Project: The Education Research in Conflict and Protracted Crisis (ERICC) is a three-year Education in Emergencies (EiE) research program funded by the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), with seven countries in focus including Bangladesh (Cox’s Bazar), Jordan, Lebanon, Myanmar, Nigeria, South Sudan, and Syria.
The overarching program is comprised of four main components:
- Research on the most effective approaches to education in conflict and protracted crisis
- In-Country Operational Support
- Promoting research uptake across FCDO and the international community
- Knowledge Systems Strengthening
The IRC leads the ERICC Research Programme Consortium (RPC) with Academic Lead IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, and expert partners include the Centre for Lebanese Studies (CLS), Common Heritage Foundation (CHF), Forcier Consulting, ODI, Osman Consulting, Oxford Policy Management – Nigeria (OPM), Queen Rania Foundation (QRF), and a forthcoming academic partner. The RPC is responsible for delivering Components 1 & 2 of the program and collaborating closely with the leads for Components 3 & 4.
The RPC has prioritized four primary principles for conducting rigorous research:
- Having developed and using ERICC Conceptual Framework to conduct systematic evidence reviews, evidence-building, and evidence-based decision-making
- Developing contextual understandings of the Political Economy of Education of different conflict and crisis settings
- A co-constructive approach to building research agendas through stakeholder engagement from the start for evidence use and evidence uptake
- Applying a research methods framework to build evidence in a systematic and rigorous way
Countries in ERICC’s Cohort 1 portfolio include Bangladesh, Jordan, and Nigeria, and these country research teams (CRTs) have conducted evidence reviews and data systems mappings, and co-constructed research agendas with stakeholders and key informants. Along priority research themes, the CRTs are now developing studies, from which synthesis products and briefs will be further developed for research dissemination and policy uptake.
Countries in ERICC’s Cohort 2 portfolio include Myanmar, Lebanon, South Sudan, and Syria, which are now undertaking evidence reviews and data systems mappings, and co-constructing research agendas.
Role: As ERICC RPC enters its second year of implementation, it seeks a fellow to support in producing research outputs such as policy briefs, abstracts, one or two-pagers, infographics, blogs, case studies, conference submissions for presentations, and more. The goal of this work is to support ERICC’s mission to build and contribute to an accessible and actionable evidence base for governments, expert stakeholders, the global EiE community, and beyond. Aiming to serve as a bridge across research-policy-practice, the fellow would support the effort for ERICC research and outputs to be made widely available, visible, and understandable to key policy and decision-makers.
The data, research, and studies will have been conducted by ERICC study leads and lead authors, so the RPC will enlist fellow support to review and synthesize ERICC studies to produce various outputs to support the dissemination of ERICC work. The fellow will work closely with the Senior Research Communications Officer and Senior Research Programme Coordinator who will liaise with study leads and lead authors on the latest studies and any feedback, as well as with editors and graphic designers to ensure branded and publishable formats.
While priority themes are still being identified from ERICC Cohort 2 countries, the following are priority themes from studies from ERICC Cohort 1 (themes are subject to change):
- Policy and Systems in Nigeria
- Teacher Issues in Northeast Nigeria
- Myanmar Curriculum implementation and Burmese language proficiency in Cox’s Bazar
- Madrasa Education Study
- Supporting Temporary Contract Teachers in Jordan
- Students At Risk of Dropping Out / Out-of-School Children
Potential deliverables:
- Study analysis across countries and regions to propose key themes and findings for consideration for regional and global workshops, events, and conferences..
- Research synthesis, distillation, and production of summaries and abstracts for publications and presentations/
- Research synthesis, writing, and production of technical, policy, and advocacy based on ERICC research.
- Research extraction, prioritization, and writing of one- or two-pagers, case studies, infographics, and blogs.
- Advisory support on formulating and optimizing the presentation of information at events and conferences.
Potential travel involved: No expected travel.
Necessary Skills:
- Understanding of global affairs and the development and humanitarian sectors, including institutional players and complex relationships among different stakeholders.
- Synthesis skills and proficiency in synthesizing information from research and evidence, to distill complex information into clear, concise, and insightful summaries.
- Ability to distinguish between different end audiences and write in corresponding tones and styles.
Desired Skills:
- Experience or expertise in child protection, education, non-formal learning, or higher learning
- Familiarity with humanitarian and/or development interventions.
- Analysis skills to contextualize setting/environmental and political economy factors.
- Familiarity with communications and design tools and platforms for the production of infographics and interactive pieces.
Requirements: Students must be a matriculated graduate or Ph.D. student at The New School. Fellows are hired as Research Associates by The New School.
Work Environment: This fellowship will work with the Airbel Impact Lab based in the IRC’s HQ in New York City. While this fellowship is remote, all Fellows must be physically located in the US.
Fellowship Length: This fellowship carries a maximum of 35 hours/week during the summer semester (May 20 – August 25, 2024), and a maximum of 20 hours/week during the Fall 2024 semester (August 26 – December 22, 2024). Continuation into Spring 2025 is potentially available. The ideal candidate will be able to commit to both the Summer and Fall semesters.
How to apply: The deadline to apply is March 30, 2024. Please submit one PDF document containing a cover letter, CV/resume, and two work samples (writing and/or design portfolio – 5 pages maximum per sample) to Catherine McGahan, McGahanC@newschool.edu, and Nicole Tuszynski, tuszynsn@newschool.edu.
Interviews will be conducted in early April via Zoom.
Team: Airbel Impact Lab, Research and Innovation at the IRC. The Airbel Impact Lab designs, tests, and scales life-changing cost-effective solutions for people affected by conflict and disaster. By applying the IRC’s deep technical expertise and field experience with a range of skills from the behavioral sciences, human-centered design, research, and multi-disciplinary problem-solving in humanitarian contexts, we work to develop breakthrough solutions that combine creativity and rigor, openness and expertise, and a desire to think afresh with the experience of a large-scale implementing organization. Within Airbel, the Best Use of Resources team provides analysis and decision-making support to improve the cost-efficiency and cost-effectiveness of IRC programs.