A Profile Editing Breakthrough!

Photo from Flickr

Many thanks to Eloise Elaine Ernst Schneider for helping me work out how writers can edit their own profile. It can be done! What we found was that if you were a registered subscriber to the site and logged in before you filled out the form, that form automatically connects with your username and when you log in again, you can edit it.

I checkmarked that "Let users register" button without really knowing what it would do. Now we know!

So here are a few options:

1. You haven't completed a profile yet, so you go to the Writers page and find the Register button on the right side. (Note: I only see this option on the full desktop site. I can't find it in the mobile site. ) Create a username and password and then log in and complete the profile form. 
2. You already completed the profile but there wasn't an option to register when you did, so you go to the site and register now with the same email address that you used on your profile. I will connect the username to the profile with the same email address. (I know, I know. There are already 162 writers that I would need to connect. It was my fault for not having it in place. I'll connect.)
3. You completed the profile before registering, but you don't want to use the same email address to register, so register with your preferred email address and then you email me at Laura@WritingForTheEducationMarket.com and let me know which username to connect to which profile. 

Another step in the right direction. Thanks for bearing with me! Oh, and at a reader request, I added a Company Name field in the form and I added an Other to the subjects where you can type your own in.

Fun!
Laura

(Note: I thought I published this earlier in the week!)

New Blog Post on WritingForTheEducationMarket.com

Happy Independence Day! (Tomorrow...)

Photo from Flickr

Today is the first issue of our #FailUp Friday episodes. Stories of mistakes and learning by our writers. Head to WritingForTheEducationMarket.com/blog/ to see all the posts, or go straight to today's #FailUp Friday

I will no longer post full entries here. I plan to get the email list switched over within the next few days. More info on that coming soon.

And if you have a #FailUp story to share, email me at Laura@WritingForTheEducationMarket.com

Moving Right Along (with a quick recap)

First, the Recap

Photo from Flickr

Wow. Things are really moving along with the new site. I am going to publish this post in both WritingForTheEducationMarket.com and educationwriting.blogspot.com so that it's part of the new blog history but everyone on the yet-to-be-moved-over email list will receive it in their email from the old blog. All this will get cleaned up soon. I was able to get some advice on moving the list over.

I'm getting some recurring questions, so I am going to address some of them here. I'll set up an FAQ page on the new site soon (after the email list move).

• The new website address is WritingForTheEducationMarket.com
• The old blog address is educationwriting.blogspot.com.
• The old blog address is where you have been receiving emails from Writing for the Education Market.
• This will be changing very soon, so you need to
  • read all then WEM emails or blog posts from last week and this week to stay updated on the move
  • go to the Writers page on the new site and Join the List (I've had 46 new writers join since Sunday noon)
  • Check the job board on your own until I can get the email thing sorted out (HINT: There is already a job posted there!)
• You can't edit your profile (yet), so if you need to change something, fill out the form again and then email me at Laura@WritingForTheEducationMarket.com and let me know to delete your other one.

Moving Right Along

First, I got to meet Laura Bresko at ISTE today! Yay! Laura's been a subscriber from the beginning and hires writers through WEM. It was a pleasure to be able to talk to her in person. Laura also introduced me to someone who could help spread the word about WEM. It was exciting!

Then, I stopped by Gale Group booth in the expo hall and the person in charge of content development was super excited to hear about our community. That was a great feeling. So tomorrow, I plan to stop at a few more places to see if I can make some connections.

If you know of someone who hires freelance writers, perhaps you'd be willing to send me their contact info. Those folks know others of their ilk and I bet we could get it moving along at a fast clip just by being social.

Next Steps

• Move the email list over
• Figure out how to let writers edit their own profiles
• Notify all the folks who link to the blog of the new address
• Close down the educationwriting.blogpost.com site

New Website Update - 55 Writers Listed Already!

I'm really excited to see the list of writers. We're at 55 writers at then end of Day 1. Woo hoo! What was most exciting to me was to see the names of people I've talked to over the course of the blog. I have the email list, but it doesn't have names. The names are what helps me make the connections. It's good to see you guys. (Hey! Maybe I can figure out how to add pictures of ourselves...)

I'm still using the old blog to send you this update because I haven't transferred your email addresses over to the other one. That's next on my list.

The job board is up. I'll spend the next few days making contacts (in between going to sessions and learning stuff, of course) and see if we can't get some listed posted directly by companies. Wish me luck!

Laura

It's Almost Time!

As part of the re-design, the blog has moved to WritingForTheEducationMarket.com from it's previous home at educationwriting.blogspot.com.

