Job Opportunities, Program Roles

Research Associate – Language and Literacy, Assessment Unit, ASER Centre

About Pratham and ASER Centre 

Pratham was founded in 1995, to provide pre-school education to children in Mumbai slums.  Over the last 30 years, Pratham has grown to be India’s largest NGO working to provide quality  education to underprivileged youth and children in over 28 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. The 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 of 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.

Job Summary 

We seek a candidate who is analytical, detail-oriented, and passionate about educational  transformation. The ideal candidate should have strong research and problem-solving skills, the  ability to design rigorous assessment tools, and the flexibility to work with diverse stakeholders. 

Key Responsibilities 

  • Development of Assessment Frameworks, Technical Reports, Theory of change etc.
  • Development of simple, standardized, yet discriminating items/assessment tools to check  children’s knowledge and skills for various programs in different languages
  • Translating and validating items and content to enhance the quality of the assessment tool
  • Facilitate pilot testing of the tools to enhance the quality of items, monitoring, and  enumerator training as and when required
  • Drafting and contributing to project reports, articles, and presentations including creating  appropriate visualisations for data presentation
  • Developing project timelines, budgets, and operational plans
  • Train varied stakeholders on the tool administration processes and data collection

Minimum Qualifications and Skills 

Essential Qualifications: Bachelor or Master’s degree in Linguistics, Education, Psychology,  Language Education (e.g., English, Hindi, or other Indian languages) or a related field

Language Proficiency: Fluency in English and Hindi (reading, writing, and speaking). Knowledge  of other Indian languages is a plus.  

Essential Skills: Language assessment expertise, test development skills, analytical and problem solving skills, communication and collaboration skills 

Desirable Qualifications and Skills 

  • At least 1-2 years of experience in assessment development, language teaching, implementation, or analysis.
  • Familiarity with assessment frameworks, test development, educational measurement  theories and psychometrics will be given advantage.
  • Technical skills: Proficiency in MS Office, Google Suite, or statistical software (e.g., R, SPSS,  Stata, jMetrik), and assessment platforms.
  • Attention to detail: Meticulous attention to detail and ability to maintain high-quality  standardized assessments.

Other Requirements 

  • Ability to work collaboratively with stakeholders, including educators, policymakers, and other assessment professionals.
  • Collaboration: Ability to work collaboratively with stakeholders, including educators, policymakers, and other assessment professionals.
  • Adaptability: Willingness to learn new skills, adapt to new assessment projects, and  navigate changing priorities.
  • Data-driven decision-making: Ability to collect, analyze, and interpret data to inform assessment decisions.
  • Extensive travel to rural locations: 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. 

What We Offer 

  • Competitive salary based on experience and qualifications
  • Health insurance and wellness benefits
  • Professional development opportunities, including training and workshops Learning environment with opportunities for field engagement
  • Access to mentorship and learning sessions with education and assessment experts 
  • Opportunities to lead projects and collaborate with national and international partners 

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: The remuneration will be competitive within the Indian philanthropy pay scale and will be based on the candidate’s experience and qualifications. 

How to Apply 

To apply, fill out the Google form link here: https://forms.gle/Cii8fsh7pkyxrafA9 and upload the following documents: 

  • Updated CV (File name: FullName_CV_RA_Language) 
  • 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 it  aligns with your future career goals. (File name: FullName_SOP_RA_Language) 

Incomplete applications will not be considered. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted for three subsequent rounds: telephonic/skype/zoom interview, written assignments, and final interview. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted at each stage of the recruitment process.