Room to Read Nepal Vacancy
Job Title: Manager, Literacy Program (LM)
Reports to: Head of Operations
Supervisory Responsibility: 2 or more Officers
Based in: Padhnako Lagi Kotha (PLK), Kathmandu but requires extensive field visits to project sites
Contract Length: Two-year contract initially with the possibility of renewal based on performance
Salary & Benefits: As per PLK rule which is attractive and competitive in the Nepali market
ORGANIZATION PROFILE

Padhnako Lagi Kotha (PLK), the sole official Implementing Partner of Room to Read (RtR), was established in 2002 with a mission to provide better educational opportunities in Government funded community schools of Nepal. PLK started its operation by donating children’s books to Government-funded community schools. As PLK started working in more and more villages to uplift the education of children, many villages started to approach PLK for assistance in improving their educational facilities and infrastructure. PLK decides which program to focus on with the community and works with villages that are found to be proactive with sustained interest. Since the starting of PLK operations, hundreds of villages have received donated materials, labor and funds to help their schools and PLK has been facilitating this process for nearly a decade now. PLK has developed a holistic, multi-pronged approach to help children in Nepal gain the lifelong gift of education.
To date, we have partnered with government schools to establish over 4510 school libraries to encourage a reading habit in primary school children, published 361 children books for quality materials to read, constructed over 1249 schools and renovated 46 schools and supporting to create an enabling learning environment through comprehensive Reading & Writing Instruction program in 1026 primary classrooms. Through our Girls Education Program, we have supported over 8314 girls from underprivileged families to complete secondary education and beyond by providing material, academic and life skills education support. We’ve partnered with a local NGO to implement and monitor our programs in our working districts. We have around 110 staff working in Padhnako Lagi Kotha. We are at a growing stage and working to expand our coverage more in the future.
ROOM TO READ’S LITERACY STRATEGY
Of the many aspects of quality education, Room to Read (RtR) has identified and committed to two critical areas of educational development where we believe we can have the greatest impact: a) literacy and b) girls’ education.
Literacy is fundamental to exercising the right to basic education and is crucial for economic, social and political participation and development. For these reasons, RtR has made literacy development a cornerstone of our work. The goal of our Literacy Program (LP) is for primary school children to acquire literacy skills and reading habits to become lifelong independent readers. One crucial input is regular access to books and other reading materials, which are scarce in many of the communities where RtR operates. RtR establishes school libraries and publishes local language books to fill this gap. Since our inception, we have witnessed that children often do not have the grade-appropriate literacy skills needed to take full advantage of the school libraries. To achieve the long-term goal of making all children independent readers at the primary level, RtR also provides supplemental teaching materials/aids and teacher professional development in grades one and two to support and augment existing literacy instruction in the schools where we work. Additionally, RtR ensures schools have access to quality reading materials in libraries and classrooms by sourcing local language materials and working with local authors and illustrators to develop original storybooks. Where needed, we also provide infrastructure support to schools to ensure there are adequate and safe classroom and library space for learning. Our literacy strategy capitalizes on our organizational strengths built over the last decade and defines a clear and carefully constructed path to the goal of increased literacy and a habit of reading in the children with whom we work.
POSITION OVERVIEW
The Manager, Literacy Program (LM) is responsible for providing technical assistance, support and supervision on all aspects of the Literacy Program (LP) including design, material development, professional development of teachers in close coordination with the Literacy Director (LD) to the LP team. LM will closely work with the field leaders to strengthen the capacity of the LP team, government officials, teachers and partner staff on reading and writing instruction, library management and reading activities to support primary grade children. LM is expected to provide support in developing the in-country LP strategy for scale in coordination with LD.
LM will ensure that PLK’s Literacy Program (LP) schools are supplied with engaging, relevant, and appropriate books and instructional materials that support the development of reading skills and a habit of reading. LM is responsible to identify the gaps that currently exist in available books for purchase, the LM is responsible for coordinating all aspects of PLK’s publishing initiatives, including sourcing original content, reviewing, editing, producing, and negotiating agreements. S/he will also be required to research and form networks within the publishing industry to gauge local market trends and promote PLK as a key player in children’s book publishing.
Overall, LM is responsible to innovate and improve the quality of the Literacy Program in coordination with LD.
Description
PRIMARY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The position will require performing the below-given job responsibilities not limited to:
Management and Coordination:Room to Read Nepal Vacancy
- Supervise, coach and support the LP team (Quality Reading Material – QRM and Instructional Design and Teacher Support – IDTS) to continuously improve the quality of the program
- Plan, implement and monitor activities based on approved Annual Planning and Budget (AP&B)
- Develop and implement a plan to strengthen the LP team in accord with organizations’ strategy and need of the program in coordination with LD, Program Operations and People Operations team.
- Coordinate with Global Office PDTA team and LD to continuously improve the quality of the program
- Manage all the reporting process and requirements related to the program for both global and country level
- Develop and implement plans to continuously improve the quality of the program in coordination with LD, GO PDTA team, Program Operations and RM&E team
- Provides guidance and manages Ideal Book Collection (IBC) (selection, gradation and finalization) based on QRM manual in coordination with the team
- Supports LD during AP&B process with innovative ideas to bring/improve the quality aspect of the program with a long-term perspective
- Manage and coordinate between relevant departments and field to enhance the outreach of the program in coordination with LD
- Supports the (LD) in external networking with different stakeholders
Program Design, Training and Planning:
- Manages, reviews and improves LP contextualization package such as instruction materials, pupil book, teacher’s guide, library management and reading activities including digital literacy, library and audio-visual children’s learning materials, etc. •
- Manages process of publishing & book development, procurement and printing process (This involves: sourcing local authors and illustrators, advising on story development, reviewing, editing, securing copyrights and ISBN codes, obtaining government approval, sending to print, etc.) as per the organization strategies and guidelines
- In coordination with the LP country team and relevant departments, manage all aspects of program design, review and implementation such as printing plan, procurement of Teaching Learning Materials (TLM) and Supplementary Reading Materials (SRM), boos lists, stationery and furniture specification etc.