Here's what the new site will have:

• A database (eventually searchable) of freelance education writers, correlators, and editors
• The ability for writers to create their own profile
• A job board for companies to post job leads directly
• A blog focused on the business of freelance writing for the education market.

We're going to start with the searchable database. This means I need you to go to the Join the Writer List page and create your profile. This information will automatically populate in the Writers page. The ability to search will be in place by July 8.

My next steps are to move the email list over so you continue receiving blog posts and job leads. More on that later.

I am heading to ISTE tomorrow and plan to visit with several education companies to tell them about this service. I'd love for them to come to the site and see a huge list of writers!

You can reach me at Laura@WritingForTheEducationMarket.com or comment on this post. I get all the comments in my email. Please let me know if there are any glitches that I need to fix.

We Learn So Much When We Fail

"Ever tried. Ever failed.
No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." ~ Samuel Beckett

One of the recurring themes in all the listening and reading I’ve been doing lately is that other people’s failures are interesting. It’s not that we want to look at something terrible and say “Oooh, I’m so glad that’s not me.” It’s the idea that we can learn from other people’s mistakes or failures without having to make them ourselves. There is not enough time in a lifetime to make every mistake there is (not that we'd want to, of course), but when you have a community of people with the same interests and goals, those failures become gold.

In working on this redesign (coming soon), I have gotten a lot of feedback from writers who want to know how other freelancers deal with problems. This is definitely a case where the smartest person in the room is the room itself.

Salvaje .Model&Photographer.

I imagine every member of the Writing for the Education Market community has made mistakes on this freelancing path. Yucky ones. The kind that make us cringe and hope no one ever finds out. But those are the stories we need to hear from each other. Freelancing can be isolating. You feel like you are ‘on an island’ as one reader said. That aloneness is heavy. When you hear a story of failure that resonates with you, you sigh and say, “Oh, I thought that only happened to me,” and the weight lifts a little. It’s always easier to carry something when it’s shared, right? 

But the real value is hearing how that person picked themselves up and carried on. What did they change because of this failure? These answers give us the tools we need to face those sticky situations ourselves, perhaps changing our outcome armed with that knowledge.

So here’s my question:

Would you be willing to share with this community a story of one of your failures or mistakes and what you learned from it? 

You can respond to the email feed or use the email address on the blog to write to me directly. I would love to collect your stories and share some with our community. Include #failup somewhere in the email so that I can search my inbox for them easily. 

Education-Related Leads for Thu, June 11, 2015

• Social Studies Teachers: Make Money Writing Lesson Plans From Home (United States) ($25/lesson. Your call)
• Remote Item Writer (looks like English or Math K-12)

Good luck,

Laura

Publishing Solutions Group

Publishing Solutions Group has postings for freelance ELA writers and editors and all subject assessment writers, but they are also conducting their annual freelancers update. It sounds like a good time to get yours in. Check out their Careers at PSG page for more info.

Thanks to Carole Gerber for the lead. 

Laura

Property Management CourseWriters Needed

 

Job Description:

Professional Course Writer needed for a Nationwide association of Property Managers to rewrite existing courses and apply the course "looping" methodology to materials.

• Ability to understand and grasp basic real estate management terminology, skills and procedures.
• Scholarly Research will be required to provide additional reading and resources to support concepts taught.
• Experience in adult education professional course writing required.
• Excellent English/Grammar/Spelling/Proofreading skills required
• Ability to Create Power Point show of Material for presentation by Association Instructors -along with Instructor Notes/Guide for presentation

 

 

Courses that require immediate work are on two topics:

• Marketing
• Advanced Personnel Procedures

Courses are 6 hours of class time minus breaks = approximately 4.75 hours of content required.
A 30 questions multi-choice exam will be required

Your responsibilities:

- Develop content themes based on the direction and creative brief provided by our team

- Create high-quality, original content designed to engage an audience in a business environment

- Take on ad-hoc writing and marketing projects as they arise

- Contribute ideas on improving existing messaging and content

Your qualifications:
- Fluent English including excellent writing, grammar, spelling and formatting
- A work style that is extremely detail oriented
- Strong communication skills
- An exceptional portfolio that demonstrates strong instructional.curriculum design (formerly: an ability to create compelling copy for a wide variety of brands, audiences and industries)
- References

 

Send resumes and letter of interest to Michael McCreary, Michael@McCrearyRealty.com.
Start date: June 22, 2015

 

Laura's note: This came in by email but was also posted on elance.com

What Do YOU Want Response Compilation

Wow! I love the responses. They started coming in 10 minutes after the feed went out to email. There were also comments on the original post today. There's a lot here, so take your time, if you like. I think this discussion could stew all week and be the better for it.

