Institutions conclude framework agreement with three EdTech vendors through SURF for e-Portfolio and Programmatic Testing tender

Preliminary process with experts

Several experts from the participating institutions, guided by SURF, worked for almost two years on vision creation, drafting (non-)functional wishes and requirements and other documents. Part of this process was conducting a market consultation. Here, we checked with market players whether the solution directions and ideas matched what the market - which is constantly moving - can deliver. This yielded a lot of useful and new information. Based on the outcome of the market consultation, we made adjustments to the tender documentation. As a result, the tender better suits the needs of institutions and what the market has to offer.

Scope

The tender is divided into two lots:

• Lot 1: portfolio for Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs)*
• Lot 2: development and assessment portfolio to support formative action and programmatic assessment

A broadly applicable e-portfolio was sought that can be integrated with an LMS and that can be used both by programmes looking for a flexible, low-threshold solution for formative action, longitudinal tracking and flexible and personalised learning and testing and by programmes wanting to deploy (elements of) programmatic testing.

Contracted vendors plot 2

For lot 2, framework agreements have been concluded with the following vendors:

• eJournal with the product eJournal;
• Drieam with the product Portflow and
• Pebble Learning with the product PebblePad

The framework agreements have been concluded for four years, with an option to extend them once more by one year.

Mini competition

To make solutions available that meet the conditions, wishes and needs of participating institutions, the choice was made to implement a mini-competition. Participating institutions select, through one or more mini-competitions, the vendor(s) that best fit the institution's needs. This offers the possibility, within predefined frameworks, to steer the call for tender and thus select the most appropriate solution.

During the tendering phase, the solutions of the contracted vendors are already tested in terms of functional requirements and wishes, as well as privacy, security, inclusiveness, vision of education, a roadmap and maintenance/management. Institutions can thus tailor the solution to the institution's processes. The first mini-competition has now started.

Retendering lot 1

Unfortunately, not enough tenders were received from vendors for lot 1. This lot has therefore not yet been awarded and has been republished via a retender.

* EPAs are core actions of the health professional, which they must be able to perform as part of their profession. The EPA portfolio supports programmatic testing.