About Pratham and ASER Centre
Pratham was founded in 1995, to provide pre-school education to children in Mumbai slums. Over the last 20 years, Pratham has grown to be India’s largest NGO working to provide quality education to underprivileged youth and children in over 21 states and union territories across the country, with a range of interventions.
Established in 2008, ASER Centre is Pratham’s autonomous research and assessment unit. ASER conducts the largest citizen-led annual household survey of children in India. ASER Centre promotes a culture of evidence-based decision-making and seeks to develop and use simple yet rigorous methods to generate evidence on the scale on the outcomes of social sector programs, especially education. It also aims to strengthen the link between evidence and action by building the capacity of individuals and institutions to design, conduct, understand, and communicate the results of assessments that focus on key outcome indicators.
Assessment Unit
The assessment Unit at ASER Centre designs assessment tools for National and International Programmes across subjects /domains for Early Childhood Education (ECE), Primary and Upper primary age groups, and EdTech programmes.
Additionally, assessment tools to measure teachers’ effectiveness have also been created and are evolving continuously. In recent times, the Unit has also started developing tools to measure the impact of technology-led learning interventions and adaptive assessment tool design on Android applications.
About the position
The Research Associate – Early Years will be primarily responsible for contributing to literature reviews, research, tool development, and data analysis. The role may additionally involve project management duties which include but are not limited to setting project timelines/milestones, coordinating closely with various units at ASER Centre and Pratham and/or external clients/donors, training enumerators, and working on the budget.
The key responsibilities are as follows:
- Conducting literature reviews and research for identifying relevant literature related to child development; early childhood care and education; parenting; sociocultural factors influencing child development; government laws, policies, and schemes related to early childhood etc.
- Developing assessment frameworks, specifications, and items for child development tools and contextual questionnaires.
- Engaging in fieldwork for research and tool development, which includes piloting and field testing tools developed by ASER Centre.
- Analysing and interpreting data from assessments.
- Reporting and disseminating findings from research and assessments among various kinds of stakeholders, such as researchers, government officials, frontline workers, schoolteachers, etc.
- Planning projects and coordinating with Pratham and/or external clients.
Qualification, Skills and Experience:
Minimum Job Requirements:
- Graduation or Post Graduation in Early Childhood, Psychology, Human Development, Education, or related field.
Key Skills and Knowledge Requirements, but are not limited to:
- Work experience of at least 1 year would be preferred. Experience working in the social sector or prior research experience will be an advantage.
- Proficiency in M.S. Office (Excel, PowerPoint and Word).
- High level of communication, interpersonal, and negotiation skills. Strong communication skills in English and Hindi (written and oral) will be critical. Proficiency in any other Indian language will be an advantage.
- Basic data literacy: ability to understand and interpret descriptive statistics and data visualizations.
- Able to work under minimum supervision, handle work pressure and deliver under tight schedules. Takes initiative and thinks innovatively, respects diversity, and is able to work in large and small groups.
- Be comfortable with traveling extensively to rural locations across the country, sometimes at short notice. Travel, food, and accommodation for work-related travels outside the base location shall be separately borne or reimbursed on actuals by ASER Centre.
Desirable
Experience working in educational assessment setup. Understanding of educational assessments and measurement.
Employment type: Full time | Location: New Delhi | Travel: Travel to rural locations in different states across the country as per need | Reports to: Unit Head/Senior Research Associate | Duration: Minimum 2 years’ commitment | Work experience: 0-2 years } | Deadline: Immediate (open until filled) | Remuneration: CTC 4.68 lac per annum; negotiable as per experience and qualification
Application Process:
To apply, please write the job title, “Research Associate – (Early Years)_Assessment Unit” in the subject line, email the following documents to recruitmentsasercentre@gmail.com and fill out the Google form link here https://forms.gle/2uzf1cU4coZxupgbA
∙ Updated CV (File name: FullName_CV)
∙ Statement of Purpose (SOP) describing how you make a good fit for this role in up to 500 words. Please give specific examples that align with the job requirements and how does it align with your future career goals. (File name: FullName_SOP)
Incomplete applications will not be considered. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted for three subsequent rounds: telephonic/skype interview, written assignments, and final interview. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted at each stage of the recruitment process.