I'm compiling what was said here so that you can see what the community is saying. Thanks, Marcy, for pointing out that this was all a whole lot and I probably would need help. That helped me step back and look at the bigger picture. I think what I'm looking for is a moonshot and the baby steps to get here. What percs out as the most useful will be implemented first. The rest can come as we need it.

One thing I'd love to suggest is a "Yelp"-style review section for freelancers to review companies they've worked for. It would probably need to be monitored closely, and folks should be careful about how they word their reviews (or remain anonymous) but I think it could be really valuable both for freelancers and small freelance managers like me, who depend upon positive word-of-mouth to attract new members.

I am most interested in opportunities with companies needed educational freelancers.

I like the idea of writer profiles and company profiles.

I don't feel a need to add more, but I understand if you want to grow. If you would like to add articles to aid in the job search of education writing career, that might be a productive addition.

Mainly, I rely on your job listings, so thank you!

I love the blog as it is

I would like a place where I could find online curriculum and educational writing jobs.

I'd be most interested in these resources: (x 3)

• guest blog posts with companies who hire freelancers

• interviews with companies who hire freelancers

• a writer page with short profiles of our freelancers

• a company page with short profiles of companies who hire freelancers

You may want to add how-to articles, with a call to readers to send successes. You may also want to include the international market, as that would open the door to the world. To promote the redesigned site, you may want to ask readers to add a link on their blogs and websites to your blog.

Help in moving my (and others') long-term expertise into new areas would be great!! Many of us are print people with invaluable expertise into kids at a variety of grade levels. Our ability to motivate and engage children with content that is on target for their age and ability levels is something that can be invaluable to newcomers who are developing APPS and home entertainment experiences.

...perhaps, you can have an occasional FREELANCE post of people who serve particular age groups or content areas? ...I wish your name had more “cache” with companies for I find that once I see your blog, I still have to reach someone I know within a company to see if they, are in fact, staffing or have already staffed for a given project through their own network of people.
Personally, I find that freelance work has declined these past ten years, so expansion into new areas (with people who do not know us by name or expertise!) would be one area that would be great.

Also, may trade people do not know educational publishing people and I, personally,would like to see some cross-pollination into trade educational products to the home: Workman, Sterling, National Geo.. Even Scholastic do trade materials that are as engaging and high-interest as many classroom products but the two industries (and the people) are different.

Content about how to work effectively with freelancers would be helpful too. Most of my clients provide clear specs and strong editorial support, but I’ve had a few that have had me wanting to bang my head against a wall and scream “I can’t give you what you want if you don’t tell me what you want.”

Your ideas are interesting, but for me, I'd like more information about resources other freelancers use. For example: How do other freelancers deal with estimated taxes? What to do about clients who don't pay, or pay very late? Do other freelancers use a bookkeeping app?

Also, just another idea that came to mind is to have some sort of freelancer meet-up. I am part of a similar email list for educational writers in the ESL space, and they recently organized an event, but it was based in England! The event had a few guest speakers, including a hiring manager from Macmillan and a tax professional to help freelancers understand tax rules. It would be great to have a similar meetup for educators. It was just a one-day conference called Freelancers day away.

Maybe an online 'event' featuring interested and experienced participants?

Do you know about jobs for correlators for textbooks? I'm subscribed to this blog hoping to find a gig for correlating textbooks.

Seeing the leads is the biggest thing for me. I didn't know there was a forum. The idea of blog posts or interviews with those hiring would interest me. Reading about other freelancers, maybe not so much. I would like to see posts about the business of freelancing and how you find leads.

With regard to your questions, personally, I'd love to see a writer page with short profiles, particularly if those included website links. I think it would be helpful to companies and perhaps allow writers with similar backgrounds to get in touch with each other to ask questions or share information. I think it would be great to also have a company page. This would let writers learn more about a company before they respond to an advertised opening.

I also think having interviews with people who are hiring writers would be of value since that would enable writers to (hopefully) better understand what these people want. Interviews with writers would work for me if the interview focused on how that person lands jobs, mistakes or challenges they had that could help others, and so forth. I don't know that I'd do more than skim an interview that just told me about that writer.

So, yes, the current format is effective. Normally, I can't say that I'd explore the newer, upcoming features, but because I feel such a loyalty to the blog and trust it, I actually kinda dig them. I look forward to the changes.

From a publisher's standpoint, I'm happy right now. I like receiving job postings and I like offering jobs.
I have noticed that a lot of postings/jobs come from listings on other sites. I would like to see more publishers listing directly with you. That means that they need to know about your work.More publishers with better and more frequent jobs listed on Writing for the Education Market would grow your community in a positive way.

