often the first to move and innovate, for instance bringing digital education resources to their schools. Committing to clear school development goals, exercising good leadership practices, and integrating technology tend to be interrelated but understanding the links merits closer analysis. School principals must balance the needs, motivation and expectations of teachers, students, families and the school community. Leaders can facilitate a digital culture through authority or bureaucratic influence, but also through an ability to engage teachers to integrate digital resources into their pedagogical models to improve learning.

While they receive less attention in the literature education leaders in local government education offices are also responsible for the implementation and follow-up of central government initiatives and reforms aimed at digitally transforming the education system. These leaders need to play multiple roles: understand the objectives of the reform, take initiative in identifying schools and leaders that will champion the reform and serve as example to others, support schools and school leaders, provide feedback to central authorities on how the reform progresses and what finetuning is required to overcome obstacles, adapt policies, and – if they have the authority – redistribute resources based on needs.

Not least, digital transformation reforms need policy makers and experts who lead at both the design and the implementation phase by example, their knowledge, clear vision on how technology can (or cannot) improve learning, of the reform, and openness (in terms of stakeholder engagement, consultation and use of evidence) in order to put learners at the centre.

Relevant questions include the following:

• Role: What are the requirements of good leadership to achieve digital transformation in education?  Achieving digital transformation is an extra task that school and local education leaders are being asked to add to their to-do lists even though it is usually outside their area of expertise and for which they receive limited, if any, preparation. They need to choose, procure and maintain technology, solve problems and, critically, evaluate whether the use of technology suits the needs of the students and improves education.
• Influence: What vision and goals drive education leaders to digitally transforms their education systems and schools? What are the signs of exercising positive influence? 
• Impact: To what extent and through what practices does the exercise of leadership contribute to better education outcomes through digital transformation? Can leaders help schools use technology effectively for teaching and learning? Are they supported to procure hardware, software and other resources; ensure that hardware and software is working and fixed if it is broken; support teachers in using technology; address issues caused by the use of technology in the school (e.g. safety, cyberbullying, distraction); update their knowledge and expertise etc. 
• Context: What social, cultural, governance or other preconditions are needed for the effective exercise of leadership in education? Individual factors such as age or experience can be important, as can contextual factors, such as school size, complexity and digital culture. 
• Nurture: What policy levers can be used to help develop digital transformation leadership skills and how do such policies emerge to respond to need? How are education leaders at local government or school level supported to exercise leadership to implement national policies of digital transformation in education?

The case study will explore how education leadership is manifested in digital transformation reforms in Japan through a comprehensive analysis of national policies and practices. 

In particular, the case study will: 

• Describe the country’s education governance context and the extent of autonomy schools have in implementing decisions. 
• Describe the digital transformation policies and reforms currently being implemented in Japan (in terms of both infrastructure upgrade and curriculum/pedagogy adaptation to improve learning) and the demands these are placing on education leaders at local government and school level. Part of the description should also cover the extent to which leadership was demonstrated at the design phase of the reform, in terms of engagement, consultation and use of evidence.
• Explore how education leaders at local government and school level are supported and what type of professional development programmes and other interventions are being rolled out to ensure education leaders facilitate rather than become a constraint to digital transformation of education. To the extent possible, include evidence from reviews of major projects focused on enhancing leadership of local education officers and school principals.
• Identify good practices and show how education leadership is manifested Asia in the implementation of digital transformation policies at the local government and school level in Japan. 
• Highlight practical examples based on the experience of two local government education offices and two schools. 

3. Outputs 

The Work will consist of a report of approximately 10,000 words (excluding appendices, annexes, and bibliographies) written in English and translated in Japanese in time for the launch. at a very good level and structured as follows:

1. Introduction (500 words) 
2. Education governance and school autonomy (500 words) 
3. Digital transformation policies and envisaged role of education leaders in central government, local government education offices and schools (1,500 words)
4. Programmes to support the local government education office and school leaders to implement digital transformation reforms – and evidence of their effectiveness  (2,000 words)
5. Good education leadership practices manifested in the implementation of digital transformation policies at the local government and school levels (2,000 words)
6. Highlight practical examples based on the experience of two local government education offices and two schools (2,500 words)
7. Conclusions and recommendations (1,000 words) 

Bibliography (with hyperlinks if available online and PDFs if not) 

Appendix

The country case study shall not be circulated or published in any form without prior approval from the GEM Report. Once approved, the outputs should specify that work has been prepared for the 2025 regional edition on education leadership and digital transformation in East Asia. 

Background research shall follow the . 

4. Timeline

The Contractor shall submit to the GEM Report team for its approval:

1. A detailed outline of the country case study by 29 April 2024.
2. A first draft of the country case study by 29 July 2024.
3. A final draft of the country case study by 30 September 2024.

5. Submission of proposal

The GEM Report team hereby invites interested individuals and organizations to contribute to the preparation of case studies to inform the research. 

The proposal should include: 

• A maximum 3-page technical proposal including: 
  • proposed methodology, including data to be used, and workplan;
  • brief description of past research experience in this field and in Japan; 
  • a financial proposal. 
• Full CVs of expert(s) involved in the project, including academic record and list of publications, research grants and projects.
• Only for legal entities: Proof of registration as a non-governmental/private organization including copies of registration certificate(s); please place the proposal on the organisation’s letterhead. 

The deadline for submission is 19 April 2024.

The following are the selection criteria: 

• Proven research record in educational leadership and digital transformation.
• Suitable research methodology for primary data collection and analysis in the proposed area.
• Experience in conducting country case studies and literature reviews.
• In-depth understanding of the education systems in Japan.
• Capacity to carry out the assignment and to draft to a high standard in English.

Commissioning will take place in April 2024 and the country case study is expected to be completed by September 2024. 

Please send your proposal in English along with the attachments in one PDF file to Ms Francesca Endrizzi (f.endrizzi@unesco.org), using the subject line Regional edition on education leadership and digital transformation in East Asia. Please also specify in your proposal if you are applying as an individual or an entity. 

Any requests for additional information should be addressed in writing to f.endrizzi@unesco.org. All responses to any queries or clarification requests will be collected and made available to all applicants on the GEM Report website via this link by 11 March 2024.

Participation in this call for proposals does not guarantee that the organisation or individual expert will be ultimately selected.