Education Researcher for the Global Happy Schools Initiative

Parent Sector : Education Sector (ED)

Duty Station: Multiple

Job Family: Education

Type of contract : Consultant

Duration of contract : 6 months

Recruitment open to : External candidates

Application Deadline (Midnight Duty Station Time) : 31/07/2025

UNESCO Core Values: Commitment to the Organization, Integrity, Respect for Diversity, Professionalism

UNESCO’s Global Happy Schools Initiative advocates for a transformative reform of education and a paradigm shift to put happiness at the core of education policy and practice. Grounded in both science and philosophy, it recognizes happiness as both a means to and a goal of quality learning. The initiative is informed by a growing evidence base linking happiness with better learning, teaching, well-being and overall system resilience. Well-being and academic success can form a virtuous cycle, as research highlights the interplay between emotional and cognitive functions, underscoring the need for whole-body, heart and mind engagement in learning. UNESCO’s Happy School’s Framework serves as an umbrella framework to coordinate interventions that target improved learning, inclusive teaching, health education, mental health & psychosocial support (MHPSS), socio-emotional learning and student and teacher well-being. In this way, UNESCO’s Happy Schools Initiative connects SDG 4 and SDG 3 by making happiness central to education transformation. Importantly, the Happy Schools Initiative focuses on the happiness of the school community rather than of individual students.

Happiness and well-being activities cannot be effectively implemented at scale without being integrated into education policies and plans. UNESCO emphasizes this important dimension to ensure systemic changes towards happy teaching and learning. The Happy Schools Initiative is receiving growing interest from policymakers, researchers and practitioners from both low- and high-income countries due to global declines in both learning and well-being.

The initiative urges education authorities to prioritize happiness in education and scale up joyful learning practices from schools to policy levels, guided by UNESCO”s Global Happy Schools Framework. The framework comprises four pillars — People, Process, Place, and Principles — and 12 high-level criteria for integrating happiness into education systems. To learn more about the Global Happy Schools Framework, see the new report, ‘Why the world needs happy schools: Global report on happiness in and for learning’ (UNESCO, 2024).

Happy Schools Diagnostic Toolkit

Following publication of the Global Happy Schools Framework, UNESCO is seeking the services of a qualified researcher to support the operationalization of the Global Happy Schools Framework into schools via the Happy Schools Diagnostic Toolkit. The Toolkit is comprised of a set of questionnaires for students, parents, teachers, and school leaders to assess their school environment based on the Global Happy Schools Framework.

There is no one-size-fits-all Happy Schools model and UNESCO’s global initiative is not designed to measure individual happiness of students and teachers. Each context is expected to develop their own initiatives to validate the criteria and adapt the high-level framework according to local realities. While the Global Happy Schools Framework is not designed for evaluative purposes, countries are free to develop and validate a national measurement instrument based on the Global Happy Schools Framework (e.g., Gramaxo et al., 2025, who designed and validated a parental ‘happy schools’ measurement scale for the Portuguese context). Based on the results of the questionnaires, the school community will engage in participatory dialogue to co-create initiatives for school improvement.

The researcher will support the following activities:

1. Research, analysis and drafting

• Coordinate the cognitive testing and expert peer review of the draft instruments for students (primary, secondary), teachers, parents, and school leaders.
• Coordinate the pilot testing of the Happy Schools Diagnostic Toolkit in sample schools covering priority global regions.
• Contribute to the revisions of the instruments as necessary based on the results of the cognitive testing, peer review and psychometric analyses.
• Prepare a ‘Guidance Manual’ to support implementation of the Toolkit by (1) individual schools for self-assessment and (2) regional or national authorities for large-scale implementation. In both cases, the manual will explain the full process, such as adaptation and translation; school selection and sampling; data collection, analysis and psychometric validation. The manual will provide instructional guidelines for schools to co-create and implement interventions; design and implement an M&E framework; ensuring confidentiality, privacy, and informed consent.
• Support other research, analysis and drafting activities as required.

2. Communications & Outreach

• Coordinate an online Community of Practice on Happy Schools for peer learning, knowledge sharing and capacity building by organizing quarterly thematic webinars.
• Prepare communications and advocacy materials for promoting the Global Happy Schools Framework and Diagnostic Toolkit (e.g., speeches, blog articles, brochures, web content, social media messages, etc.)
• Organize and participate in webinars, meetings, and other events as required.

• Advanced university degree (Master’s or above) with a research stream in educational measurement, programme evaluation, educational psychology, psychometrics, child development, or related fields.

• Minimum 10 years of relevant work experience (post-Master’s degree) in implementing policy-relevant school-level interventions and/or research studies, requiring interactions with school, regional, or national authorities.
• Experience with both quantitative and qualitative research methods, including sampling, test development and validation through psychometric analyses.
• Experience with mobilizing schools, Ministries of Education, NGOs, researchers, universities, and other relevant bodies in relation to implementing school-level interventions or research studies.
• Professional experience in coordinating and managing large-scale projects.
• Strong drafting and analytical skills and capacity to produce high-quality work.
• Demonstrated experience in producing a variety of reports and communications materials for various audiences (scientists, teachers, policymakers, media, funders).
• Capacity to work in a fast-paced multi-cultural environment; ability to adapt to changing priorities under short notice; ability to work independently as part of a wider interconnected team; ability to work within tight timelines; a strong and professional work ethic is valued.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.

• PhD in one of the above research streams will be an asset.
• Publications in peer-reviewed journals on related topics would be an asset.
• Oral and written communication skills in French will be an asset.

In the online application process, in lieu of the Employment History Form, applicants should submit the following in one PDF document:

1. A short (maximum 1,000 words) motivation letter with (1) concrete examples from your experience that illustrate your skills and expertise for the enumerated tasks of this assignment and the required qualifications, and (2) an indication of your approach for conducting the assignment.
2. An updated CV and list of relevant publications.
3. A financial proposal indicating your daily rate (in USD) for full-time work for 6 months. Do not include travel costs as part of your financial proposal. If travel will be required, these costs will be covered separately.

Shortlisted candidates may be invited to a written exam, and successful candidates will be invited to interview.

The position is ideally performed on-site, contingent upon possessing a valid working permit in France, with remote work being a potential option.

To apply, please visit the UNESCO careers website. No modifications can be made to the application submitted.

UNESCO uses communication technologies such as video or teleconference, e-mail correspondence, etc. for the assessment and evaluation of candidates.

Please note that only selected candidates will be further contacted and candidates in the final selection step will be subject to reference checks based on the information provided.