I think that all of your suggestions are great, but perhaps they would be too many to manage.Do you have any help?

Gosh— I need t pay more attn . . .I wasn’t even aware of the discussion site!

As to how-to articles, they're similar to success stories in that they often address a particular challenge, in this case, in education writing/publishing. Whether you write and/or solicit readers for these, you may want to view recent job postings to discern common challenges. You can also check for outside-the-box challenges, which are more specialized and would thus be helped by how-to information.

I like the idea of a discussion group, but honestly, I don't take time to use it and it looks like others face the same dilemma. Perhaps keep it, knowing that use will be sporadic depending on participants' time. Or, maybe it's time to move that aspect to facebook, since people seem a bit more willing to take time (via mobile) to fool around and discuss there. Either way, if there's a way to make it mobile friendly, I think you might get more discussion.

I'd love to see more information from companies - interviews and/or profiles.

The job leads have been what I was most interested in. I love having it come right to my inbox. I like your idea of short profiles of both writers and companies who hire them.

I think focusing on getting more publishing and online companies to send leads to the blog directly is going to give us a lot of value. I am attending ISTE in Philadelphia this summer. I may try to connect with those companies there. Anyone here going to ISTE or live in Philly? I'd love to meet. 

The writer profiles or database is looking like a great idea, too. It could be used by companies to reach out to freelancers, and it could be used by freelancers to connect with folks in their niche. (As if writing for the education market were not niche enough. Oy!)

Please continue sending thoughts and suggestions. I won't make any decisions until the weekend and your conversation is supremely helpful. It looks like I missed the feed for tonight, so you'll get this in your email tomorrow. 

G'Night,

Laura Coulter

What do YOU want?

So, I’ve been thinking a lot about this blog lately. I think it’s time for a redesign. I’d love to see a new look, but while I’m at it, how can I make it more useful?

I remember the year I started this blog. I had been freelancing for a year and had landed a job as a project editor for Harcourt’s Randstad division. I searched the Internet constantly for a resource that I could use to help me find freelance jobs focusing on education. Nothing. After a few months of this, I realized that if I was looking for that resource, then so were other people. And in January 2008, this blog was born.  I started by sharing my thoughts on breaking into freelance education writing and by posting leads that I’d found in my daily searches. If they weren’t a good fit for me, then they were a good fit for somebody and it was a shame to waste all that searching.

2008 still has more blog posts than any other year. What I remember most about that year is the sense of community I felt. When I went back into the classroom and couldn’t keep up with the posting, that community took up the slack. Terry, Beth, and Michele started posting leads. Michele is the only volunteer still posting and she's a big part of why this blog is still alive. Thank you, Michele. You are appreciated.

So now what? I know that this blog has become a solid resource for both freelancers and those who hire them. It’s not going away. But it may be time to evolve. I’ve thought about the focus and here’s where I stand: I want to help connect education freelancers with the companies who need them. That’s my focus. If, within that focus, I can help new freelancers get started or experienced freelancers move into new market areas then so much the better.

I know that this blog has about 1,000 email subscribers. (Wow! I remember how excited I was when we hit 200!). Most of those are job seekers, but some of them are people who hire freelancers. With this post going out to 1,000 subscribers, I should get some solid feedback.

So here’s what I need from you. What do YOU want out of this site?

We currently have:

• blog with job leads
• discussion board
• small list of writers

Are these effective? Do they need to change?

I’ve been thinking about:

• guest blog posts from freelancers
• guest blog posts those who hire them
• interviews with freelancers
• interviews with those who hire them
• a writer page with short profiles of our freelancers
• a company page with short profiles of companies who hire freelancers

What do you think about these? Are they too much? Is there something missing? I need feedback!

I would love to hear from you on this. If you want to share your thoughts with the community, go to the post and comment directly there. If you want to respond to this post by email, I'll be the only one who receives it. If you give me permission, I can add it to the comments as submitted by a subscriber. Reading your ideas might generate more ideas. Post links if you have examples of what you'd like to see here.  I found that the more people involved in the conversation, the more people will get involved.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Laura Coulter

Education-Related Leads for Mon, May 18

• Instructional Designer (Seal Beach) (Anyone an instructional designer and with automotive knowledge?)
• Math Item Writer 
• Need Help Creating Math/Science Problems and Curriculum (Anywhere)

Good luck!

