The 21st Century Schools Programme builds on the GBP 10 million Western Balkans 21st Century Schools Programme funded by the UK Government and implemented by the British Council between October 2018 and May 2022, as well as subsequent pilot programmes delivered between 2021 and 2022.
Since 2022, Phase II has focused on strengthening digital literacy, critical thinking, problem-solving (CTPS), and coding skills among children aged 6–10 across the Western Balkans, particularly in Serbia and Albania, and since 2024 among children aged 15-18 in Albania. The programme supports ongoing education reforms and aims to foster innovation, technology adoption, and economic development in the region.
The objective of this consultancy is to create a stable, secure, and fully functional Online Platform Skills Upload Jr, developed by Vodafone Foundation, as additional resource to Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Coding online training platform, part of th 21st Century Schools Schools, supporting teachers professional development and students development in the use of Techonology in schools, in Albania.
To ensure relevance, compliance, and effectiveness, the platform content must be aligned with national curriculum standards and adapted to the digital skills levels of teachers and students. This assignment aims to contextualize and align platform content with national education requirements while strengthening competencies in the pedagogical use of technology in schools.
Scope of Work
As part of the 21st Century Schools programme, the British Council is looking to engage up to 6 (six) experts to establish the online learning platform Skills Upload Jr in Albania, part of the Vodafone Foundation education resources, to enhance teachers’ professional development and strengthen students’ technology skills.
1. Specification
The specific objectives of this ToR are:
I. Align content of the existing online platform “Upload Skills Jr” of Vodafone Foundation with national curriculum standards of Albania by:
- ensuring age-appropriate and grade-level relevance;
- integrating digital literacy and ICT competencies aligned with national frameworks;
- adapting content to match teachers’ and students’ digital skills levels;
- ensuring pedagogical appropriateness for blended and online learning environments.
II. Establish (design, configure, customize, and deploy) a local online learning platform of Upload Skills Jr programme to enhance teachers’ professional development and strengthen students’ technology skills. The platform will be built using Moodle, an open-source Learning Management System (LMS), to support blended, hybrid, and fully online learning modalities, aiming to:
- support continuous professional development (CPD) for teachers;
- enhance students’ digital and technology-related competencies;
- provide interactive, self-pace, accessible, and user-friendly learning environments;
- ensure sustainability, scalability, and data security.
Methodology
The proposed approach to developing the “Skills Upload Jr” online training platform combines pedagogical expertise, digital learning design, and technology development. The process begins with a needs assessment involving teachers, students, and key stakeholders to define learning objectives and platform requirements. Based on this assessment, the team will design and structure the platform, including interactive modules, adapt teacher professional development content, student digital skills exercises, and assessment tools. Content will be adapted and developed to ensure alignment with the Albanian curriculum and the 21st Century Schools Programme objectives. The platform will then be built using scalable, secure, and user-friendly technology, followed by pilot testing in selected schools to collect feedback and optimize usability. Finally, comprehensive training, support, and maintenance will be provided to ensure the platform is sustainable, accessible, and effective in enhancing teachers’ professional skills and students’ digital competencies.
2. Main Activities and Deliverables
The expert (s) will deliver:
Specific Objective I
- Curriculum mapping matrix (existing content vs. national standards).
- Adaptation plan outlining recommended changes.
- Revised and localized platform content “Upload Skills Jr”.
- Revised and aligned content of “Upload Skills Jr” with 21st Century Schools online training platform Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Coding.
- Digital skills integration framework.
- Final content, report and guidelines including methodology, recommendations, and next steps.
Specific Objective II
The expert (s) will deliver:
- Needs assessment report.
- Technical architecture and deployment plan.
- Fully functional Moodle platform to be hosted in Albania.
- Configured and tested course templates.
- Training materials and conducted training sessions.
- User manuals (admin, teacher, student).
- Final implementation report.
3. Quotation Validity
3.1 Your quotation must remain open for acceptance by the British Council for a minimum of fifteen days from the date that it is issued to the British Council in response to this requirement.
4 Payment and Invoicing
4.1 The British Council will pay correctly addressed and undisputed invoice within 15 days of the Invoice Date, to be submitted following delivery of all services required. General requirements for an invoice for the British Council include:
- A description of the good/services supplied is included.
- The British Council reference (i.e. Purchase Order number) is included.
- It is sent electronically via email in PDF format to daniela.nuredini@britishcouncil.org.
5 Instructions for Responding
5.1 Your quotation must be submitted to daniela.nuredini@britishcouncil.org by 5 p.m. on 18 February.
6. Clarification Requests
6.1 All clarification requests should be submitted to daniela.nuredini@britishcouncil.org by 5 p.m. on 17 February.
7 Award Criteria
7.1 Responses from potential suppliers will be awarded based on the lowest cost.
- The proposed budget for should include all costs related to the requested services including, but not limiting to engagement of interviewers, travel and logistics costs, reporting.
7.2. The supplier will be informed of the tender outcome latest within 15 days from submission of the offers.
7.3 Offer should be presented in the UK Pound (GBP) gross including VAT which is to be expressed separately. The contract will also be signed in GBP, paid in dinars calculated in accordance with British Council exchange rate for the month in which the invoice will be issued.
8 Disclaimer
8.1 By issuing this RFQ, the British Council is not bound in any way to enter any contractual or other arrangement with you or any other potential supplier. The British Council reserves the right to reduce the quantities to be ordered, subject to availability of funding.