Pipeline Framework: Curriculum Programme Evaluation

A pipeline has been launched for Curriculum Programme Evaluation.The contract start Date is 01 August 2018. Approach to market date is 25 June 2018.Evaluation of the English, computing and MFL curriculum Hub programmesThe Department for Education (DfE) is implementing a number of new curriculum programmes in English, computing and modern foreign language (MFL). A key element of this is the national centre and ‘Hub’ model where lead schools deliver support to other schools. Links to published information on the programmes including prior information notices and invitations to tender for the national centres and hub schools are available below:• English – the Department will be seeking to establish a Centre of Excellence for Literacy Teaching which will train literacy specialists, manage a network of 35 English Hubs to provide direct support to primary schools, and facilitate good practice in early language and literacy teaching. • Computing – the Department is undertaking a package of programmes for computing including training and support programmes. A key part of this is a National Centre of Computing Education which will establish a network of at least 40 computing Hubs to provide support for teachers in primary and secondary schools, and facilitate links with industry. A new CPD programme for computing teachers and an A level support programme also fall under this package.• MFL – the Department is seeking to establish a Centre of Excellence for MFL pedagogy to manage a network of 7 MFL Hubs with 5 secondary schools in each Hub. The Centre of Excellence will train specialist teachers in each hub and facilitate good practice in foreign language teaching. Recognising that there are commonalities in the way the national centre and Hubs models will operate and in the implementation timescales, the DfE proposes to tender for bids to deliver a cost-effective evaluation across the new English, computing and MFL programmes.The key aims of the evaluation are to: • Understand how the hub models are working and being implemented and identify best practice for effectively delivering school-led improvements at scale including how Hubs are recruited and networks developed, to gather evidence that can be applied across programmes; and• Monitor how contractors deliver effective strategies for strengthening English, computing or MFL and how teaching practice and attitudes are changing as a result.In addition to evaluating the Hub approach and fidelity to each programme’s aims, we expect the evaluator to gather evidence on the other (non-hub) elements of the programmes where relevant, e.g. CPD/training and A-level support for computing.This is a potential opportunity from the government, and the pipeline gives advance notice of an opportunity that might be offered by the public sector in the future – allowing potential suppliers to plan accordingly. When a public sector organisation publishes a pipeline notice, it does not necessarily mean that an opportunity will be offered in the future.For more information contact: Sanctuary Buildings, 20 Great Smith Street, London, SW1P 0BT, England. Email: CurriculumProgramme.Evaluation@education.gov.uk. (Kim Williams, Laura Pearce and Morgan Draper)