Laura

Education-Related Leads for Tue, May 11, 2015

Freelance

• Test Development Job Opportunities (Pearson)
• Freelance Item Writing Opportunities (ETS - general info)
• GRE Expert Blogger
• GMAT Expert Blogger

Publishing Opportunity

• Looking for ELL materials for grades PK-8

Good luck!
Laura

Experienced assessment writer needed for college-level biology exercises (telecommute)

Description: Sinauer is an established publisher of college-level science textbooks and supplements. We are looking for an experienced educational assessment writer with an advanced biology degree to create original stimuli and items at Bloom’s levels 3-6 in the areas of genomics, genomics, and/or evolution.

 

Required experience: Ph.D. in science (preferably biology). Three or more years’ experience writing college-level science items.

 

Timeline: May through December 2015

 

Location: Remote

 

Rate: $250 per stimulus/item set

 

Contact: carrie.mailler@sinauer.com

 

Please send a current résumé. List your areas of content specialty, and provide an original stimulus with 4 to 6 free-response items and answers.

Life sciences assessment professional to help develop learning objectives

Description: Sinauer Associates is an established publisher of college-level science textbooks and supplements. We are looking for a science educator/assessment professional with experience developing learning objectives and outcomes for a comprehensive biology course.

Preferred experience: Ph.D. in life sciences (preferably biology)

Timeline: May through November 2015

Location: Remote

Contact: carrie.mailler@sinauer.com

Please send a current résumé and a cover letter describing your experience developing learning objectives in the sciences, along with a brief sample of your work.

Eight Weeks of CCSS Math Item Writing at Progress Testing

* Must be able to dedicate the next 8 weeks to writing high-quality Common Core items for us
* Must have experience writing New/Technology Enhanced items like Multiple Select and Ordering/Matching
* Must have experience writing Common Core items for all levels: elementary, middle, and high
* Must be able to produce AT LEAST 10 items per day
* Will be provided helpful samples and interactive guidance to aid the writing process
* Will receive $15 per accepted item
* Please reply to Peter Gray pgray@progresstesting.com with your resume and samples. Qualified candidates will be put to work immediately.
* FYI-- Deadlines are firm as are daily quotas-- so please reply only if you can meet the project requirements!

Project Manager, Educational Publishing/Product Development

Words and Numbers is an educational technology company providing content development services to clients ranging from the largest in the publishing industry to the next great EdTech start-up in the PreK-12, higher educational, and adult learning markets. W&N provides services and project management for the entire project lifecycle, from conceptualization to asset creation. Learn more at www.wordsandnumbers.com.

W&N is currently seeking experienced project managers to join a large, fast-paced higher education publishing project to develop a ground-breaking digital series of curriculum-aligned content aimed at promoting undergraduate student research. The project is slated to run from March 2015 through Fall 2015.

Multiple contracts are available and a long-term senior staff position can be awarded to the most qualified candidate who demonstrates the ability to lead the overall effort and strengthen W&N’s project management capabilities. To be considered, you must have at least 3 years’ experience (at least 7 for senior position) successfully delivering content development, product development, or book publishing projects that relied on subject matter experts, writers, editors, designers, and other creative experts. Successful candidates will also have experience developing robust project plans and managing remote team members and client/business owner and stakeholder relationships. Other minimum requirements can be found below.

Educational product development or educational publishing experience is preferred for these positions, especially in higher education. Project managers selected will have the option of working remotely with no more than 25% travel possibly required.

                                                                                  

Interested? Please submit resumes with a cover letter highlighting relevant experience and why you’re interested in this opportunity to careers@wordsandnumbers.com.

At a minimum, project managers working for W&N must be able to:

• Be bendable but not breakable
• Work with confidence in ambiguous, fast-paced environments
• Be detail-oriented with expert organizational skills
• Help analyze challenges and define solutions to address client, business, and team needs
• Develop and execute comprehensive project plans and complex but efficient processes, including revisions to meet changing needs
• Document, communicate, and manage the evolution of requirements, guidelines, and other project documents
• Detail project needs, then work collaboratively on the successful fulfillment of those needs
• Insert and monitor controls throughout project to ensure success
• Identify risks and resolve them proactively with attention to short- and long-term impact
• Manage day-to-day operations
• Carefully review  and contribute to deliverables for quality assurance before releasing to client
• Document project meetings and decisions made, including assignment of action items
• Manage day-to-day client, business owner, stakeholder, and team member interactions
• Help establish and manage expectations of all involved to avoid and resolve conflicts
• Seek opportunities to increase satisfaction and strengthen relationships
• Regularly track and manage team hours, detailed project financials, and other project performance metrics
• Prepare status reports and lead status meetings for a variety of audiences
• Keep project teams, clients, business owners, and stakeholders well-informed
• Tailor information to best serve a variety of audiences
• Resolve and/or escalate issues in a timely fashion

Seasoned freelance item writers needed for college-level biology items

Description: An established publisher of college-level science textbooks and supplements, we are developing items to accompany our biology-for-majors textbook. We’re looking for a few highly skilled freelance item writers from biology and other life sciences to write on a work-for-hire basis. Writers will have access to our textbook and will be asked to create stimuli with clustered items to support the text and selected learning objectives. It is essential that writers are experienced with item writing at the higher cognitive levels. There will be no “recall” items in this component of the project.

