Education Technical Advisor At Save the Children

ROLE PURPOSE:

The Education Technical Advisor provides strategic leadership over the education program in Thailand consisting of projects focusing on early childhood care and development (ECCD), refugee and migrant education and non-formal education (NFE). The Advisor plays a lead role in setting strategic direction for the education sector, designing new programs and projects, and identifying and pursing strategic partnerships. They are responsible for ensuring program quality and donor accountability for a range of projects, and has dotted line supervision for education project leads. The Advisor plays a senior representational and advocacy role with the Government of Thailand, donors, and key national and international stakeholders, and works on a regular basis with SC Members and internal stakeholders to maximize program delivery. The Advisor ensures that program learning, research and evaluation findings are channeled towards advocacy, continuous improvements, and new program design. The Education Technical Advisor will also focus on leading the education continuity and recovery efforts in relation to the COVID-19 crisis, and Myanmar Refugee influx.

The role will also collaborate closely with the Education Sector Lead in Save the Children Myanmar, and lead for Thailand on all cross-border (MMR-THA) education strategies.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Lead Thailand Country Office Education strategies and initiatives

Strategic Direction, Program Design and Development

• Take lead role in formulating CO’s vision for long term programming in Education in Thailand aligning with country strategic plans for 2022-2024.
• Introduce innovative ideas and approaches to support children’s education in Thailand; Identify needs and opportunities for potential programs, through situation analyses/feasibility studies, networking, and leveraging research and evaluation findings from both internal and external sources.
• Work with business development team to identify needs and opportunities for new programs.
• Identify and pursue opportunities for synergistic, inter-sectoral programs to address the holistic needs of children, especially the most deprived.
• Identify needs for organizational and staff capacity building and making sure the right staff are in place to support sector needs and development

Programme Management:

• Provide technical line management and supervision of Education Project Coordination
• Oversee Education programmes, and ongoing support, guidance and leadership to managers and staff working on those programmes.
• Support in ensuring that Save the Children complies with donor and SCI regulations on all projects, and ensure submission of high quality and timely reports.
• Support in the development of a planning cycle for the Education sector, including annual, quarterly and monthly planning and work plan follow up.
• Ensure that all programs have effective Monitoring Evaluation Accountability and Learning (MEAL) practices throughout the program cycle.
• Build the capacity of staff in technical excellence and policy analysis and influencing related to Education
• Build and nurture effective teamwork within education sector both at central and field levels and ensure a cohesive workplace environment for optimum staff retention.

Programme Quality:

• Identify internal and external capacity building opportunities and resources to provide high quality technical assistance to Education projects, supporting technical staff, partner agencies and others to build knowledge and technical competence.
• Integrate programme learning across the Education sector, ensuring coherence of technical approaches across programmes, identifying best practice, and ensuring inter-sectoral complementarity.
• Ensure that regular field-based project review meetings take place and are attended by the relevant staff
• Ensure that monitoring systems provide information in the appropriate form and at the right time (in different levels) to allow for effective decision making
• Develop and implement strategies to ensure gender equity, child participation, child safeguarding and beneficiary accountability in all Education programmes.
• Ensure that interventions are evaluated using appropriate methods, including process and impact evaluations, and that evidence is rigorously maintained, documented and disseminated internally and externally, to contribute to improvements in programme quality and advocacy efforts.
• Support teams to identify and carry out operational research related to education.
• Ensure that Save the Children’s regional and global experience is reflected in our Education program
• Share CO’s experience and organizational learning with COs as well as with relevant organizations

Policy and Advocacy:

• Coordinate closely with the Policy, Research, and Evidence sectors on policy and advocacy work relating to education, and work with SC Thailand’s Advocacy Advisor
• Lead on policy and advocacy for the education sector, ensuring that education technical interventions are designed to inform relevant policy concerns. Develop policy briefs and position papers, ensuring the inclusion of technical input from the relevant project coordinators.
• Lead in networking and articulating Save the Children’s position, policy and strategy in national forums and meetings. Engage in key debates related to national education sector policies and programs, in coordination with technical colleagues and other relevant staff.
• Identify appropriate strategic partnerships for joint advocacy initiatives on education issues

Human Resource Management and Development

• Provide leadership to ensure a structure that fits for purpose.
• Establish, build and nurture effective teamwork within the sector and ensure a cohesive workplace environment for optimum staff retention.
• Dotted-line supervise team (technical) and provide necessary guidance to ensure program targets are met.
• Create opportunity for staff development in coordination with HR.

Representation and Networking:

• Maintain working relationships with relevant Ministries in Thailand, particularly Ministry of Education, and connect flagship programs with government and other non-government interventions
• Identify partnerships/collaborations and build strong networks with other NGOs, CSOs, donors, UN agencies and academic institutions and the private sector working on education to collaborate on programs, joint learning, analysis and advocacy initiatives
• Ensure that the country office has effective representation on national, regional and international networks and fora related to education, and that we participate in conferences/meetings that will enhance our reputation and programming
• Actively participate in technical coordination meetings (and lead as required) to ensure synergies with other agencies in our development work and emergency responses, and for refugee education
• Maintain excellent relationships with donors, in terms of strategic positioning and delivery

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:

ESSENTIAL:

• At least 7 years of working experience in education including at least 5 years in senior position.
• University degree in field of education or relevant field
• Strong leadership and strategic thinking abilities
• Excellent understanding of key issues and strategies in Early Childhood Development and Basic Education programs, formal and non-formal Education theories, and Education in Emergencies.
• Experience working in refugee and migrant education, and settings with instability
• Fluency in written and spoken English
• Experience working in the Thai and/or Southeast Asian contexts, especially in the field of education
• Experience working with an international / NGO organization and familiarity with project cycle management
• Strong understanding and experience in building safe programs and child safeguarding into education interventions
• Experience developing cross-thematic programs, with priority focus on child protection
• Excellent skills on process facilitation and coordination with high standard.
• Excellent inter-personal communication skills
• Strong analytical capacity and proficient understanding of both qualitative and quantitative research methods
• Good presentation skills including policy briefing
• Good supportive supervision skills
• Willingness to travel frequently to field locations in Thailand, including Deep South, and occasionally internationally (min. 30% of time)

Desirable:

• Academic: Master degree in relevant field.
• Advanced knowledge on Education policy and context in Thailand
• Fluency in Thai or other languages, including Karen, Kayah, Pattani-Malay language

Additional Job Responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

Equal Opportunities

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures.

Child Safeguarding

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.

Safeguarding Our Staff

The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Anti-Harassment Policy.

Health and Safety

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures.

Interested candidates should apply and submit a motivational letter, comprehensive CV, expected salary and details of at least 3 referees via the following link;

“We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse”