INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards - Terms of Reference 2005-2009
This Terms of Reference for the INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards covers:
- History of the Working Group and the INEE Minimum Standards
- Objectives and expected results
- Membership, including organizational commitments and individual representative responsibilities
- Working Group structure
- Communication mechanisms
- Timeline and key milestones
Introduction
In order to promote education as a key pillar of emergency response as well as develop a tool to help achieve a minimum level of educational access and quality, a Working Group on Minimum Standards (Working Group) was constituted in 2003 within the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE). The mandate of the INEE Working Group was to develop, in consultation with a variety of stakeholders, a set of minimum standards for education in emergency settings.
After two years of a highly consultative process to develop minimum standards, a handbook of Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies, Chronic Crises and Early Reconstruction (INEE Minimum Standards) was launched at INEE’s Second Global Inter-Agency Consultation on Education in Emergencies and Early Recovery, in Cape Town, South Africa (2–4 December 2004). The handbook was well received by delegates and the participatory process in developing the standards was judged as significant as the product itself.
INEE has pledged to move forward with the promotion, training, piloting, monitoring and evaluating the INEE Minimum Standards in a consultative manner. In order to accomplish this, a transition team of Working Group members was constituted to develop a new Terms of Reference for the new INEE Working Group and a strategy for recruiting new members based on next phases of INEE Minimum Standards promotion, training, piloting, monitoring and evaluation. The transition team was made up of CARE USA (Hassan Mohammad), IRC (Rebecca Winthrop), Norwegian Church Aid (Birgit Villumstad), Save the Children Alliance (Carl Triplehorn), UNESCO IIEP (Christopher Talbot), World Education /The Consortium (Fred Ligon). Within the Working Group Transition Team, there were the following subgroups to develop and prepare for the strategies for the next phase activities:
- Operations
- Training
- Piloting, Monitoring &Evaluation
While the transition team was developing the ToR and strategy for the next phase of the Working Group, a Promotion Reference Group made up of the INEE Secretariat members, NRC, Save the Children UK and UNICEF developed and publicized over the INEE listserve a standardized promotion package for advocacy.
History of the INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies
In 2003, the INEE Working Group began facilitating the development of standards, indicators and guidance notes that articulate a minimum level of educational quality and access in emergencies and the early reconstruction phase. The Working Group is made up of 13 organizations with expertise in education in crisis and early reconstruction situations: CARE Canada, CARE USA, Catholic Relief Services, the International Rescue Committee, Norwegian Church Aid, Norwegian Refugee Council and the Norway United Nations Association, Save the Children UK, Save the Children USA, Refugee Education Trust, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF and World Education/The Consortium. A focal point was hired in June 2003 to drive the process forward and sits at the International Rescue Committee. Funding has been provided by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the International Rescue Committee, the International Save the Children Alliance, Save the Children Norway, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF and the World Bank.
The INEE Minimum Standards were developed, debated and agreed upon through a participatory process of regional, sub-regional and national consultations; on-line consultation inputs via the INEE listserv; and a peer review process. Over 2,250 individuals from more than 50 countries contributed to the development of the minimum standards, and the result is that the standards reflect rights and commitments as well as consensus on good practices and lessons learned across the field of education and protection in emergencies and post-conflict situations. Delegates and INEE members in the regions coordinated over 110 local, national and sub-regional consultations in 47 countries to gather input and information from over 1,900 representatives from affected communities, including students, teachers and other education personnel, NGO, government and UN staff, donors and academics.
The INEE Minimum Standards handbook, the first global tool to define a minimum level of educational quality in order to increase access, coordination and accountability, was designed to be an immediate and effective tool to promote protection and coordination at the start of an emergency while providing a harmonized framework for holistic, quality education and disaster preparedness during reconstruction. The INEE Minimum Standards cover five categories:
• Common categories: community participation and analysis (assessment, response, monitoring and evaluation)
• Access and learning environment
• Teaching and learning
• Teachers and other education personnel
• Education policy and coordination
Two years after their launch, over 25,000 copies of the INEE Minimum Standards handbook have been produced. The handbook has been translated into nine languages and they are being used in over 80 countries around the world for programme and policy planning, assessment, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation as well as advocacy. More than 225 trainers have been trained in eight Training of Trainers (ToT) workshops. In addition, over seventy follow-up workshops have been carried out as a result of these ToTs, with dozens more planned in 2007.
