INOVASI 3 - Inclusive Education Consultant

Background of The Project:
Indonesia’s Vision 2045 sets the goal for Indonesia to transition from a resource-based economy towards an advanced service, technology, and knowledge-based economy by the centenary of its independence (2045). The 2025-2045 National Long Term Development Plan emphasises the urgency of Indonesia’s human resource development to fully realise 2045 goals.

Faced however with persistent low student performance that is emblematic of a learning crisis, significant improvement in student learning will be required to reach Indonesia’s 2045 goals. Government of Indonesia (GoI) has started an ambitious program of education reforms. Successive education ministers have set out to modernise the education system through reforming the national curriculum and teaching and assessment approaches, to produce citizens with strong foundational skills, open minds, and inclusive values.

Australia is a long-term supporter of the Indonesian basic education sector, with continuous investments supporting education quality improvements for the past two decades, including through the INOVASI program (Phase 1 2016-2020; Phase 2 2020-2023) that focused on supporting acquisition of literacy and numeracy foundational skills in early grades classrooms; exploring local problems and solutions; and generating evidence to inform government policy development and practices.

This third phase of INOVASI (2024-2027) builds upon the existing program’s approach and lessons learned and takes the focus on the development of foundational skills through to the end of the primary grades. Phase 3 will engage with priority issues of Australia’s development policy: gender equality, effective inclusion of children with a disability, responses to the climate change challenge in education. It will focus on the challenge of policy implementation and the gaps that exist between national policies and practices at district and school levels and use the well attested-success of INOVASI’s local problem-based approach to continuously support policy development for effective fit between policy and implementation context.

INOVASI Phase 3 is implemented in 25 districts and cities across Indonesia, in the provinces of West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, North Kalimantan, East Java, West Java, and Maluku. The program also works in Ibu Kota Nusantara (IKN). The Program is managed by Palladium on behalf of the Government of Australia through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).

INOVASI supports the Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Ministry of Religious Affairs (MoRA) in promoting more inclusive educational practice. Through Minister of Education Regulation No. 48 of 2023 and Minister of Religion Regulation No. 1 of 2024, the ministries aim to enhance teacher competency in implementing inclusive education, ensuring adequate accommodations for all students, including those with disabilities.

To create an objective and relevant context around the services in the inclusive school setting, INOVASI has forged a strong collaboration with Western Sydney University (WSU) to develop an inclusive education tiered training module. This partnership ensures the highest quality of the modules, which will be used to scaffold teachers' knowledge and skills in implementing inclusive education practices. This initiative has received positive feedback from relevant stakeholders, who have found the content to be highly relevant for implementing inclusive education.

Through various discussions and reviews of the module content, several themes and topics have emerged as crucial subjects in preparing prospective teachers to understand inclusive education effectively, beyond the traditional focus on special education. This perspective and approach align with initiatives in the Teacher Education Program (PPG) and the Teacher Training Institute (TTI). With these collective efforts, there is significant potential for the module's content to be integrated into both PPG courses and, in collaboration with LPTKs, to develop a dedicated course on inclusive education.

Purpose of the Position: 

 INOVASI collaborates with and supports the Ministry and partners by providing technical assistance to ensure that government plans and objectives are achieved within the designated timeline. To effectively integrate the module with the PPG course and assist the TTIs in adopting or incorporating it into their curriculum, human resources with expertise in inclusive education and strong collaboration and facilitation skills are essential.

The goal of recruiting an inclusive education consultant is to facilitate the integration of modules or their adoption. With their expertise, the inclusive education consultant will assist partners in meeting their work targets and deadlines, ensuring the successful integration or adoption of the module.

Scope of work and responsibilities:

Under the supervision of the Disability and Social Inclusion Team and in close coordination with the MoBSE and Teacher Training Institutes (TTIs), the Inclusive Education Consultant will be responsible for the following:

Facilitate the integration of inclusive education modules into the PPG learning course, ensuring alignment with national curriculum standards and institutional requirements.Provide technical assistance and guidance to TTIs and other stakeholders to support the adoption and contextualization of inclusive education modules within their existing programs.Coordinate with relevant government partners and institutions to ensure that integration efforts are aligned with national education priorities and timelines.Ensure that all module content and delivery methods reflect inclusive design principles and are accessible to diverse learners, including those with disabilities.Monitor progress and provide ongoing support to TTIs and partners to help them meet work targets and deadlines related to module integration and adoption.Document lessons learned, best practices, and feedback from partners to inform future module development and integration strategies.Contribute to reporting and knowledge-sharing activities, including preparing technical inputs for reports, presentations, and internal learning sessions.

Duration of the contract:
The duration of the contract is six months with maximum ninety billable workdays, with a possible of extension subject to satisfactory performance assessment.

Deliverables

Inclusive education modules were successfully integrated into the PPG course structure, aligned with national curriculum standards and institutional requirements.Technical assistance reports and action plans are developed and shared with TTIs and government partners to guide the adoption and implementation of the modules.Inclusive design review completed for all module content, ensuring accessibility for diverse learners, including those with disabilities.Progress monitoring tools and dashboards are developed to track module adoption, usage, and alignment with work targets and deadlines.Feedback and evaluation reports compiled from pilot implementations, including recommendations for improvement and adaptation.Documentation of lessons learned and best practices to inform future module development and integration efforts.Provided technical inputs for reports, internal reviews, and knowledge-sharing sessions related to inclusive education and module integration.

Qualifications and Experience:
The Inclusive Education Consultant will possess the following qualifications dan experience:

A degree in Education, Social Sciences, or a relevant development field, or an appropriate tertiary qualification combined with substantial experience in education or inclusive development.Minimum of 5 years of professional experience in the education sector, particularly in curriculum development, teacher training, and implementation for learners from diverse backgrounds and with varying needs.Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of inclusive education principles, curriculum design, and student-centred teaching and learning approaches.Familiarity with the structure, policies, and operations of the MoBSE and TTIs.Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to engage effectively with diverse audiences, including government partners, educators, and technical teams.Strong analytical thinking and facilitation skills, with experience leading collaborative planning sessions, workshops, and stakeholder consultations.

Working with children
Is this position likely to come into contact with children?                    ☐ Yes                  ☒  No

Application closes on 21 August at 23:59 Jakarta Time.

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion - Palladium is committed to embedding equity, diversity, and inclusion into everything we do. We welcome applications from all sections of society and actively encourage diversity to drive innovation, creativity, success and good practice. We positively welcome and seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce; and that all job applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment regardless of their background or personal characteristics. These include: (but are not limited to) socio-economic background, age, race, gender identity and expression, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, nationality, veteran, marital or Indigenous status.
Women are encouraged to apply.

INOVASI has zero tolerance for child abuse and exploitation. All successful candidates will be required to adhere to our Child Protection Policy and will be subject to background checks as a condition of employment.