CONSULTING SYSTEMATIZATION EXPERIENCES STUDENT PARTICIPATION AGUSTINE EL SALVADOR C1 PROJECT

OVERVIEW OF THE FUNCTIONS OF THE POST

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), through its work with the region’s Ministries of Education, promotes participation, coexistence, a culture of peace, and leadership development in educational communities as strategies for preventing violence and building safe learning environments. This is within the framework of SDG 4, and in particular target 4.7, and the strengthening of Global Citizenship Education and Education for Sustainable Development. UNESCO’s experience in Global Citizenship Education and Sustainable Development seeks to develop in people the knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes needed to learn to live together and build a more sustainable, just, and peaceful world.

From this perspective, and in line with goal 4.7, the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology of El Salvador (MINEDUCYT) has been developing a series of strategies that seek to strengthen student participation through the organization of Student Councils and the National Student Council. It also seeks to strengthen the civic competencies and skills of all students for coexistence, participation, and conflict resolution through extended training, in coordination with the national curriculum. It also seeks to strengthen teacher competencies and improve school management to create a safe space for the participation of the entire educational community.

To strengthen these efforts, and thanks to funding from the European Union Delegation in El Salvador, the UNESCO Regional Office for Central America, Colombia, and Mexico, based in San José, is working with UNICEF and Expertise France to implement the Agustine Project—Violence Prevention through Education—which has the overall objective of transforming people’s lives and improving conditions in the regions to reduce social vulnerability to violence and crime. This is carried out through a strategy that addresses the social and educational integration of young people in conflict with the law; the improvement of psychosocial care services for educational communities; the productive integration of young people and adolescents; and increasing girls’ participation in inclusive school programs.

Long Description

The Agustine project has four major outcomes, the first of which is to improve and diversify the education system’s offerings in terms of soft life skills, positive conflict transformation, and civic participation. To achieve this outcome, Component 1 of the project has been structured, which articulates actions aimed at updating educational policy and regulatory frameworks for school management, creating spaces for student participation and training to foster coexistence, participation, and leadership, and providing teacher training to foster the process of strengthening civic skills and competencies.

In its first year of implementation, Component 1 of the Agustine Project will leverage training opportunities to activate consultation and participation dynamics that will allow for updating, adjusting, and renewing regulatory frameworks for participation, leadership, and coexistence, among others, and for the participatory design, particularly with student involvement, of a national strategy for developing skills and competencies for coexistence, peace, and the exercise of citizenship in educational centers.

OBJECTIVE OF THE CONSULTANCY 

To design and implement a process for systematizing educational experiences around the topic of student participation, utilizing qualitative and quantitative methodological approaches. This will allow for the documentation, analysis, and dissemination of key learnings, educational policy advances, and educational innovations relevant to Latin America and El Salvador, within the framework of the My New School Educational Reform.

This consultancy seeks to systematize, make visible, and capture significant experiences that will allow us to reconstruct the process of creating and developing student councils in El Salvador, recognizing the complementary frameworks and policies that contributed to their development, valuing their achievements, learning from the difficulties to address the challenges, and developing recommendations for the sustainability and strengthening of student participation.

The scope of the systematization includes an analysis of the legal framework, institutional perceptions and strategic vision, especially from the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology; the conceptualization and implementation of the process to strengthen student participation (pedagogical and in school governance); the voices, experiences, and visions of stakeholders (students, teachers, principals, parents, and community stakeholders); as well as conclusions and projections of this experience for the various initiatives within the framework of the My New School Educational Reform.

CONSULTANCY DURATION

Duration: 6 months (July – December 2025), with the possibility of renewal pending the availability of resources and subject to performance evaluation.

Payments will be made for products delivered.

PLACE

It can be carried out remotely, with the possibility of traveling to El Salvador once or twice during the consultancy, for periods of no less than 5 business days each.

Long Description

PRODUCTS AND DATES

The contracted person must deliver the following products, taking into account the corresponding consultation and review processes with UNICEF, UNESCO and MINEDUCYT:

1. Work plan, including methodological strategy. Delivery date: August 15, 2025.
2. First draft of the systematization document. Delivery date: October 20, 2025.
3. Preparation of recommendations for action. Delivery date: November 15, 2025.
4. Final version of the systematization document (including proposed recommendations for action). Delivery date: December 15, 2025.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF JOB DUTIES

This position is associated with the UNESCO Regional Office for Central America, Colombia, and Mexico, based in San José, Costa Rica. The consultant will be supervised by the person in charge of the sector in that office and the UNESCO National Officer in El Salvador, who serves as project coordinator, in coordination with the UNICEF National Office in El Salvador, which serves as the implementation partner for component 1 of the project.