Users relate that the INEE Minimum Standards provide a common language, facilitating the development of shared visions between different stakeholders, including members of affected communities, humanitarian agency staff and governments. They are also being used to promote holistic thinking and response and to frame and foster inter- and intra-agency policy dialogue, coordination, advocacy and action for the provision of quality education in emergencies, chronic crises and early reconstruction.
With the establishment of the IASC Education Cluster at the end of 2006, the INEE Steering Group’s subsequent commitment to and prioritization of support to the cluster, and the fact that the goals, objectives and activities of the cluster overlap with and complement those of the INEE Working Group (particularly related to capacity-building and assessment, monitoring and evaluation), the work of the INEE Working Group will be carried out in partnership with the cluster. Indeed, the establishment of the IASC Education Cluster presents new opportunities for the implementation and institutionalization of the INEE Minimum Standards: given the cluster’s operational mandate and that it has adopted the INEE Minimum Standards as a guiding common framework for work at global and country levels, the standards will be brought to a wider audience in a more standardized way.
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INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies Objectives and Expected Results
The INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards will develop a strategy for and facilitate the promotion, implementation, institutionalization, monitoring and evaluation of the INEE Minimum Standards in an integrated manner that allows for a dynamic, consultative and non-bureaucratic yet transparent process.
Objectives
- Widely disseminate and promote the use of the INEE Minimum Standards using a standardized promotion package to key advocacy targets, including within the IASC Education Cluster and to donors, education and humanitarian workers, government MoEs, teachers and other education personnel, parents and/or school representatives and academics.
- Oversee the development and update of training and capacity-building materials and implement an effective standardized process for training on the INEE Minimum Standards, including within the IASC Education Cluster.
- Provide support to trainees and capacity-building opportunities for INEE members using the INEE Minimum Standards, building upon the regional networks strengthened by the Training of Trainers process.
- Develop a strategy and facilitate an effective process for the implementation and institutionalization of the INEE Minimum Standards across agencies and within the IASC Education Cluster, including a monitoring and evaluation process whereby evaluation/feedback on experiences, good practices and lessons learned and tools are shared broadly and utilized in a future revision.
- In select sites, carry out baseline research on key indicators and, through continued monitoring and evaluation, use this data to evaluate the awareness, utilization, institutionalization and, as much as possible, the impact of the INEE Minimum Standards on quality, access and accountability, tracking recommendations for a future revision.
- As much as relevant, collaborate with Sphere and the IASC Education Cluster in the promotion, training, piloting, monitoring and evaluation of the INEE Minimum Standards in order to achieve recognition and acceptance for education as a key humanitarian concern and continue to advocate a link between INEE’s standards and the Sphere standards.
Results
- The INEE Minimum Standards themselves as well as the analysis data from the baseline and follow-up monitoring and evaluation (assessing impact on such things as quality, access, coordination and accountability) are used as an advocacy tool for increased education assistance to emergency-affected communities and to promote education as a core element of humanitarian assistance.
- The INEE Minimum Standards training materials and other promotional materials and tools, accessible in both paper and electronic form, are used to train and build the capacity and preparedness of humanitarian and education personnel and government authorities to plan and manage quality education policy and response.
- The INEE Minimum Standards are used as a tool for improving the quality of and access to existing and future programs.
- The INEE Minimum Standards are used as a tool to enhance the predictability and accountability of and coordination among humanitarian actors.
- Through impact research (baseline and on-going monitoring and evaluation), standardized feedback forms and focal point follow-up with implementers, useful lessons learned, implementation tools and feedback for a possible future revision is shared with INEE members and key stakeholders.
