The objective of the Teaching and Leading the Next generation of Timorese Project (the “TALENT Project”) is stated in Section 1.2. The TALENT Project seeks to achieve this Objective by improving the quality of teaching and school leadership in all secondary schools in Timor-Leste. Specifically, the TALENT Project aims to improve pedagogy, school and classroom management; increase opportunities for women in teaching and leadership positions; improve language and information and communication technology (“ICT”) instruction for future teachers; and enhance instructional leadership and create a supportive and inclusive learning environment.

•    The TALENT Project is organized around the following four Activities:
•    The Center of Excellence for Teacher Education Activity
•    Teacher Training Activity
•    School Leadership Training Activity
•    Ensuring Excellence Activity

The Center of Excellence for Teacher Education Activity
This Activity will establish a new autonomous institution in Timor-Leste to provide professional training and certification to future secondary teachers entering the workforce, as well as training and certification of a portion of current secondary teachers.
Establishing the Center of Excellence
Under this Sub-Activity, MCC Funding will support the formal establishment and initial operations of the Center of Excellence, which will operate under the purview of the Ministry of Higher Education Science and Culture with the oversight of an executive board consisting of members from key Government entities. The Center of Excellence will be legally established, equipped with an organizational structure reflecting appropriate staffing and resources, and led by a competitively hired director. The Center of Excellence will also actively recruit women to leadership positions.
The establishment of the Center of Excellence will involve the development of an appropriate policy framework. This policy framework may include the modification of the Timor-Leste Education System Framework Law to require future secondary school teachers and school leaders to have a professional certificate from the Center of Excellence in order to be hired into Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport- or Ministry of Higher Education Science and Culture-supported positions (“Ministry- supported Positions”). Teacher trainees admitted to the Center of Excellence will subsequently be offered full-time teaching positions across Timor-Leste if they successfully complete their professional training and meet certification requirements.
Design and Build the Center of Excellence
Under this Sub-Activity, MCC Funding will support the design and construction or rehabilitation of a building to house the Center of Excellence, on land provided by the Government. The building will provide space for the training and professional development of teachers and support Center of Excellence staff in engaging in ongoing quality assurance, course development and refinement. While the Center of Excellence building is under construction or rehabilitation, the Government will provide any necessary temporary space where training for secondary teachers and leaders can commence. This Sub-Activity integrates design features that are expected to contribute to the goal of increasing the number of women in teaching and leadership positions.

•    Teacher Training Activity
MCC Funding will support the development and delivery of trainings to current and future secondary school teachers in Timor- Leste. All current secondary teachers are expected to receive some form of training to improve their pedagogical skills, including student assessment, in the areas of numeracy, literacy, and soft skill development. A sub-set of current secondary teachers will receive additional training to receive their professional certification from the Center of Excellence. Future teaching candidates will be trained at the Center of Excellence and receive practical training at secondary schools throughout Timor-Leste. They will then be offered full-time employment in Ministry-supported Positions.
Course Development
Within this Sub-Activity, MCC Funding will support the development of course modules, course content, and corresponding materials. These materials will be designed based on needs assessments and current materials from existing institutions to target key pedagogical practices, including student assessment, in the areas of numeracy, literacy, and soft skills. Materials will be inclusive and use gender-responsive and disability-appropriate pedagogical approaches in the classroom.
Training Current Teachers
MCC Funding will support the training of current secondary teachers through two training streams.
The first stream of training aims to reach all current secondary teachers (general and technical) to improve the quality of teaching in the areas of numeracy, literacy, and soft skills. This training will be provided by Center of Excellence staff in collaboration with both the Ministry of Education Youth and Sport and the Ministry of Higher Education Science and Culture.
The second stream of training will provide intensive training to a sub-set of current secondary teachers to enable them to receive full professional certification from the Center of Excellence, similar to the training provided to teacher trainees. Such teachers may provide mentorship to other teachers.
Training Future Teachers
Under this Sub-Activity, MCC Funding will support training of candidate secondary school teachers at the Center of Excellence. Training will focus on the development of teacher trainees’ approaches to instruction (pedagogy) that will improve secondary
students’ performance in the areas of numeracy, literacy, and soft skills. The training will be carried out at the Center of Excellence and in situ at secondary schools throughout Timor-Leste and will target the skills required by teacher trainees for student-centered learning.

•    School Leadership Training Activity
Under the School Leadership Training Activity, MCC Funding will support the training of school leaders to create effective schools through strong school leadership, both in school management and in terms of instructional leadership. Training will focus on competencies in school leadership, including gender and social inclusion and ICT in education.
Developing Curriculum and Materials
In this Sub-Activity, MCC Funding will support training for school leaders and prospective school leaders on the design and delivery of curriculum and training materials, including:

•    Management (interdisciplinary structures and community outreach), instructional leadership, and teacher assessment;
•    Good practices in development planning and curriculum frameworks;
•    Developing/improving teaching and learning materials and resources for current leaders, including the uses of ICT in education;
•    Key issues related to gender and social inclusion; and
•    Providing support to enhance skills in the language of

1.    Training Delivery
MCC Funding will support the training of every current senior secondary school leader and approximately 650 prospective school leaders during the Compact Term through professional development courses, resources, and ongoing support through the Center of Excellence. Prospective women school leaders will be intentionally targeted for involvement. During and after Center of Excellence training, school leaders (approximately five per school) will also become trainers and mentors in their own schools for current leaders. School leaders in training will receive ongoing training and support from Center of Excellence staff, using different modalities, including online modules and face-to-face meetings, to enhance their instructional leadership and school management practices.

•    Ensuring Excellence Activity
This Activity consists of three Sub-Activities, all of which focus on ensuring the accessibility and quality of the Center of Excellence’s services.

1.    Quality Assurance and Monitoring

MCC Funding under this Sub-Activity will support the creation of a quality assurance team at the Center of Excellence. This team will facilitate the ongoing evidence-based improvement and oversight of the Center of Excellence’s programs by developing evaluation tools to regularly analyze and report on the effectiveness of trainings. These tools, including online surveys and assessment tasks, will allow for collection and analysis of data gathered from trainees after they have completed individual modules and the full program. Data and analysis will support the Center of Excellence’s continuous improvement of courses, teaching styles, and learning materials, as well as its responsiveness to emerging needs that prompt new courses, components, or modules.

1.    Women’s Economic Empowerment in Education

This Sub-Activity aims to increase women’s access to the profession of teaching and school leadership at the secondary level by removing barriers for women to enter employment opportunities in education. Efforts supported by MCC Funding to achieve this aim may include the development and implementation of fair and transparent recruitment and promotion processes, incentive schemes for women working in education, support systems for women teachers and school leaders (such as an association or mentorship programs), support for women to participate in trainings (for example, childcare or transport stipends), and leadership programs tailored for women in education. MCC Funding for this Sub-Activity will also support community engagement through workshops to address barriers to entry into the workforce faced by women.

1.    Creating Language and ICT Supports

To support trainees in the areas of language and ICT, MCC Funding will provide both ICT equipment for the Center of Excellence and language laboratories at the Center of Excellence. Additionally, MCC Funding will support the formulation of an ICT team at the Center of Excellence to support blended and online/distance learning. The Government will also explore forming partnerships with existing institutions that work in the area of language training