United Nations Jobs: National Education Advisor

Position Title:	National Education Advisor - Laos	Application Deadline Date:	24 Jan 2014
Position Location:	Vientiane	Position Start Date	03 Feb 2014
Region:	East Asia	Position End Date:	02 Feb 2016
Requisition Category:	International	Recruitment Priority:	Need Immediately
Country Name:	Laos	Program/Office Name:	WV Laos
City/Province:	Vientiane	Employee Type:	Contract
Job Grade Level:	15	Recruitment Status:	Advertising in Progress
Is this a family post?	Family - Spouse with Children
		Requisition Num:	2014EASNAUN-9EY9WN

PURPOSE OF POSITION:

The position of National Education Advisor (NEA) is intended to position World Vision Laos (WVL) as an industry leader contributing to learning outcomes in Laos. The NEA will spend 50% of the time strengthening WVL’s current education investments, particularly in reference to the “Schools of Quality Model” and pre-positioning WVL for future education programming. The other 50% of the time will be spent contributing to Laos’ Education Working Group and Consortium (iNGO, NPA, Gov’t), establishing World Vision as an Industry Leader among peers.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Strengthen Evidence Based Programs (Strategic Goal 2.1):

Conduct situational analysis on the attainment of education outcomes in Laos, with a focus on inclusion (ethnic, girls, disability, most vulnerable) and the role of civil society and a performance assessment of WV’s contribution to learning outcomes in Laos over the last five years.
Lead the development and dissemination of Education sector strategy, program logic (Theory of Change), models and best practices. Particular emphasis on WVL’s Project Pilot Model: Schools of Quality.
Provide technical review of the current methodology of the education sector (including 13 cluster evaluations of ongoing programs) vis-à-vis monitoring support visits to identified Area Development Programs (ADPS) and non-ADP/ grants funded Education projects; as well as report review in order to strengthen quality of education activities implemented. (ADPs are the geographical catchment areas of WV’s core programming).
Assist the development and mainstreaming of a programme monitoring system and contextualised monitoring and evaluation tools to assess compliance with minimum standards for education outcomes (e.g. Functional Literacy Assessment Tool (FLAT), School Readiness Test, Core Indicators for Schools of Quality, classroom observation forms, etc.).
Act as the Technical Advisor for the 6 Project Pilot Models for Schools of Quality, including the roll out of a learning framework, co-facilitation of semi-annual learning reflections and completion of pilot learning report.
Provide guidance on annual program planning so that sectoral "best practices, lessons learned, etc." are integrated into technically sound business plans and services are coordinated.
Provide information and data about the education sector as requested.

Align program scale and focus to Education Goals (Strategic goal 3.2):
Develop cutting-edge and realistic Education proposals with a focus on inclusion and the role of civil society for private and grant donors (including Australian DFAIT and EU) together with Program Officers.
Manage all grant funded Education Projects, according to time, cost, and quality expectations as defined in project proposals.
Prepare annual plans and budgets according to donor requirements and WV standards of excellence.
Manage programme activities and budget within approved spending limits and ensure accurate and timely financial reports.
Ensure programme expenses are reasonable, allowable, prudent and spent in accordance with donor rules and regulations to ensure acceptable audits.

Build strong transforming partnerships (Strategic goal 2.2):
Galvanise WV’s participation in the Education Sector Working group by taking up a leadership role, mobilising iNGOs and NPAs
Conduct mapping of other Education actors which may include iNGOs, Non-Profit Associations, Private companies and other groups and synergise relationships in pursuit of MDG #2.
Develop and deliver an advocacy platform, along with Government Relations team, for “Provincial Implementation Management Committee” and “District Implementation Management Committee” (Government Committees which are assigned to our projects) to increase buy-in for more systematic investments in education, in keeping with the Schools of Quality approach.
Contribute to national and provincial discussion to strengthen National policies related to education and for the implementation of existing policies, with a view of inclusion and civil society.
Develop dynamic relationships between World Vision and the Ministry of Education and other relevant institutions at National level.
Develop mutually supportive relationships with other departments and staff in WVL and actively work with them in order to facilitate effective management and administration of education programs and people, and in the development of appropriate policies, systems, procedures. In particular develop dynamic and enduring relationships with Operations and People & Culture (HR).