- Supervise and support the team in preparing the dedication language of each book and upload them in Glonbal Solution Database (GSD)
- Guides and supports to align the teacher training manuals with the Government’s Teacher Professional Development (TPD) policy with PLK Training package of both instructions and library
- Guides and supports educators’ professional development training of the LP team (Technical Officers, Literacy Field – LPOTs, LFs, etc.)
- In coordination with LD and LP team, develops system and process to align PLK’s instructional design and development of pupil book, decodable text, etc. with government’s new curriculum framework
- Oversees and provides technical support to the team in conducting writers’ workshop, seminars, meeting, edit (both English and Nepali even InDesign files) and feedback collection based on QRM manual/guidelines to internal and external new and old writers
- Design short term program content and training packages based on the organization’s strategy to scale LP
- Edits Nepali languages and finalizes new book manuscripts based on QRM book development guidelines
Implementation and Monitoring: Room to Read Nepal Vacancy
- In coordination with LD and team, develop design-based instructional, Quality Reading Material (QRM), purchase book, stationary, registers, etc. by looking into content, language, vocabulary, instructions, activities, prescribed size, paper quality, layout design, printing and binding
- Takes a leading role in conducting training and workshop (instructions, library and QRM) quality tracking in confirmation with design and development-based content, sequences, ppt, delivery process with support from LD and Program Officers (POs)
- Conduct frequent field visits for classroom and library observation, interaction with trained teachers, headmasters, school supervisors including LFs and LP team in the field
External Coordination and Networking:
- Collaborates with the central/state/local government units/ agencies to build support for the program and identifies innovative ideas for scale
- Collaborate with like-minded organizations and institutions for a strategic partnership to achieve the PLK’s vision and mission
- Collaborates with the government to build support for the program and identify ways to supplement and augment the government curriculum
- Conducts national level advocacy activities to promote PLK’s LP learning for system-level integration
- Represents PLK by attending and speaking at relevant forums and advocates for the importance of Literacy program work
- Liaises with other NGOs running similar programs to identify areas of knowledge sharing and possible collaboration
- Represents PLK by attending and speaking at relevant forums
- Participates in any other activities which may be required to be undertaken to fulfill the objectives of the organization
PERSON SPECIFICATIONS
Required:Room to Read Nepal Vacancy
- Strictly adhere and comply with Room to Read’s Child Protection Policy and Child Protection Code of Conduct
- Master’s degree in Education or Social Science or related field
- Minimum 7 years of professional experience in managing large scale education projects for primary grades
- Strong leadership and management skills
- Experience with reading/literacy or learning improvement programs
- Excellent knowledge and understanding of teaching methodologies, government curriculum and teacher training at the primary grade
- Experience with library programming (e.g. book selection, book leveling, library management, reading/library activities that instill a habit of reading in children).
- Experience developing educational learning materials for students or teachers of the primary grades
- Experience developing and conducting training programs for in-service teachers
- Experience in developing and implementing programmatic improvements
- Strong planning, supervising, and program development skills
- Understanding of monitoring, evaluation, and process documentation
- Prior success working closely and building relationships with diverse groups of people and organizations
- Good understanding of government system related to primary grades, able and well versed in working and dealing with government stakeholders at the central/state/local level
- Knowledge and understanding of the local book publishing industry
- Experience in managing a printing and publication process
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills in Nepali and English
- Able to type in Nepali language and is comfortable editing Nepali fonts (e.g. Preeti, Kantipur, Himali, PLK, Himalb, etc.)
- Edit stories for QRM books in Nepali language (genre, content, themes, plot, grammar, spelling, vocabularies, sentence structure etc.)
- Able to edit simple Nepali language by using InDesign files
- Ability to juggle multiple priorities simultaneously
Preferred:Room to Read Nepal Vacancy
- Master’s degree in Education with specialization in Nepali
- Experience in material design, development, training, and teaching at the primary grade
- Work experience in a non-profit organization (I/NGOs)
- Prior track record of achieving results in a fast-paced, growth-oriented organization
- Experience in instructional and Supplementary material development, teacher training, student assessment (EGRA, CB-EGRA), and monitoring in the field
To be successful as a member of the PLK team, you will also:
- Have a passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact a dynamic non-profit organization
- Be an innovative and creative thinker – you are not afraid to try something new and inspire others to do so
- Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness
- Have a strong work ethic and require minimal direction
- Work well independently as well as part of a team
- Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment
Application Method
Application Method: Room to Read Nepal Vacancy
For Registered Candidate:
Login to https://p2p.com.np/ with your username and password, click on the job you want to apply for and press “APPLY” that appears on the selected job page.
For New Candidate:
Go to https://p2p.com.np/
Register/Create new account,
Use your newly created username and password to login
If cover letter/ CV is not attached, a pop up will appear The pop up will direct to “MANAGE COVER LETTER/ CV” page where you can add/upload cover letter/ CV, then press “APPLY” at the bottom of the page.