Please respond with a current résumé, detailing item-writing experience. Include original, college-level biology items. We are looking, especially, for samples that involve stimuli with items requiring the application of learned concepts and the analysis of new information (Bloom’s levels 3, 4, and 5).

The project starts in late March and runs through October.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Required: Proven talent for writing in-depth, challenging, college-level biology items. Advanced degree in biology or related discipline preferred.

Timeline: Starting in late March and likely to continue through October

Location: Remote

Contact: mailler@sinauer.com

LearningMate Solutions, Inc. looking for K-12 math and science freelancers

LearningMate Solutions, Inc. is looking for qualified freelancers to work on K-12 math and science projects. Some projects will be completed in the next 3 months, while others will continue through the end of 2015.

1)      Senior Editors, Math

• Math specialist with experience working on digital products
• Manage writers and editors through the editorial process
• Review work of writers and editors
• Create and update guidelines
• Answer questions of writers and editors
• Work with LearningMate’s internal team and clients to ensure that work meets quality and schedule standards
• Available to work 20+ hours a week on a consistent basis

2)      Writers and Content Editors, Math

• Math specialist with experience working on digital products
• Needed for all grade levels K-12
• Able to follow detailed guidelines and meet deadlines
• Must be located in the US
• Must be able to work virtually with minimal direction

3)      Senior Editors, Science

• Science specialist with experience working on digital products
• Manage writers and editors through the editorial process
• Review work of writers and editors
• Create and update guidelines
• Answer questions of writers and editors
• Work with LearningMate’s internal team and clients to ensure that work meets quality and schedule standards
• Available to work 20+ hours a week on a consistent basis

4)      Writers and Content Editors, Science

• Science specialist with experience working on digital products
• Needed for all grade levels K-12
• Able to follow detailed guidelines and meet deadlines
• Must be located in the US
• Must be able to work virtually with minimal direction

 

If you meet the criteria listed above, please send a resume and brief cover letter to:

Lisa.panka@learningmate.com

Stephen.solomon@learningmate.com

Please include in the subject line whether you are interested in math or science, and if you are interested in working as a senior editor.

  

Progress Testing is looking for qualified freelancers

Progress Testing is looking for qualified freelancers to write formative assessment items in certain areas of Social Studies over the next 90 days.

Topics to be covered:

• 8th grade financial literacy including responsible uses of money, basic micro- and macroeconomic indicators, the united states financial system, and the use of various financial instruments such as credit cards, mortgages, stocks, bonds, and CDs, among others.
• 8th grade US history from colonial times through the 19th century.
• High school world history including Western, Islamic, Asian, and African civilizations from early history through modern times.
• High school world geography, primarily from a political perspective but including physical changes to the land and environment and the adaptations of human civilizations to their environment.
• 8th grade and high school research and analysis skills including research methodology and interpreting graphs, charts, and maps.

Expectations for content creators:

• Create a variety of item types including multiple choice, short answer, essay response, map and table interpretation, and passages.
• Work virtually within our online proprietary item creation tool.
• Work with editors and feedback to revise items to conform to state educational standards and company guidelines.
• Provide consistent content at a pace of approximately 50 items per week.

Contact Laura Bresko at lbresko@progresstesting.com.

Course Writer- Online (Freelance)

Other World Learning is preparing to help individuals pursue their educational and professional dreams within Metaphysical and Paranormal areas. We are currently seeking a Freelance Course Writer. This is an opportunity for an experienced educational writer to join a growing organization, and benefit from an ongoing professional relationship.

SUMMARY:
Course Writers need to write academic content for online programs in a variety of subject areas. Currently we are seeking a talented individual to create a stimulating course for adults in the following:

Ethics, Philosophy, Parapsychology, Religious Studies.


Course Writers are expected to write original, engaging content for online and hybrid courses. Course Writers will leverage their experience and knowledge in their field to compose educationally sound curricula that showcases an advanced experience for the student. Course Writers may be assigned to write course content for Introduction, Associates, Bachelors, and or Master’s level courses.

Course Writers will collaborate with Course Developers and administrators to produce project deliverables within set timelines.

