© UNICEF/HTIA2012-00374/MARCO DORMINO
Updated information for the April-November 2015 Cohort
UNICEF and the Harvard Graduate School of Education have collaborated to offer Equity, Quality, and Leadership in Education (EQL), a custom executive program for Education Officers driving toward advancements in educational equity. This program includes several online modules and a 1-week workshop at Harvard Graduate School of Education.
What you will learn
The program will give you tools to analyze challenges in your practice, provide you access to current research, and enable you to apply system-level leadership approaches to advance an education reform agenda. You will build your capacity to identify, embed, and scale evidence-based best practices in education that realize the UNICEF strategy and promote equity in national education planning and development processes.
Program overview
UNICEF has an increasing role in driving educational innovation to promote inclusion of the most excluded children in the developing world, a key pillar of our rights-based approach. Because of its decentralized structure and presence working closely with stakeholders, UNICEF has the ability to lead in creating coalitions and partnership among development institutions, host country governments and other institutions of civil society in the design of programs, implementation plans and monitoring of implementation. Leveraging these assets, this blended program addresses both the adaptive and technical leadership skills to lead for equity and inclusion. Learning is project-based, with frequent opportunities to relate new concepts and skills to your current challenges.
Who will benefit
Senior and mid-level education staff (on long-term UNICEF contract), both IP and NO, who lead (or are expected to) the development, management and evaluation of program aimed at leveraging and promoting equity in national education policy dialogue/advocacy, planning and development processes. The program will particularly benefit UNICEF staff in countries where the organization is currently playing a key role in education sector plan development as Supervising or Managing Entity or Coordinating Agency under the Global Partnership for Education (GPE). The programme is also aimed at Representatives and Deputy Representatives in UNICEF Country Offices.
Program timeline and components
|
|
Period |
Format & location |
Description |
|
Part I
|
April-May |
Online (course will start on 27 April) |
Build learning community as a network of peers across UNICEF; identify a problem of practice to focus on during the program; explore the notion of quality in education. |
|
Part II |
June 14-19
|
Face to Face Institute at Harvard Graduate School of Education |
Examine leadership frameworks; explore current research in education pertaining to social development and equity; Refine your problem of practice and develop a related case study. |
|
Part III
|
July - October |
Online |
Explore topics most relevant to your work leadership challenge and context; develop a “positive deviant” case study and apply insights to your work context. |
|
Part IV |
November |
Online |
Peer review of leadership plans; Online Showcase |
EQL topics will be determined in consultation with Education Officers, but may include:
- Frameworks for Leading
- Defining Quality in Basic Education
- Teacher Quality
- Political Mapping and Policy Dialogue
- Inducing Institutional Change
- Fostering Literacy and Language Development
- Promoting inclusion of students with special needs
- Education in Emergency and Conflict Situations
- Rethinking Early Childhood Education
- The Politics of Sustaining Education Reforms
- Building Evidence through Evaluation
Learning methodologies and activities
The program will emphasize active learning with exercises constructed around two major pieces of writing:
- The Case – analysis of a leadership challenge in your work context
- Leadership Project – to be presented and discussed with peers and experts in the field
You will engage in discussion forums, responding to writing by peers and posting observations and analysis on discussion boards. You will also read articles, examine resources, participate in workshop and case discussions; apply new ideas in your work setting; and report to your peers group on progress.
This program is designed to be fully integrated into the demanding work of UNICEF Officers and for this reason it is expected that participation will require, on average, 5 hours on a weekly basis –except for the week of immersion that will take place at Harvard University.
Upon completion of the program, participants will receive either a CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION or CERTIFICATE OF PARTICIPATION (depending on the amount of course work they are able to finish) from Programs in Professional Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education.
How to apply?
Contact
Maida Pasic
Education Specialist, Capacity Development
UNICEF Education Section, New York
Tel. +1 212 326-7069
E-mail: mpasic@unicef.org