One of the goals of the Education Support Program (ESP) is to support sustainable reforms in general education and to promote accountability in its governance. ESP has designed survey instruments and research methodology for a study on Parental Informal Payments to Education (PIPES). ESP is accepting proposals for participation in this study.

Rationale

An education system is free of corruption when it ensures equal access to education, fair distribution of educational materials, states fair and transparent criteria for accepting students to schools, maintains professional standards of school administrators and teachers, and is accountable to their customers—students, parents, and the wider public. Therefore the issues of transparency, accountability, and prevention of corruption should be addressed through public participation with the help of local and international NGOs. The PIPES project will focus on the following questions:

• Is the public aware of how state schools are financed?
• Is the state funding system transparent and fair?
• Are regulations concerning parental contributions included in education legislation and understood by the public?
• Are there any forced parental contributions to schools?
• What is the proportion of private contributions to state schools?

The proposed study will focus on schools as the recipient of various financial donations and whether these resources affect equal access to schooling. In addition the study will explore the needs and forms of private contributions to schools. This would analyze the share of private funding in state financed education and observe how it is administrated and accounted for. Other questions to be considered include:

• What is the attitude of parents to these contributions?
• Are these contributions voluntarily made?
• If parents are unable to contribute to schools, are the students treated differently?

In order to better understand these processes, a list of services financed by parents will be made (e.g., hiring security guards in the schools). This list will allow for and systematize information about the needs of parental contributions and what the differences are of these needs between urban and rural schools.

The results of the study will be further used for advocacy and awareness rising in the respective countries. The format of the advocacy activities can be chosen by country teams in order to meet country needs.

Methodology

ESP is developing methodology and instruments and piloting them in Azerbaijan. ESP seeks four to five countries that are interested in carrying out the PIPES study using developed methodology and instruments. In each country a research group would be formed. The groups will share the methodology and research experience in three methodology seminars organized by ESP. These seminars will help to adjust instruments to country needs and would allow for agreement on the methodology and the techniques of data collection. Two international consultants are involved in preparing the instruments. The preparation of the instruments and the methodology is the task of the international consultants in coordination with the ESP manager. To ensure the comparability of the data, the countries will follow the cross-national methodology developed. ESP is responsible for project management and administration. The country teams are responsible for data collection, producing national reports and advocacy activities.

Eligibility

Members of the OSI education network and their partners are eligible to apply. These include:

• OSI network of education spin-off NGOs;
• NGOs that have implemented in the past or currently implement projects financed by OSI or Soros foundations;
• the broader network of OSI partner institutions (nongovernmental organizations, professional associations, coalitions, and civil society institutions) that are active in promoting education change and that are/were co-partners in implementing OSI or Soros foundation financed programs;
• OSI Network of Education Policy Centers.

To Apply

The deadline for application submission is June 10, 2006. Ideally the project should be planned from the beginning of September 2006 onwards and implemented for 18 months.

Applicants should submit in free form a letter of interest to participate in the study. The letter of interest should:

• demonstrate motivation to participate in the study;
• demonstrate the previous experience of the applicant to participate and complete the study on policy analysis;
• indicate readiness to follow the ESP proposed methodology;
• demonstrate the potential for advocacy activities;
• demonstrate that the applicant has managerial capacity to implement the project.

A realistic and detailed line-item budget should also be included indicating any possible co-financing and its source. Although the project may cover an entire budget, applicants are encouraged to seek co-funding from other organizations, including Soros foundations, donors, and governments.

PIPES will cover the following expenses: expenses for data collection and analysis, report writing, communication costs, and printing costs. Expenses for purchase of computers, office rent and utility payments cannot be covered through the project. Costs for participation in seminars shall be covered centrally by ESP.

Contact Information

Inquiries about the study should be directed to:

Indra Dedze
Senior Program Manager
ESP Budapest
dedze@osi.hu
tel: +36 1 327 3100 x2349
fax: +36 1 235 6147.