Guidelines for Developing TOR
parts adopted from: <full url please> unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0015/.../156134E.pdf -
Guidelines for Developing Terms of References
These guidelines aim to assist UP student organizations in the preparation of Terms of References (ToRs) for partnership activities with UPDILC
Introduction
A project cannot be effectively carried out without a sound Terms of Reference that clearly sets out expectations and what is to be delivered. The concerned student organization is responsible for drafting the ToR. The process for developing the ToR should be a participatory/ collaborative one that involves the officials of the concerned student organization and the DILC.
The following items indicate what each ToR should contain.
1 Title
- State the title of what DILC project an organization will join in.
- Briefly describe the organization
- Briefly discuss the project including objectives,expected outcomes, expected results,
major activities, duration, budget and legislative authority and mandate. It should answer
why, when and how the project was established.
- Describe how the project fits/ links into the objective of the student organization
'''3 Purpose of the Partnership and of the Project'''
- Who initiated the project/ partnership?
- Why is the project being undertaken?
- What are the objectives of the projectsevaluation?
How will the evaluation process and/or results be used? Who are the key users and target audiences? Is the evaluation targeting a specific information or decision-making need (conference, planning activity, Executive Board)? 4 Evaluation scope Specify the timeframe to be covered by the evaluation, the geographical coverage, the thematic coverage and/or project coverage. List the major questions the evaluation should answer – they should relate to the purpose and be precisely stated to guide the evaluator in collecting information and data. The questions should be organised around the chosen evaluation criteria, which usually are efficiency, effectiveness, relevance, impact and sustainability. Where applicable, evaluation questions should be formulated with a gender perspective and the evaluation shall present findings accordingly. Standard questions for efficiency include: • What measures have been taken during planning and implementation to ensure that resources are efficiently used? • Have the outputs been delivered in a timely manner? • Could the activities and outputs been delivered with fewer resources without reducing their quality and quantity? • Could more activities and outputs have been delivered with the same resources?
Standard questions for relevance include: • Are the programme objectives addressing identified needs of the target group(s)? • Do the activities address the problems identified?
5 Deliverables Specify Deliverable 1: An inception report which contains the results chain of the programme (drawn from the desk study), an evaluation plan and a list of reviewed documents. The evaluation plan should contain the proposed data collection methods and data sources to be used for answering each evaluation question. The plan should also contain a timeline of key dates. Specify Deliverable 2: Draft evaluation report which should be delivered with adequate time to allow stakeholder discussion of the findings and formulation of recommendations. Specify Deliverable 3: Final evaluation report which should be structured as follows: • Executive Summary (maximum four pages) • Programme description • Evaluation purpose • Evaluation methodology • Findings • Lessons learnt • Recommendations • Annexes (including interview list, data collection instruments, ke
6 Schedule Draw up an indicative timeframe indicating when the deliverables are due and to whom. Include any key meetings such as presentation of emerging findings to stakeholders. 7 Logistics Identify the logistical support needed such as materials and office space.