The role:

• Our Content team is seeking a highly skilled and detail-oriented Learning Experience Designer to join our team. 
• In this role, you will be responsible for the creation and review of assessment items, activities and lessons for elementary and middle school Science. 
• A large part of the role will include writing, editing and reviewing high-quality K-8 science assessment items that are aligned with national and state standards, including the NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards), as well as state-specific science standards. 
• You will play a key role in writing and reviewing items for interim and summative assessments that evaluate student learning and mastery of science concepts, ensuring that all items are rigorous, fair, and reflective of the most current standards. 
• You will also be responsible for creating engaging instructional material and activities that support the teaching and learning of those standards.

Why you’ll love this role:

• Item Writing & Development
  • Develop and review high-quality, reliable, and valid assessment items for K-8 science in a variety of formats (multiple-choice, short-answer, constructed response, TEI).
  • Ensure items are aligned with NGSS as well as relevant state or national educational frameworks.
  • Write, edit and review lessons and assessment items that accurately assess student understanding and critical thinking in science and STEM.
  • This position will mainly be writing, editing and reviewing science items and lessons, but should have some familiarity with elementary math.
  • Candidates with Math standards experience as well as Science experience will be considered more qualified.
    
• Lesson and Activity Generation
  • Create and review activities and lessons using Newsela tooling that support practice and learning of STEM concepts.Write and review engaging, effective and standards-aligned lessons that teach important concepts and can pair with assessments and practice activities.
    
• Alignment & Standardization
  • Continuously review and update items, activities and lessons to ensure strict alignment with both state and national standards, including NGSS.
  • Collaborate with other subject matter experts and educational stakeholders to ensure alignment with the curriculum and consistency across all items, lessons and activities.
    
• Assessment Design & Review
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams (e.g., curriculum developers, researchers and project managers) to design and validate assessments and improve tooling.
  • Participate in the development, review and revision of assessment materials to ensure clarity, fairness, and appropriateness of the content for all student populations.
    
• Quality Assurance
  • Conduct item analyses to identify the effectiveness of assessment items, lessons and activities ensuring that all are valid and reliable.
  • Revise and refine items based on feedback from pilot testing, field trials, and statistical analysis.
    
• Research & Best Practices
  • Stay up-to-date on current trends in K-8 science education, assessment practices, and changes in state or national standards.
  • Integrate research-based best practices into recommendations for the creation process for assessment items, activities, and lessons.
    
• Collaboration & Communication
  • Work closely with other learning experience designers, teachers, and content writers to ensure assessments are user-friendly and pedagogically sound.
  • Provide support in training or advising on the implementation and use of assessments.

Why you’re a great fit:

• Degree in Education, Curriculum and Instruction, or a Science-related field.
• 2+ years of experience in educational assessment item writing or curriculum development.
• Familiarity with NGSS.
• Experience with creating, analyzing, and revising science assessment items
• Strong understanding of science content and pedagogy.
• Candidates with classroom experience as well as the experience above will be highly considered
• Exceptional writing and editing skills, with the ability to produce clear, concise, and high-quality assessment items.
• Strong analytical skills to assess item quality and effectiveness.
• Familiarity with assessment development tools and platforms (e.g., item banks, learning management systems).
• Ability to work independently and manage multiple projects simultaneously with tight deadlines.
• Strong collaboration and communication skills to work effectively with diverse teams.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with online assessment platforms and digital assessment development tools.
• Knowledge of best practices in educational measurement and test design.
• Knowledge of Math standards is a plus.
• Comfort with leveraging usage data to improve assessment items and make iterative changes to best practices, guidelines.
  

Compensation: 

• Base salary: $57,450 – $66,050 per year. 
• Total compensation for this role also includes incentive stock options and benefits. 

About Organization

Newsela is a fast-growing education technology startup with a single ambitious goal: Meaningful classroom learning for every student. We provide engaging, relevant instructional content for teachers that both educates and inspires. With nearly two million teachers signed up, Newsela is helping kids improve their reading skills in all 50 states and more than 150 countries. We seek passionate, creative employees with quick minds and warm hearts. If you believe that all students deserve a more rigorous, more personalized learning experience, please apply to join our team.