Project Associate/Sr. Associate – English as a second language – The Akanksha Foundation

The Akanksha Foundation is a non-profit organisation with a mission to provide children from low-income communities with a high-quality education, enabling them to maximize their potential and transform their lives. Akanksha primarily addresses formal education through 27 Akanksha Schools in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur.

Over the past 30 years, the organization has expanded from 15 children in one centre to more than 10,000 children in 27 schools. A commitment is made to support each child by giving him or her a strong educational foundation, values and help them plan how they can earn a steady livelihood as a step towards improving their standard of living.

Multiply Initiative- SETU

Reports to Project Manager Akanksha’s vision is to reach all children with the knowledge, skills and values they need to lead empowered lives. One of the ways this will be possible is when we establish strong partnerships with the government education system and support systematic reform to deliver quality education in all schools.

We aspire to realise this vision of systemic change through effective partnerships in sharing our programs with the government schools with an orientation to impact on student learning and sustainability of the programs beyond formal partnerships.

The programs will focus on building knowledge and skills of the educators. Our goals will be to influence classroom practices through building capacity of mentors and govt management combined with some direct support to teachers with training and resources. This will help us have a multiplier effect with sustainability in the system .

The project will entail the following:

● Building capacities of mentors and officers, in cases the teachers as well across State & District level through direct training as well as designing online learning experiences for them in the given program domain.

● Creating content for both in-person and online trainings and resources for teachers, mentors and officers.

● Establishing clear support structure and expectations with schools and government functionaries across the district.

In the first phase of the program we will be offering ECCE, English as second language and parent engagement programs.

About the Role:

Description & Responsibilities

We see the Project Associate role at Akanksha for the multiply initiative will be a highly aspirational role where the scope to learn about and create impact at a systemic level is immense. The role will also demand quick learning, high adaptability and taking on new challenges as we expand and go broader and deeper in our initiatives.

Project Associate will work with the Project Manager to play a critical leadership role in ensuring planning for and execution of the responsibilities listed below. They include but are not limited to:

Planning and Execution (60%)

● Work on planning/designing the overall project strategy for English as second language in conjunction with the Project Manager

● Work with government stakeholders to design interventions that align with government needs as well as Akanksha’s project design.

● Work with government teachers/teacher mentors for their development as per the plan

● Execute the project strategy in coordination with government stakeholders at PCMC, NMC and new corporations as we increase our reach.

Stakeholder Management (20%)

● Work with government stakeholders right from the District education officer to on-ground officers’ team of cluster heads, block education officers to build long-lasting relationships that aid project operations and expansion plans

● Manage a team of teachers, teacher mentors to execute the project and also bring about their professional development

● Plan and execute quarterly update meetings with stakeholders and provide progress towards goals of the project to all stakeholders Personal and Professional Development (10%)

● Research and lead sessions to contribute towards the team’s personal and professional growth by introducing varied perspectives on education, equity, culture, monitoring and evaluation, policy reform, etc. based on one’s interest and expertise.

● Participate effectively and drive learning in the team professional development days and team stepbacks. Documentation (10%) Codifying best practices from the program and disseminating them internally and externally towards building knowledge of the organization and allowing replication across the ecosystem

Education & Experience 2-3 Years of experience executing projects Prior experience in English Language Teaching and Learning as a teacher/instruction specialist, content developer or professional development expert

Knowledge, Skills & Capabilities

● Excellent written and oral communication skills – and functional knowledge (oral and written) of Marathi is preferred but not critical.

● Strong ability to create outstanding presentations, work with Microsoft Excel, Google Suite, and varied data sets

● Belief in the potential of the public sector and that government systems can and will change towards overcoming systemic inequities and ensuring improved outcomes for all citizens

● Being able to take initiative and work in an autonomous, semi-structured environment

● Adaptability to changing responsibilities and resourcefulness to respond to them

● High openness to learning

● Ability to build and sustain relationships with multiple stakeholders & partners across public and private spaces

● Patience and resilience to stick it out in the face of setbacks and uncertainties

Location: Pune/ Nagpur, Maharashtra.

Will involve travel across to districts or states (need based) Selection The selection process will involve written tests/assignments, interviews and live demonstrations of expertise with the educator team of the organization.

Compensation: Based on skill sets, experience and sector standards