Each course is expected to take approximately 13- 16 weeks to complete. 

Requirements:

• Minimum Master’s degree, Terminal degree preferred
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent writing, editing, and research skills
• Advanced technology skills preferred
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to act effectively and work collaboratively as a team member
• Experience in online pedagogy and teaching required
• Instructional Design background is not required, but desired.
• Online learning and teaching experience required.

To apply for this exciting opportunity, please send resume and links to examples of your work to: submissions@otherworldlearning.com

Seeking experienced college essay consultants for ongoing freelance position

Overview

Seeking experienced college essay consultants for ongoing freelance position. Provide essay consulting and revision services to high school students. Earn $100-$195 per essay on average.

This is a part-time opportunity with flexible scheduling. The majority of client work will occur July-December, although top candidates will have the opportunity to take on clients throughout the year.

Responsibilities

Consultants will be matched with clients for one of two service packages (details for each package below). Consultants may choose to work with one client at a time or several clients simultaneously. You will work with each client throughout their entire consulting experience, acting as their single dedicated consultant.

Complete Package Responsibilities

• Guide client through entire essay process
• Hold a ~30 minute Skype or phone consultation with the client
• Assist in brainstorming essay topic, main points, and subpoints
• Assist in creating essay outline
• Provide guidance as student drafts essay
• Revise essay for content, structure, and language, reaching out to student for more information as needed.
• Complete additional rounds of revisions if necessary

Note: After the initial consultation, contact with client may occur via email.

Revision Package Responsibilities

• Revise essay draft for content, structure, and language, reaching out to student for more information as needed.
• Offer a Skype or phone consultation to review feedback (note: some clients will prefer email contact only)
• Complete additional rounds of revisions if necessary

Requirements

Above all, we are looking for consultants who can help guide clients to college essay excellence. Of course, this requires top-notch writing and revision skills. But you’ll also need a knack for working with high school students - from explaining amorphous concepts to motivating discouraged students to do their best.

Successful candidates will generally have prior experience with college essay consulting and revision. The following will also be helpful:

• Desire to work with both US and international clients: A significant portion of our clients are foreign students hoping to attend university in the United States.
• Customer-service orientation: As the face of the company for clients, consultants commit to our promise of complete satisfaction.
• Attention to detail: No typos, missed deadlines, etc.
• Timeliness and responsiveness

Compensation

Complete package: $0.30/word ($195 for 650-word Common App essay)

Revision package: $0.20/word ($130 for 650-word Common App essay)

Top consultants will have the opportunity for pay raises after a demonstrated history of excellent work.

Organizational Structure and Support

One of our team members manages and supports all consultants through assignments. We’ll provide training to get you started and be available for help at any time. Have a difficult client? Faced with unrealistic client expectations? We won’t leave you to deal with the issue alone.

To apply, please email your resume to katerina.manoff@envisionhigh.com. We look forward to hearing from you!

Gigs

Project Based Early Childhood Curriculum Writer

CURRICULUM & GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Math and Science Freelance Writers and Editors

Six Red Marbles is seeking qualified and experienced freelance writers and editors for K-12 Math and Science. Knowledge and skill requirements are outlined below.

RESUMES ONLY TO: a.shah@sixredmarbles.com

_________________

Math 

Experience/Qualifications: Required

• Educational publishing experience required, at least 3 recent years
• writers minimum 3 years
• editors minimum 5 years
• content leads 7 years
• supervising editors  7 years
• Written and/or edited mathematics instructional material for publishing purposes, using latest approaches in mathematics teaching
• Expertise in Common Core Math Standards for appropriate grade levels, along with the Mathematical Practice Standards
• Assessments - experience with adaptive learning and concept mapping, HiSET, GED, SAT, ACT, PAARC, SMARTER BALANCE
• Experience with district-level standards and DOK
• Success in writing Interactive storyboards, including various template formats

Software

• Microsoft Word and MathType
• Drawing programs or other programs used to produce fairly accurate technical art as references for actual art producers
• Familiarity with InCopy is a plus.

 

Science 

Experience/Qualifications Required

• Educational publishing experience required 7-8 recent years
• writers minimum 7 years
• editors minimum 6 years
• content leads 7 years
• supervising editors: 8-10 years
• Subject-matter expertise
• Familiarity with latest approaches in science teaching
• Curriculum development experience
• Solid knowledge of writing and grammar

Science Category experience required

• High School physical sciences: chemistry & physics 8-10 years
• Middle School: chemistry & physics 8-10 years
• Middle School - Earth Science 8-10 years
• Elementary (K-6) Science: generalist 8-10 years

Nice to Have

• High School Chemistry and Physics experience with ability to extend into Middle School as needed

Samples Required

• sample of something that effectively instructs on a complex scientific topic
• sample of writing for interactive media (storyboards, etc.)
• sample of writing inquiry-based lab activities.