- During promotion, training and implementation, communities’ and agencies’ commitment to the INEE Minimum Standards will develop through and build on a consensual process focused on discussion and debate, dissemination, implementation and evaluations. This consultative process will strengthen the education and humanitarian community.
- The INEE Minimum Standards help to strengthen technical and policy competence for quality, coordination and accountability of emergency education response within the IASC Education Cluster.
Membership of INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies
Membership in the INEE Working Group is on an organizational basis, and each organizational member selects the representative (a person). The members of the INEE Working Group for the development of the minimum standards (2003-2004) were: CARE Canada, CARE USA, Catholic Relief Services, the International Rescue Committee, Norwegian Church Aid, Norwegian Refugee Council and the Norway United Nations Association, Save the Children UK, Save the Children USA, Refugee Education Trust, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF and World Education/The Consortium.
In the new INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards focused on implementation (2005-2008), membership was expanded and diversified in order to carry out the promotion, training, piloting, monitoring and evaluation of the minimum standards. In addition to the greater number of UN agencies and NGOs, this diversification translated into a greater number of field-based members government representatives on the Working Group. While the INEE Working Group needed new members with different skills to carry out the objectives and produce the aforementioned results, it was also important to have some continuity of organizations with memory and experience of process.
INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards members, as of June 2007:
- Academy for Educational Development, Ken Rhodes (US)
- AVSI, Elena Locatelli (DRC)
- BEFARe, Dr. Shakir Ishaque (Pakistan)
- CARE USA, Geeta S. Menon (US)
- Catholic Relief Services, Eric Eversmann (Maryland, US)
- Fundacion dos Mundos, Jiovani Arias M and Amalia Eraso (Colombia)
- GTZ, Dr. Rüdiger Blumör (Germany)
- International Rescue Committee, Jennifer Sklar (US)
- Ministry of Education, France, Martine Storti (France)
- Norwegian Refugee Council, Helge Brochmann (Norway)
- Foundation for the Refugee Education Trust (RET), Representative TBA
- Save the Children Alliance, Carl Triplehorn (US)
- UNESCO, Representative TBA
- UNHCR, Eva Ahlen (Switzerland)
- UNICEF, Pilar Aguilar (US)
- UN World Food Program, Annmarie Isler (Italy)
- USAID, Mitch Kirby (Kenya)
- Windle Trust, Robin Shawyer (Kenya)
- World Education, Fred Ligon (Thailand)
- World Vision International, Micael Olsson (US)
INEE Working Group members have committed their organization and individual representatives to the following responsibilities:
Organizational Member Criteria (Institution)
- The organization’s interest in and commitment to supporting and contributing to the process
- Involvement in INEE and the past effort to develop the INEE Minimum Standards and/or interest in supporting and contributing to the process in the future;
- Promotion of the minimum standards within their organizations, to partners and networks;
- Willingness to share expertise, technical materials and work in a collaborative manner on behalf of INEE;
- Background, experience and experience relevant to the objectives of the Working Group
- Institutional expertise in education in crisis settings;
- Institutional expertise relevant to the particular tasks outlined in the Working Group ToR (Operations, Training, and Piloting, Monitoring and Evaluation Group);
- Commitment of Resources
- Select a qualified representative to represent the organization on Working Group and assume the costs for members to participate in Working Group activities, including travel/hotel/perdiem costs for attendance at Working Group meetings twice a year as well as at least one subgroup meeting and time away from regular work. Organizations should commit to the entire period of two years;
- Assist in Working Group fundraising efforts;
- Other voluntary contributions, such as support to training material development, training facilitators and consultants; printing and distribution of materials; promotion and piloting of minimum standards, conference calls, and indication of annual financial and/or in-kind contributions;
- Perspective of promotion and implementation, i.e. NGO, Government, UN, Academic, etc;
- Regional Context, i.e. Africa, Asia, Latin America;
- Diversity of views, i.e. South/North, etc.
