SOLICITATION NOTICE
U -- verbatim translation exams
- Notice Date
- 7/10/2002
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Property Procurement and Management Section, 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC, 20535
- ZIP Code
- 20535
- Solicitation Number
- rfq074554
- Response Due
- 8/2/2002
- Archive Date
- 8/17/2002
- Point of Contact
- Gwendolyn Campbell, Contracting Officer, Phone 202-324-5287, Fax 202-324-8031, (G. Campbell) - Gwendolyn Campbell, Contracting Officer, Phone 202-324-5287, Fax 202-324-8031, (G. Campbell)
- E-Mail Address
-
gcu@fbi.gov, gcu@fbi.gov
- Description
- This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. This solicitation is issued as a Request for Proposal (RFP). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2001-07. The NAICS code is 611710 and the small business size standard is $6,000,000.00. The FBI requires a company to provide validation of Verbatim Translation Exams in Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Russian. The resultant contract will be for one base year and one (1) additional option year. The Contract Line Items (CLINs) are as follows: Base Year -CLIN 0001 - Validation of Verbatim Translation Exams in Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Russian. Option Year 1 - CLIN 1001 - Validation of Verbatim Translation Exams in Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Russian. THE STATEMENT OF WORK is as follows: Background - The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) requires the trialling and validation of tests that evaluate the document translation skills of applicants for language specialist positions in each of the following languages: Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Russian. The contractor will provide the scoring criteria and evidence of validity for each test. FBI personnel have constructed two forms of a Verbatim Translation Exam (VTE) for each language. Each form comprises four paragraphs. For each paragraph, literal and acceptable English translations have been prepared. The four paragraphs in each form were chosen based on the difficulty level for translation. Text difficulty raters referred to the Skill Level Descriptions for Translation used by the FBI. For each form, one text from Level 2, one from Level 2+, one from Level 3, and one from Level 4 were selected. Purpose - It is important to note that the VTE is not a test of vocabulary; translation ability is not defined in terms of vocabulary knowledge since examinees are allowed to refer to dictionaries. Rather, the goal of the VTE is to test whether the examinee can both recognize and decode complex structures and idioms into equivalent expressions in English. Other factors which effect translation difficulty are differing word orders between the source language and English that often demand rearrangement of the exposition. Non-linguistic factors, such as awareness of social norms, familiarity with cultural allusions, and knowledge of the subject matter, may impinge upon the ability to translate successfully. Contractor Responsibilities - The Contractor shall provide the necessary personnel, materials, and equipment to validate VTEs in Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Russian. Test Validation - Each VTE shall have two different but parallel forms, the second of which will be used in case of retesting. The foreign language texts and their literal and acceptable English translations shall be provided by the FBI. The Contractor shall conduct field tests using a target population representative of the examinees tested by the FBI for language positions. This target population can best be characterized as native and heritage speakers of the target languages. Native English speakers shall make up no more than 10% of the field test population. The Contractor shall be responsible for providing supporting documentation regarding field testing and validation of both forms of each VTE, and all test administration and rating procedures. The Contractor shall collect background information on examinees in order to include this information in the analyses in the final report. The information collected will be presented in the final report and shall include native language, length of time resided in an English-speaking country, work experience related to language (e.g., teaching, translation), and level of education. VTE materials shall include checklists or scoring guides, self-instructional rater training manuals, rating sheets or score report forms, and test administration instructions. Deliverable Items for Each Test - a) Two parallel forms; b) Test booklets; c) Scoring guide; d) Score report form for rater use; e) Test administrator's booklet;f) Self-instructional rater manual; g) A full detailed final report with description of test development, including information on field test samples and validation procedures. Task Management - The Contractor's management plan shall detail the proposed sequence of tasks, methods used to deliver each task, manpower and time estimates, management controls, quality assurance, and deadlines for deliverables. Personnel - The Contractor shall provide a project director/manager to meet the following qualifications: (1) a minimum of five years experience in successfully managing similar types of test development projects; and (2) a minimum of three years experience in successfully managing a testing staff or organization. The contractor shall provide test development personnel for each VTE to meet the following qualifications: (1) demonstrated experience in language test development; (2) a minimum of three years experience in the areas of linguistics, testing, or psychometrics/statistics (3) expertise in the language at the Educated Native Speaker level (4) a minimum of three years experience in translation. Responsibilities of the Government - The FBI shall make available to the Contractor the two forms of each VTE along with their literal and acceptable English translations; a copy of the Skill Level Descriptions for Translation used by the FBI; samples of previous translation test developments. REPORTS. The Contractor shall provide monthly progress reports to the COTR and a final report which shall display on the front cover the following provision: "The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies either express or implied, or the U.S. Government." The following FAR clauses and provisions are applicable and can be obtained by using the Internet, http://www.acqnet.gov: 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors--Commercial Items (OCT 2000); 52.212-2, Evaluation--Commercial Items (JAN 1999) insert as follows: (a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors, in descending order of importance, will be used to evaluate the offer: Technical Approach to include demonstration of knowledge of language testing principles, understanding of the purpose and structure of the VTE, understanding of reliability issues associated with scoring the VTE, proposed validation methodology, proposed score equating methodology and understanding of linguistic factors taken into account when testing native and non-native speakers of the tested languages. Management Approach which assesses the offeror's approach to and philosophy of managing this procurement; and Past Performance. Technical and past performance, when combined, are more important than price. 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications--Commercial Items (MAY 2002). Offerors must provide a completed copy of this provision with its offer. 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions---Commercial Items (FEB 2002). 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders--Commercial Items (MAY 2002). JAR 2852.201-70, Contracting Officers' Technical Representative (COTR)(JAN 1985). Written proposals are due on or before August 02, 2002 at 4:00 pm DST to the Contracting Officer (CO) by regular mail to the address: U.S Department of Justice, FBI, General Contracts Unit, Room 6833, JEH FBI BLDG; 935 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C. 20535. Please identify RFP # 074554 on the outside of your package. Please note that, due to security requirements, Federal Express, DHL, UPS, etc.,deliveries for FBI Headquarters facility are now received at an off-site location. Offerors are hereby notified that if your proposal is not received by the date/time and at the designated Government office specified above, it will be considered late in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Clause 52.215.1 - INSTRUCTION TO OFFERORS-COMPETITIVE ACQUISITION (FEB 2000). Offerors are further notified that the only acceptable evidence to establish the date/time sent is in accordance with FAR Clause 52.215-(3). If offerors have any questions/comments pertaining to this RFP, he/she must submit all inquiries in writing to the Contracting Officer no later than July 18, 2002. Questions regarding this solicitation shall be faxed to the C.O. at 202-324-8040 or 8031. Telephonic requests will not be honored. Any questions/comments submitted after the deadline will not be accepted. The Contracting Officer is Gwendolyn Campbell, FBI, General Contracts Unit, 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Room 6833, Washington, D.C. 20535.
- Web Link
-
Link to FedBizOpps document.
(http://www.eps.gov/spg/DOJ/FBI/PPMS/rfq074554/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: 935 pennslyvania avenue washington, dc
- Zip Code: 20535-0001
- Zip Code: 20535-0001
- Record
- SN00113765-F 20020712/020710215107 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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