Software

• Microsoft Word and Excel. Familiarity with InCopy and/or MathType a plus.

Curriculum Writer

Project-Based Early Childhood Curriculum Writer

Science Curriculum Writers

Edmentum

Generation Ready course developers

This also looks interesting:

http://www.generationready.com/

Professional Development Writer/Course Developer – Teacher Courses Business

Independent Contractor

Current opportunities in - Remote

Overview

With roots that go back 20 years, Generation Ready is the Nation’s leading professional development partner, working with superintendents, principals and teachers to elevate student achievement through professional learning services and targeted school and district solutions.  Created through acquisition by Weld North LLC in September of 2012, Generation Ready combines the deep expertise and resources of two long-renowned education organizations – Editure/AUSSIE Professional Development and JBHM Education Group.  Our mission is to support teachers and school leaders in order to educate a stronger, more vibrant generation of students prepared to meet life’s challenges.  In partnership with KKR, a leading global alternative asset manager, Weld North is an investment company that seeks to make control investments in lower and middle market education, health and wellness, consumer services and marketing businesses.

Generation Ready is looking to hire a Professional Development Writer/Course Developer for its Teacher Courses business.  This division, a special growth initiative under the Generation Ready umbrella, provides graduate-level distance learning courses that teachers take to enhance their practice and advance their career.  It currently offers a broad range of direct-to-teacher, print-based courses under the Enhancement Courses and Advancement Courses brands.  We are seeking writers to design and develop high-quality, online courses that will have a meaningful impact on classroom practice and student outcomes.  This position will work with the Associate Director of Curriculum and Instruction as well as a video production/editing group to write engaging and practice focused courses that synthesize classroom footage, existing content in the Generation Ready library, and current best practices/research to create a transformative learning experience for teachers.  This is a remote, contract position.

Responsibilities

• Plan and write a high quality online teacher education course(s) in a specific subject area (ELA, Math, Special Education, Science, Teacher Preparation, etc.)
• Write detailed and concise syllabi for subject specific courses that include a course description, measurable objectives, learning outcomes, unit overviews, activities, and assessments
• Write engaging, practice focused course content including formative assessments and a summative assessment
• Work with the Associate Director of Curriculum and Instruction to storyboard course(s) for graphical video production
• Use an Learning Management System (LMS) and Articulate Storyline (or something similar) to develop the online content
• Organize course and content to leverage existing content in the Generation Ready library

Necessary Qualifications

• A Master’s Degree
• Teaching and professional development experience in content area with proven mastery
• At least one year of curricular design experience for teachers
• Experience creating curriculum demonstrating a deep knowledge of content, pedagogy, and current research
• Experience creating interactive learning activities for adults
• Experience and skill at creating assessments in alignment with an overall evaluation strategy
• Experience incorporating the Common Core State Standards into curriculum design
• Excellent organization, communication, and project management skills
• A high attention to detail and a focus on efficiency
• Strong technological skills including use of full Microsoft Office Suite and LMS

Additional Qualifications

• ELA
• Knowledge of both reading and writing strategies, current research, and assessment techniques for K-12
• Knowledge of integration of the CCSS in ELA both within literacy classrooms and across subjects
• Math
• Knowledge of mathematic techniques, current research, and assessment techniques for K-8 or 9-12
• Knowledge of integration of the CCSS in Math
• Special Education
• Extensive experience writing about special education needs to an adult audience
• Knowledge of both learning and emotional disabilities
• Familiarity and comfort creating content for development of IEPs, inclusion classrooms, and parent outreach
• Science
• Knowledge of constructivist science strategies, current research, and assessment techniques for K-8 or 9-12
• Knowledge of NEXT Generation Science Standards
• Familiarity and comfort creating content for including literacy and math in science instruction
• Teacher Preparation
• Extensive experience as a professional developer supporting new teachers, struggling teachers, and veteran teachers
• Knowledge of parent engagement strategies and working with learners of diverse backgrounds
• Other
• We will be creating many courses, so if you have expertise in any of the following please apply (make sure to include what your expertise is in your cover letter title)
• Classroom Management, Gifted and Talented, History, Cultural Competency, Character Development, Technology, Differentiation, Health, Coaching (sports), Leadership, etc.

Please apply with a cover letter (with desired content subject and last name in file name), resume, and work sample.  Generation Ready is an equal-opportunity employer.