PLAY Research Analyst

Job Title: PLAY Research Analyst
Reporting to: Global Programme Manager
Hours: 37.5 Hours per week
Location: Multiple locations in Bombali, Karene, Koinadugu and Falaba
Time Frame: 18-month contract (February 2024 – July 2025)

Our Organisation:

Street Child believes that every child deserves the chance to go to school and learn. Our projects focus on a combination of education, child protection and livelihood support to address the social, economic and structural issues that underpin today’s education crisis. We partner with local organisations and communities to deliver our locally rooted programmes, using evidence to drive learning and the refinement and scale up of programmes to create maximum impact for the most children at the lowest cost. We pride ourselves on being willing to go to the world’s toughest places where others won’t, including remote, hard-to-reach areas and fragile, disaster-affected states across sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Since 2008 we have helped over 1,000,000 children to go to school and learn.

The programme:

Playful Learning Across the Years 2.0: Quality Tool Testing, Learning and Pathways to Program Improvement and Systemic Uptake (PLAY 2.0) is a multi-country level programme leaded by the Education Development Centre and Street Child in partnership with the LEGO Foundation. PLAY 2.0 aims to conduct research measurement of the quality of child-centred pedagogies and their contribution to holistic outcomes for children in 450 classrooms in centres and schools across Bangladesh, Sierra Leone, and Uganda. PLAY 2.0 proposes to administer the PLAY 2.0 tools to educators and children to improve the tools’ use across countries and cultures, with a particular focus on crisis-affected contexts; to verify the contribution of child-centred pedagogies to holistic outcomes for children; and understand the tools’ potential to inform program improvement. PLAY 2.0 offers an outstanding opportunity to focus on the aspects of child-centred approaches that are closest to children, including agency, self-sustaining engagement, self-led exploration, and other essential elements of meaningful learning. The project provides a platform to test and adapt these tools across the three countries - and in turn, contributes to integrate and improve on the implementation of integrated pedagogies, influence their adoption, and support children at critical junctures.

The role:

Street Child is seeking a driven, detail-oriented Research Analyst to lead and effectively deliver on the PLAY 2.0 research project in Sierra Leone. The Research Analyst is responsible for the overall management of data in the research study, including codification, standardisation and strategic coherence of our data collection, collation, managing analytical approaches, documentation, translation, transcription, and ensuring the data requirements of the programme are met and well communicated to the partners. This is an outstanding opportunity to engage in cutting-edge research at a significant scale, and to enable research-informed interventions through strong analytical, communication, and collaboration skills.

Key Responsibilities:

Data Collection and analysis (60%)

• Establish and embed rigorous, robust data collection, collation and cleaning protocols and databases for rapid data processing to assure the availability of data for analysis;
• Facilitate qualitative interviews including designing questionnaires, conduct interviews, Key Informant Interviews (KIIs), and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) to gather relevant information from target customers, industry experts, and stakeholders.
• Explore and embed innovative approaches, including digital approaches, and inclusive approaches adapted for abilities, age, gender, geographies, etc to expand and enhance data quality;
• Liaising with implementing partners and local teams, managing data enumerators and ensuring that work is delivered to time and quality expectations;
• Ensure external and internal project reports are provided in a timely manner, summarizing data and presenting the implications of the results in written reports
• Assist and assure adherence to appropriate data storage policies and procedures, to protect the confidentially, integrity, and privacy of participants and participant information, including appropriate ethical protocols and safeguarding policies and procedures;
• Transcription, translation, and review of interview information: Convert qualitative data, such as audio recordings, into written documents, ensuring accuracy and quality. Accurately review information obtained from interviews and FGDs.
• Ensure completeness of forms, including checking collected data for accuracy and consistency to ensure all necessary information is captured.
• Follow data quality and sampling protocols: According to specific guidelines and tools for data collection to ensure proper sampling and data quality.
• Review and edit collected data, checking for errors, both intentional and unintentional and make necessary corrections.
• Keep key personnel informed about progress and issues in the field and seek guidance when needed.
• Ensure data quality by engaging in quality control exercises to identify missing or erroneous data.

Research Coordination [25%]

• Provide coordination and surge support for external/internal consultants to assure integrity and quality of research and evidence;
• Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to gather feedback, validate findings, and ensure research alignment with client expectations.
• Choose appropriate venues for interviews and ensure consent from all participants in collaboration with implementing partners
• Collaborate with team members and communicate effectively with country programme team, partners and global team during fieldwork.

Evidence Dissemination [10%]

• Prepare detailed reports, presentations, and summaries of research findings. Present research outcomes to internal teams and clients, highlighting key insights and recommendations.
• Ensure excellent presentation of evaluations and evidence of impact to funders, partners, and programme participants, using a range of verbal and visual tools to communicate impact, including digital tools;
• Contribute to Organisational Priorities [5%]
• Provide capacity strengthening and surge support for internal researchers and evaluators to assure integrity and quality of research results and evidence;
• Provide ad-hoc basis support to the research team, local partners, present findings with the wider group including sectors
• Represent the organization professionally: Present Street Child in a professional and accurate manner while interacting with target stakeholders and beneficiaries.
• Carry out any other related duties that are within his/her skills and abilities in agreement with line manager.

Person Specification / Education / Essential / Desirable

• Educated to degree level or higher in related field (Monitoring and evaluation, analysis etc)
• Accreditation or certification in specific areas relevant to role

Experience / Essential / Desirable

• Substantial experience (minimum 3 years) in mixed methods and qualitative and quantitative methodologies and methods, including instrumentation tools
• Experience and knowledge of data collection through mobile apps (Kobo Collect, ODK, ONA, DDG, etc.)
• Prior experience in interviewing and facilitating KII, FGDs, and in-depth interviews or beneficiary selection.
• Experience of using statistical software [NVIVO, SPSS, STATA, etc]
• Experience and interest in the education sector
• Previous experience of working in the Northern province.
• Experience in [quasi-] experimental research
• Previous experience of working with NGOs, civil society, UN or relevant government departments
• Experience using and working with CommCare

Capabilities and competencies / Essential / Desirable:

• Comprehensive understanding of inclusive approaches
• Good project management skills
• Strong verbal and written communication skills in English and Krio
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, and tasks efficiently in a high-stress environment;
• Excellent listening, interpersonal and public presentation skills
• Excellent computer literacy in MS Office programs (specifically Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook);
• Ability to positively influence others and successfully reconcile differences.
• Comprehensive understanding of sectoral standards including CHS on Quality and Accountability
• Experience in education and research programmes
• Local language skills – Temne, Fula, Susu, Loko (Southwestern Mande), Kuranko, Mandinka

Other:

• Commitment to our vision, mission and values
• Commitment to protecting the rights of children in all circumstances
• Commitment to localisation and local action
• Credibility in advice and assistance provision, with a high degree of responsiveness and reliability
• Reflective, responsive and respectful towards communities and colleagues Resilient in challenging circumstances

Street Child’s commitment to Safeguarding:

Street Child is committed to the safeguarding and protection of the communities we serve, our partners, our volunteers, and our staff. As part of this commitment to safeguarding, all offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate background checks, including a Criminal Records check. Street Child also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment.