Job Specification

Purpose :

To provide leadership, policy advice and educational expertise in the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of policies, programs, and initiatives that foster student achievement in the provincial education system.

Key Responsibilities :

Policy Advice/ Educational Expertise:
- Develops and makes recommendations regarding educational policies, initiatives, and standards that have strategic, province wide, educational, social and fiscal implications, and prepares policy analysis and presentations/submissions to ministry/ Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat (LNS/French-language Policy and Programs Branch) senior management.
- Provides advice and educational expertise to Ministry senior management on education policy and program issues, and supports litigation and Human Rights complaints processes.
- Provides information, advice, and expertise to school boards with respect to ministry legislation, policies and programs, ensuring policy compliance and consistency, and integration with the elementary/secondary education mandate.
- Evaluates other jurisdictional policy proposals to identify and assess the impact on provincial/ministry objectives with respect to educational standards and service delivery.
- Monitors best practices and proposals for reform/change in other jurisdictions, conducts environmental scans, and maintains a leading edge awareness of social and political trends and developments that impact provincial education strategies for literacy and/ or numeracy.
2. Policy Development and Program Implementation:
- Plans, leads and coordinates educational policy review, research, and consultation processes, and develops/coordinates development of training materials field implementation.
- Plans, leads, and coordinates program evaluation and monitoring activities, and provides educational policy and project management expertise in the roll out of province wide implementation plans.
- Provides team leadership to school board senior management assigned to projects, and functional direction to geographically dispersed stakeholders.
- Manages policy review and research and development processes from conceptual analysis of policy research objectives/ parameters, through stakeholder consultations, findings evaluation, options and impact analysis, implementation planning, and development of benchmarks/criteria to monitor/ evaluate change.
3. Partnerships/Stakeholder Relations:
- Develops and maintains partnerships with a network of key provincial and external education stakeholders and interest groups to enable consultation, to gain intelligence, and to facilitate discussion, collaboration, and resolution of issues impacting the achievement of the provincial/ministry educational policy agenda.
- Leads/chairs and /or participates on cross-ministry or inter -jurisdictional committees, study groups or task forces that shape policy and strategies pertaining to student capacity building, and that address a range of educational policy and program related issues.
- Identifies stakeholder needs and service issues, and generates cooperation and consensus regarding the development and implementation of policy, programs, initiatives, and field implementation.
4. Issues Management/Communications:
- Identifies, researches, and evaluates emerging issues to determine applicability and impact on the provincial/ ministry education agenda.
- Provides input on communication strategies and messaging including reports/analyses, proposals, correspondence, and briefing documents, and provides input on communications strategies and messaging.

Knowledge / Skill :

Knowledge of and skills in:
- Pedagogy, applying educational theories, professional principles and practices related to assessment and evaluation of student achievement, and
specialized expertise in numeracy and literacy, to work cooperatively with school boards and stakeholders in developing, monitoring and implementing
policies, programs, and initiatives that meet the provincial education mandate to build student capacity.
- Provincial and ministry strategic directions and key objectives pertaining to education, the decision-making and accountability framework of the
provincial government, and the legislative approvals and allocations processes, to lead development of educational policy options and initiatives from
conceptualization through to implementation.
- Interpreting and applying legislation (e.g. Education Act, Ontario Human Rights Code), the broad political and governance dimensions of the
educational system, including school board structure/relationships, programs, standards and services, to identify issues, to develop relevant strategies
and targeted policy research, and to plan roll outs of new initiatives.
- Policy development principles/processes, and project management to design, plan, and manage policy development, options analyses, and
implementation plans, that integrate a range of social, fiscal, and political factors and data.
- Research principles/techniques to design/conceptualize and organize/project manage province wide research projects/studies.
- Policies/ legislation/governance/infrastructure of other government jurisdictions to assess the impact of proposed educational changes.
- The network of ministry educational and inter-jurisdictional stakeholders and interest groups, to establish consultation frameworks for liaison, research
collaboration, program implementation, and issue resolution purposes.
- Oral and written communications skills/techniques to lead inter-jurisdictional consultations/collaborations, to prepare and present to senior management and jurisdictional partners, reports and presentations, policy options/recommendations, and to prepare correspondence, Cabinet
submissions, and a range of briefing notes and background analyses for senior management.
- Oral and written skills in French at the superior level
- Operating standard office software programs and tools to research and prepare own materials.