In particular, the consultant will perform the following actions:

• • Prepare a consultancy work plan.
  • Analyze the current legal and educational policy framework.
  • Conduct a review of scientific literature on experiences promoting student participation from ministries of education at the regional and/or global levels.
  • Collect oral and documentary sources, and data from participant observation through a field diary.
  • Identify and collect quantitative data from different institutional sources.
  • Collect and analyze the perceptions and views of various stakeholders related to the implementation of the student council strategy.
  • Identify and collect the perceptions and views of the direct actors and participants in the implementation of student councils.
  • Reconstruct the historical process of designing and implementing the student council strategy.
  • Identify and systematize experiences, promising practices, lessons learned, and learnings on student engagement, coexistence, and leadership.
  • Relate the student council strategy to general educational policy and identify potential synergies and enabling conditions.
  • Develop a proposal supported by actions, projections, and recommendations for strengthening student councils.
  • Participate in exchange meetings with the project’s technical teams.
  • Prepare a final report with scientific and academic writing and a summary for dissemination.

COMPETENCES (Core / Managerial)

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REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

• Advanced university degree in the areas of sociology, anthropology, education or related fields.
• Master’s degree in education, sociology or research methods, anthropology, or related fields.

Work experience

• Have at least 5 years of verifiable experience in educational research.
• Have produced at least 3 indexed academic publications in the area of ​​education or social sciences.
• Have at least two publications systematizing educational policy experiences developed with ministries of education in Central America. Publications systematizing educational policy experiences in El Salvador will be highly valued.
• Have experience preparing research reports with United Nations agencies, with special emphasis on education.

Competencies

• Possess excellent analytical, research, and experience identification, systematization, and analysis skills.
• Have a theoretical and practical understanding and vision of the thematic fields related to this consultancy.
• Facilitation skills, with knowledge of tools for inclusion and intercultural communication, as well as the participation of adolescents and youth.
• Have excellent interpersonal and communication skills, particularly in a professional context.
• Excellent skills in preparing technical and financial reports and making presentations to various stakeholders for consultation, review, and/or dissemination purposes.
• Experience and excellent skills in the preparation of academic and scientific documents.

Languages

• Native Spanish speaker
• Good level of English

Desirable Qualifications

Education

• PhD in education, sociology or research methods, anthropology, or related fields.

Work experience

• Have at least 8 years of verifiable experience in educational research.
• Have produced at least 5 indexed academic publications in the area of ​​education or social sciences.
• Have at least four publications systematizing educational policy experiences developed with ministries of education in Central America. Publications systematizing educational policy experiences in El Salvador will be highly valued.
• Have experience preparing research reports with United Nations agencies, with special emphasis on education.

Competencies

• Possess excellent analytical, research, and experience identification, systematization, and analysis skills.
• Have a theoretical and practical understanding and vision of the thematic fields related to this consultancy.
• Facilitation skills, with knowledge of tools for inclusion and intercultural communication, as well as the participation of adolescents and youth.
• Have excellent interpersonal and communication skills, particularly in a professional context.
• Excellent skills in preparing technical and financial reports and making presentations to various stakeholders for consultation, review, and/or dissemination purposes.
• Experience and excellent skills in the preparation of academic and scientific documents.

Languages

• Native Spanish speaker
• Excellent written and oral command of the English language

HOW TO APPLY

Interested candidates should apply and submit the following documents (in English):

• A letter of interest explaining how your qualifications and experience make you a good fit for the position.
• Curriculum vitae or summary.
• Contact details of three references.

Your application must be submitted in a single file with all required documents (PDF format) and uploaded to the “Employment History Form” application section.

SELECTION AND RECRUITMENT PROCESS

Please note that all candidates must complete an online application and provide complete and accurate information. To apply, please visit the UNESCO careers website. No modifications can be made to the application submitted.

The evaluation of candidates is based on the criteria in the vacancy notice, and may include tests and/or assessments, as well as an interview.

UNESCO uses communication technologies such as video or teleconference, e-mail correspondence, etc. for the assessment and evaluation of candidates.

Please note that only selected candidates will be further contacted and candidates in the final selection step will be subject to reference checks based on the information provide

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