Summary
Date Posted: Friday, September 06, 2019 , Base Salary: Not Disclosed

JOB DETAILS:
  scope of work
Chemonics International Inc.
Title: Early Grade Reading Advisor, Ministry of Education (MINEDUC)
Activity: USAID Soma Umenye
Background
USAID/Rwanda supports Government of Rwanda efforts to improve education quality through a significant investment in its Early Grade Reading Project, which consists of three separate activities: Soma Umenye, Mureke Dusome, and Itegure Gusoma.
Soma Umenye aims to improve reading outcomes in Kinyarwanda for at least 1 million children in Rwanda. Specifically, Soma Umenye targets all children in primary grades 1-3 attending public and government-aided schools nationwide to ensure that at least 70 percent of these students are able to read grade-level text with fluency and comprehension.
Mureke Dusome aims to foster partnerships between schools and the broader community to improve literacy outcomes for children in primary grades 1-3. Its goal is for these strong partnerships between schools, parents, and communities to create a supportive environment for children to read and to improve their reading performance.
The goal of the pilot Itegure Gusoma activity is to increase the percent of learners in targeted schools who demonstrate increased learning outcomes in Kinyarwanda in primary grade 1 through early grade reading support at the pre-primary level. It aims to achieve this goal by strengthening the quality of pre-reading instruction in targeted pre-primary schools.
Purpose of Assignment
The Early Grade Reading Advisor, working within MINEDUC’s Directorate General of Education Policy & Planning and reporting to the Director General of this department as well as to the Chief of Party of Soma Umenye, will provide a combination of support to MINEDUC focused on improved service delivery and system efficiency through, among other areas, support to policy development and operational planning, improved coordination among development partner and GOR investments in early grade learning, monitoring and evaluation, and improved information and data sharing among USAID, its partners and MINEDUC, contributing to strategic and informed decision-making, including that related to ESSP delivery on key indicators and targets and development of a learning agenda..

Job Responsibilities:
• Collaborate with MINEDUC counterparts to identify opportunities to improve capacity and systemic efficiency for effective delivery of early grade literacy in Kinyarwanda, with particular emphasis on:
• Planning and monitoring for effective Education Sector Strategic Plan (ESSP) delivery
• Improved data analysis for informed decision making related to policy development and oversight of the implementation of early grade reading systems including national and district assessments of early grade reading competencies through national EGRA and district-level EGRA, alongside tracking the strength of the 5 Ts (teaching, time, text, tongue, test)
• Policy planning, analysis, and coordination of stakeholders
• Support to the development of learning agenda to target improved Human Capital Index, particularly through improved early grade Kinyarwanda literacy
• Support MINEDUC in elaboration, dissemination, and coordination of implementation of education sector policies, strategies and programs, including preparation of periodic reports for events such as the Joint Review of the Education Sector (JRES) (as all of these activities relate to USAID’s Early Grade Reading Project).
• As opportunity arises, focus particularly on supporting MINEDUC to finalize and formally adopt existing relevant draft policies, such as the Teacher Development and Management Policy, the School-Based Mentor Framework, the Learning and Teaching Materials Policy, and the Curriculum and Assessment Policy.
• As opportunity arises, focus particularly on supporting MINEDUC to create, finalize, and formally adopt policies that strengthen the five Ts within Rwanda’s system of delivering early grade reading outcomes
• Support relevant MINEDUC officials to identify questions they have related to improving early grade reading outcomes and collaborate with Soma Umenye staff to develop these topics into learning agenda items.
• Support MINEDUC to monitor education indicators and consolidate data, including national data on early grade reading subskills and the strength of the 5 Ts and the presentation of data on the national ESSP dashboard (including national EGRA data) and the district dashboards
• Liaise with key MINEDUC counterparts and education stakeholders to promote effective delivery of cross-cutting education initiatives, including girls’ education, special needs education, and libraries/literacy programs.
• Liaise with key MINEDUC counterparts, key REB counterparts, education stakeholders, USAID-funded basic education activities, and the USAID/Rwanda Education Office to coordinate planned and ongoing activities at MINEDUC and as needed.
• Update MINEDUC officials, as needed and on demand, regarding USAID activities throughout Rwanda as they relate to basic education and MINEDUC policy
Deliverables
• Early grade reading reports within education sector reporting as appropriate, including JRES.
• Attend selected key education sector working groups as agreed with the chief of party and USAID, sector reviews, and policy and planning events as a representative of USAID’s projects.
• Ensure notes are taken and shared with Soma Umenye’s chief of party (who will share them with Soma Umenye staff and USAID).
• Attend the USAID Soma Umenye Steering Committee meetings.
• After four months in this position, prepare inception report (4-20 pages). This report will describe identified opportunities to (1) improve capacity and systemic efficiency of delivery of early grade reading services, (2) move forward policies, strategies, and programs related to early grade Kinyarwanda reading, (3) support the development of indicators tracking early grade reading performance, and (4) promote effective delivery of cross-cutting education initiatives (as described above). The advisor will:
• Develop an outline shared with Soma Umenye’s chief of party
• After discussion of the outline with the chief of party, develop a first draft
• After discussion of the first draft with the chief of party, develop a final draft.
• After each additional four months in the position, prepare update report (4-20 pages). This report will describe (1) progress on the elements identified in the inception report and (2) include any new opportunities that have arisen during the past four months. Follow same drafting procedures as with inception report.

Job Skills: Not Specified

Job Qualifications:
• Master’s degree in education or other relevant field and seven years of experience in positions of progressively increasing responsibility, or Bachelor’s degree in education or other relevant field and twelve years of progressive responsibility.
• Demonstrated ability to effectively engage education-sector stakeholders to build collaborative relationships that promote effective project implementation.
• Experience working effectively with stakeholders to develop and implement policies designed to improve early grade reading outcomes.
• Experience working with donor-funded projects strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with USAID’s 2011 Education Strategy and 2018 Education Policy.. Familiarity with USAID’s 5 T framework. Familiarity with Section C of Soma Umenye, Mureke Dusome, and Itegure Gusoma’s contracts.
• Familiarity with Global Reading Network resources ( https://www.globalreadingnetwork.net/   )
• Experience promoting equity in learning outcomes among boys, girls, and children with special needs preferred.
• Demonstrated exemplary diplomatic, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Written and spoken English proficiency is required. Kinyarwanda language skills a distinct advantage.

Job Education Requirements: Not Specified

Job Experience Requirements: Not Specified

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Job application procedure
The location of assignment is Kigali, Rwanda with intermittent travel throughout the country. The advisor will work from MINEDUC offices. Supervision The Early Grade Reading Advisor to MINEDUC will report directly to the chief of party or his/her designee, as well as working under the supervision of the Director-General of Education Policy & Planning or his/her designee. Expected Salary: Commensurate with salary history and experience Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted For more information about Chemonics International visit www.chemonics.com 

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