Interpersonal / Influencing Skill :

Leadership, consultation and advisory skills to identify and develop educational policy options/initiatives, to provide educational policy expertise to ministry/LNS/French-language Policy and Programs Branch senior management and to advise school board senior management with respect to policy and program implementation and compliance with the educational mandate.
- Consultation, interpersonal and consensus building skills to develop stakeholder relationships and partnerships, to gain support/develop consensus for provincial education policy and program initiatives from various stakeholder groups, and to resolve emerging/identified issues that have political/social impact.
- Presentation and facilitation skills to lead province wide working groups or task forces engaged in collaborative policy review and development, to explain research results/analyses to senior management and partners, and to promote policy/project initiatives and options to ministry executives.

Analyzing / Problem Solving Skill :

Analyzing and problem solving skills to:
- Identify emerging issues, trends, and best practices in the educational field, and to develop solutions/proposals that are consistent with the provincial educational mandate related to literacy and numeracy.
- Conceptualize and lead/coordinate policy research that encompasses analysis of various sources of qualitative and quantitative input (e.g. economic, social, and political factors), and involves design of inter-jurisdictional stakeholder collaboration processes.
- Plan/develop education program delivery and monitoring mechanisms, and province wide implementation rollout of new education initiatives.
- Evaluate competing interests and proposals of stakeholders and interest groups to identify issues and impacts, and to develop/ recommend alternative policy/program options/ approaches and solutions.

Decision Making / Responsibility :

Responsible for:
- Providing policy expertise/ advice to LNS senior management, school board senior management, and stakeholders on educational policy matters related to student achievement, and in particular, literacy and numeracy.
- Developing and leading province-wide consultations, training, and implementation/roll-out of strategic initiatives.
- Identifying issues requiring policy response within the framework of the branch policy/program directions, policy guidelines, and overall ministry/provincial strategic directions and priorities.
- Reviewing/evaluating policy or program initiatives/changes of other jurisdictions to identify and comment on their impact on the provincial policies and programs.
- Determining the scope of province wide research studies and the extent of stakeholder/ consultation required to ensure adequacy of consultation, effective use of resources, and achievement of program deliverables.
The position has the latitude to make recommendations on strategic educational policy options/approaches that impact the broad educational sector /social directions, and to propose research studies pertaining to the educational student achievement agenda.
Work is guided by provincial and ministry strategic directions, and the policy/procedures/guidelines prescribed by the government/ministry and by Cabinet Office.

Contacts / Stakeholder :

- Ministry senior management (LNS), to provide advice and policy expertise on strategic educational policy or program issues and initiatives.
- LNS/Ministry colleagues to coordinate, participate in committees/projects, share information and expertise, ensure program/policy development continuity and consistency in approach and integration with overall mandate
- Cross-Ministry, inter-jurisdictional and school board teams, to lead consultations, training and implementation/ roll- out planning, to collaborate on policy review projects/studies, to discuss /identify impacts, implications, and options, to resolve identified and emerging issues, and to develop
consensus on a range of educational matters related to student capacity building.
- Student Achievement/Education Officers in other jurisdictions to collaborate on program and policy development, to provide advice/consult on ministry/provincial educational policy and delivery matters, and to resolve identified issues.
- Stakeholder groups, including school boards, teachers and interest groups to conduct consultations, provide information and advice on program and policy related matters, and to discuss/resolve issues impacting stakeholders.
- Assigns work and provides leadership to external experts involved in resource development.

Guidance / Supervision :

- Collaborates with team members to coordinate tasks and provides technical guidance and mentoring to ministry staff assigned to research and policy review projects; monitors individual and team progress.
- Provides policy expertise and advice to senior management on a range of educational policy and compliance matters, with respect to on issues analysis, and on the impacts/implications of new initiatives.
- Provides advice to other ministry/OPS staff on the interpretation of policy, on research findings, or the implementation of new policies as requested.

Demands / Pressures :

Work Demands :

Frequently required to respond to requests within short deadlines when responding to stakeholder inquiries, proposals/initiatives by other ministries/agencies/ levels of government, and in response to minister's correspondence.
- Frequently required to deal with competing work priorities for the submission of briefing notes and issues analysis.
- Frequent travel to meet with inter-ministerial and inter-jurisdictional stakeholders.

Mental / Sensory :

Ongoing requirement to concentrate when drafting reports, briefing notes and policy related materials.
- Ongoing requirement to listen intently when chairing/participating in policy development meetings and stakeholder consultation sessions.

Conditions / Environment :

Work is performed in a typical office environment