Organizational Representative Criteria (Person)
- Organizational seniority in order to ensure institutional buy-in, bring others on board, and influence decision makers and donors;
- Professional education and/or protection background;
- Direct experience in education programmes in situations of emergencies and crisis;
- Special skills, such as development of strategy and policy; planning and administration of programmes; program implementation, assessment, monitoring and evaluation; group facilitation and training; effective writing and fundraising abilities; and SPHERE-related experience;
- Access to efficient means of electronic communication, including e-mail and phone.
- In addition to the competence and skills of the individuals, the members of the Working Group should be balanced with regard to gender and area of expertise / subject area.
Organizational Representative Responsibilities (Person)
- Promoting the process internally within the organization as well as externally with partners and networks;
- Participating in the activities of one of the subgroups (Operations Group, Training Group, and Piloting, Monitoring and Evaluation Group), as outlined in the Working Group ToR;
- Assisting in fundraising efforts;
- Time Commitment: Working Group members will be expected to attend at least three meetings each year. This includes Working Group meetings twice a year (one approximately every six months) as well as at least one subgroup meeting. Each meeting will be at least 2 days in length. More time will be required for conference calls, e-mail correspondence, and coordinating and carrying out promotion, training, piloting, monitoring and evaluation. Working Group members will need to make a commitment to keep in touch and respond to communications and meeting deadlines, even when traveling on other program business. Working Group members will do their work alongside their regular jobs; estimation of this time commitment is approximately two to four days per month. This time commitment and work should ideally be written into the job description of the Working Group member.
Working Group Structure
Overall Structure The Working Group consists of three subgroups: Operations SubGroup (which includes the Chair), Capacity-Building SubGroup (formerly the Training SubGroup), and Application and Analysis SubGroup.
In order to ensure technical expertise, project oversight and inter-agency success, the INEE Focal Point for Minimum Standards and the INEE Capacity-Building Manager, both of which are hosted by the International Rescue Committee in the New York office, work with the INEE Working Group on Minimum Standards. The INEE Focal Point and Capacity-Building Manager operate as ex-officio members of all subgroups and both liaise with the INEE Network Coordinator (the primary manager and networking resource person for the network) to ensure that good practices, tools and lessons learned from the standards process are disseminated throughout the wider INEE membership.
- INEE Focal Point on Minimum Standards is responsible for managing the global implementation of the INEE Minimum Standards, particularly the elements of promotion, implementation, institutionalization, monitoring and evaluation. The Focal Point’s work is managed by the hosting organization (IRC) but is under direction of the INEE Working Group’s Operations Group and INEE Steering Group.
- INEE Minimum Standards Capacity-Building Manager is responsible for managing the follow-up to the Minimum Standards training process and organization of capacity-building opportunities. The Capacity-Building Manager’s work is managed by the INEE Focal Point and the hosting organization (IRC).
Operations SubGroup
The Operations SubGroup prepares strategy for and oversees the implementation of the INEE Working Group’s:
- Structure, including INEE Secretariat staff
- Workplan and Budget
- Funding and fundraising strategy
- External relations, including advocacy, promotion and institutionalization activities, partnering with the IASC Education Cluster and the Sphere Project where possible
The Operations SubGroup will oversee and provide direction and support to the INEE Focal Point, including monitoring the Working Group’s plan of work, budget, structure and external relations and related promtion and institutionalization activities. The Operations SubGroup will serve as a Standing Committee between meetings of the full Working Group, executing actions agreed in principle by the Working Group.
