The International Rescue Committee, one of the world’s largest humanitarian international NGOs, provides relief, rehabilitation and development support to vulnerable people and communities over 30 countries. We began work in Ethiopia in 2000 in response to severe drought in Ethiopia’s Somali region and are currently providing assistance to Ethiopians and refugees in six regions in Ethiopia, implementing emergency and development programs in health, water and sanitation, economic recovery and development (ERD), women’s protection and empowerment, education, child protection, and multi-sectoral emergency response.

The IRC is looking for an individual with previous grant management, coordination, report writing and donor liaison experience to support the IRC emergency response portfolio. Though budgeting skills are essential it is not a mandatory requirement.

Position Summary:

IRC is seeking a Senior Play Content Adaptation and Training Manager for a five-year project, “PlayMatters”, funded by the LEGO Foundation. This position will be a member of the IRC Ethiopia Child Protection and Education Team and is a part of the regional PlayMatters initiative to increase play-based learning opportunities for nearly 1 million pre-primary and primary school aged refugee and host community children impacted by the humanitarian crises in East Africa and living in Ethiopia and Uganda. This project aims to build children’s social, emotional, cognitive, physical and creative skills through play in their homes, schools, and communities and will be implemented in partnership with War Child, Plan International, Behavioral Insights Team and Innovations for Poverty Action.

The Senior Play Content Adaptation and Training Manager will be responsible for ensuring that PlayMatters consortium and IRC staff identify, engage, and influence key education stakeholders in Ethiopia responsible for and engaged in promoting learning outcomes for refugee and local children ages 3 to 12.This includes collaboration with government, UN and other humanitarian coordination decision makers, education implementing partners, and large-scale development initiatives to improve learning through play. The Senior Play Content Adaptation and Training Manager will report to the country level Project Deputy Coordinator and work closely with the regional content development/adaptation team to develop/adapt content and test developed content and approaches for teachers, parents and children.S/he will also support to map existing teaching and learning materials for preschool and primary school children in Ethiopia and establish a framework for Learning through Play (LtP) competencies and quality LtP standards. In doing so, the Senior Play Content Adaptation and Training Manager will ensure the type of engagement in design and implementation necessary to achieve joint priorities and objectives of providing play-based learning opportunities for all children.

Job Responsibilities:

• Contribute to PlayMatters collection of existing teaching and learning materials being used in the country, region and globally with a framework for continuous collaboration and integration of best practices.
• Based on behavioral insights mapping and human centered design research, support development of and lead localization of content for teachers, parents and children
• Leading in conducting teacher’s needs assessments, to ensure that scope and sequence of the training is relevant and responsive to teachers’ needs.
• Report and prototype samples of different content areas and delivery mechanisms for teachers, parents, and children.
• Develop and lead implementation of rapid and iterative testing for developed content and approaches
• Roll out, piloting and testing of the Learning through Play guides, contents in coordination with other consortium members in the refugee camps and host community.
• Engage government and humanitarian coordination leads, implementing partners, teachers, parents and children through structured adaptation processes
• Develop/adapt training content for teachers in refugee and refugee host communities through participatory and consultative process involving local teacher education colleges and other education stakeholders.
• Deliver a TOT to prepare trainers from PlayMatters, other education service providers and the government to conduct trainings with teachers and caregivers in collaboration with teacher education colleges.
• Support the monitoring of quality/fidelity of these trainings in collaboration with the MEAL staff at local level
• Ensuring that teachers have ongoing support and opportunities to practice what they have learnt; support with initiatives to strengthen their practice.
• Develop/adapt content and key messages on LtP targeting parent/caregivers and dissemination strategy to reach wider audiences
• Establish a framework for LtP competencies and quality LtP standards.
• Develop samples and templates of content for teachers, parents, and children on LtP
• Update key messages and communications materials on play based learning to reflect the Ethiopian context targeting refugees and host communities and update as the context evolves;
• Leading in training teachers, parents/caregivers, education personnel on Learning through Play approaches.
• Lead teachers and education personnel to integrate and mainstream Learning through Play in their teachings and support ways for parents/caregivers to integrate Learning through Play to day-to-day children activities.