Exercise greater influence for the well-being of children (Strategic goal 2.3):
Represent World Vision Lao ministry within the international WV partnership. Develop and maintain positive and productive relationships with WV’s Asia education community of practice.
Participate in relevant regional and international networks, working groups, workshops, meetings etc., contributing WVL’s experiences, perspectives and learning and feeding back to the education team, zonal managers, ADP Managers and others on WVLaos major trends, developments, learning etc., from around the partnership.
Represent WVL on Operations related matters to other NGOs, Non Profit Associations, Mass Organizations and branches of the Government of Lao.
Prepare and disseminate annual and periodic reports and presentations on WVL’s achievements in education with special emphasis on the role of civil society in the attainment of education outcomes, with intention to broaden support base of education for all.
Share program lessons learned with other iNGOs / NPAs/ UN Agencies and government partners through the Education Working group.

Improve staff competencies in Education (Strategic goal 4.5):
Improve program-staff competencies in critical areas. Build capacity of Education Manager and Education Team (National, Zonal, District) through coaching, targeted trainings, and the development of appropriate tools. Identify key competencies, particularly for field practitioners contribute to organizational learning system to build key competencies.
Equip the Education team (with skills, tools and checklists) to review future project and program designs to ensure alignment with education strategic priorities.
Document best practices and feed programme lessons learned into existing project models and implementation guidelines. Contribute to effective and efficient education knowledge management through online applications.
Build a WVL Sectoral Community of Practice in relation to education sector.
Contribute to organizational cultural and behavioral changes away from a fear-based, compliance culture to one that takes action and values learning and initiative. Use WVL’s “six star learning tools” and implement WVL’s learning system in order to amplify and expedite change for children and to simplify policies and systems of accountability.
Establish institutional links, identify opportunities for staff exchange or mentoring.

Do better with what we have (Strategic goal 3.4):
Team leadership, coordination and learning: Lead the Education grants team (line and dotted line reports) building cooperation, team spirit and a supportive environment which reflects WV’s core value ‘we value people’. This includes sharing, learning and coordination across zones.
Coaching for Performance: Supervise all directly reporting staff, including: staff recruitment, orientation, on-going management support, quarterly coaching, annual performance planning and appraisal. Support the professional and personal development of these staff through on the job coaching, identification of learning and training needs and opportunities.
Provide Servant Leadership, facilitate a supportive environment for spiritual formation of staff, the internalisation of WV’s Vision, Mission and Core Values. Participate in and lead townhall meetings, annual staff retreat, and other events.
Prepare progress reports as required by the WVL senior management and donors, with a focus on using reports to make more informed decisions.
Meet with the Program Quality Director regularly for support and updates, and for quarterly coaching and annual performance appraisal reviews. Plan and seek support for continued personal, professional and spiritual development for oneself.
Undertake other duties as reasonably assigned by the Program Quality Director.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES:

Required:

MSc/MA or PhD in Education or related Social Science.
In-depth knowledge of appropriate methodologies for the attainment of “Education for All,” particularly in restrictive environments.
A good understanding of poverty and development in communist environments.
Knowledge of humanitarian industry, resource acquisition, and donor relations.
In-depth knowledge on program design, monitoring and evaluation.
Excellent written and oral communication skills in English. Laos is an asset.
Competent in use of Microsoft Office computer programs.
At least 5 – 7 years managerial experience in Education development programming a thorough understanding of all areas of Project management cycles in a complex, international organization (preferably in an INGO context).
Experience monitoring and evaluating child learning gain.
Patience and ability to influence.
Excellent decision-making skills.
Work Environment: Vientiane, with travelling to project areas.