Capacity-Building SubGroup
The Capacity-Building SubGroup will carry out the following activities in order to build the capacity and preparedness of humanitarian and education personnel and government authorities to plan and manage quality education policy and response, including within the IASC Education Cluster:
- Facilitate the development and update of training and capacity-building materials,
- Implement a Training of Trainers process
- Track training and capacity-building activities on the INEE Minimum Standards and provide support
Application and Analysis SubGroup
The Application and Analysis SubGroup will oversee research on the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the INEE Minimum Standards, ensuring research quality and rigour as well as methodological consistency, in order to provide lessons learned to strengthen the effectiveness of INEE member use of the standards and the use of the standards within IASC education clusters. The results will feed into a decision about the standards’ revision at the INEE Global Consultation in 2009, focused on ensuring that the INEE Minimum Standards are relevant and appropriately adjusted for different stages of an emergency in order to ensure quality and access. This includes facilitating the following activities:
- In select sites, facilitate baseline and follow-up research for in-depth case studies on key indicators and, through continued monitoring and evaluation, use this data to evaluate the awareness, utilization, institutionalization and impact of the INEE Minimum Standards on quality, access and accountability and to feed into a future revision. In this process, Working Group members should look to academic partner involvement to help design and carryout the baseline and continued monitoring and evaluation.
- Develop and analyze/collect evaluation findings, good practices, lessons learned, tools and recommendations from standardized evaluation /feedback forms, questionnaires and case studies on the implementation of the minimum standards, disseminating them widely disseminated for broad programme learning and for a future revision.
* See INEE Organizational Chart for a diagram: http://www.ineesite.org/page.asp?pid=1025
Communication Mechanism
In addition to two face-to-face meeting of the full INEE Working Group each year, the INEE Focal Point, Capacity-Building Manager and members of the INEE Working Group will engage in regular communication over the telephone and email, and when possible, subgroup conference calls and/or face-to-face meetings, to move work forward. In addition, the INEE Focal Point will update the INEE Steering Group at its bi-yearly meeting on the progress of the INEE Working Group.
INEE has over 1,900 members working in emergency education and development throughout the world. The INEE listserv, presently with over 1,500 subscribers, will continue to be a major vehicle for information dissemination for the implementation, as well as its website. The INEE Focal Point and Capacity-Building Manager will work closely with the INEE Network Coordinator to update members on the progress of the INE Working Group as well as to solicit feedback from members and key stakeholders on a regular basis, encouraging debate and transparency. Furthermore, the INEE Focal Point and Capacity-Building Manager will build upon the regional networks created during the development of and training on the INEE Minimum Standards for increased field-based communication as well as utilize, and build upon the IASC Education Cluster communication channels.
Time Schedule and Key Milestones
The INEE Working Group has a limited life span of up to four years (2005- 2008) for facilitating the promotion, implementation, training, monitoring and evaluation of the INEE Minimum Standards.
2005 Timeline
| Key Activity & Indicators | Timeframe |
|---|---|
Broadly Promote and Institutionalize the Minimum Standards throughout the Humanitarian Community and Education Field Indicators:
|
On-going 2005 – 2008 2007- 2008 2005-2008 (bi-yearly) 2007– 2008 2007- 2008 On-going 2005 – 2008 |
Building Capacity through Training Indicators:
INEE TOT for Anglophone Africa
INEE Minimum Standards TOT for Southeast and East Asia & the Pacific
INEE Minimum Standards TOT for South Asia
INEE Minimum Standards TOT for Europe
INEE Minimum Standards TOT for North America
INEE Minimum Standards Francophone TOT
INEE Minimum Standards Arabic TOT
INEE Minimum Standards South America TOT
INEE Minimum Standards Central America TOT
INEE Minimum Standards Caribean TOT
Trainers carry out follow-up training workshops globally as an outcome of the Training of Trainers process
INEE Minimum Standards Capacity Building Workshop, Francophone Africa, July 2007, Abijan, Cote d’Ivoire INEE Minimum Standards Capacity Building Workshop, Anglophone Africa, November 2007, Ethiopia INEE Minimum Standards Capacity Building Workshop, Asia, TBA, 2008 INEE Minimum Standards Capacity Building Workshop, the Middle East, TBA, 2008 |
2005 2006 – 2007 2006- 2008 2007- 2008 |
Monitor and Evaluate the Awareness, Use, Institutionalization and Impact of the INEE Minimum Standards and Facilitate their Revision Indicators:
|
2005-2008 2006-2008 2007-2008 2007-2008 2006-2007 2008 2008 / launched at 2009 INEE Global Consultation |
