Course Design Lead (High School focus)

Company Description

Job Description

Macmillan Learning is seeking a Course Design Lead to join our Pedagogical Design Group to support our market-leading resources, from BFW Publishers, for high school Advanced Placement AP® and elective courses.  A key pillar of Macmillan Learning’s mission is to lead transformation of learning strategies by empowering educators and learners through digital resources and tools. If you are dedicated to advancing learning through digital pedagogy and have a deep understanding of evidence-based teaching strategies, especially in online learning, this role offers a unique opportunity to drive positive change in education.

We encourage individuals with high school teaching experience, ed-tech experience from start-ups to larger organizations, and those with direct experience in educational publishing to apply, among others whose creativity and/or expertise will lead to success in working with a team to develop teaching and learning strategies for digital learning, primarily in high school AP® and elective courses.   

In this key role, you will be at the forefront of educational innovation, ensuring that our digital courses are designed with pedagogical excellence, inclusivity, and effectiveness in mind. You will collaborate closely with partners in editorial, product, sales, and implementation to inform the development of engaging digital learning experiences, particularly through our proprietary digital learning platforms and associated educational technologies. You will champion evidence-based teaching practices, envision equitable digital solutions, and continuously iterate and improve our products based on insights from data and user feedback. Join us in our mission to empower learners and shape the future of education.

Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs unless they believe they can perform every job description task. We strongly encourage and welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds, including women and people of color, to apply for this role. We're eager to meet people that believe in our mission and can contribute to our team in a variety of ways - not just candidates who check all the boxes. We believe in fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace, and we recognize that unique perspectives and experiences contribute to the strength of our team. If you are interested in applying, we encourage you to think broadly about your background and skill set for the role. We value your potential, and we are committed to providing a supportive and inclusive environment where all individuals can thrive and contribute their best.

Major responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Develop outcomes-based frameworks, primarily for High School AP® and elective courses, including success criteria for evaluating course design. Develop and share product monitoring plans and analyze usage patterns with directional takeaways in service of pedagogically effective course designs, based on testing, customer feedback, product data, and understanding of the competitive landscape.
• Refine and improve best practices for course design based on customer feedback, existing and emerging trends in digital pedagogy, product data, and understanding of the competitive landscape.
• Understand and communicate best practices in the design, interdependencies, and implementation of digital content and digital functionality to the project teams, vendors, and authors. This includes quality, comprehensive content (interactives, audio, video) and assessment plans for the High School list by course area and individual titles, alongside the editorial program management and media editorial team. Collaboration with project teams to create effective, inclusive, and innovative content will be essential for success.
• Understand and synthesize emerging perspectives on the impact of generative AI on teaching and learning within High School AP® and elective course areas.
• Participate in the development of content update plans to ensure alignment with evidence-based teaching practices.
• Monitor and analyze learner progress and performance to advise both editorial teams and authors, with a focus on customer retention; develop methods to mature effective usage of digital platforms; and support new customer acquisition. Analyze usage data and other contextual data (e.g., sentiment) using various technologies.
• Develop success criteria for test and learn projects to optimize the effectiveness of our digital courses.
• Work directly with customers, marketing, and sales to support digital product adoption and retention. Participate in internal and external events to promote products, gather market information, and meet with potential and current authors and reviewers.
• Promote the implementation of Macmillan Learning’s standards and guidelines on creating accessible, diverse, equitable, and inclusive content to ensure learners of all backgrounds and experiences can achieve equitable outcomes.

Job Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelors Degree.
• Experience with either:
  • Working with digital educational content either as a teacher, curriculum designer, AP® Reader, content creator, editor, instructional designer, or learning experience designer.
  • At least 5 years of experience in educational publishing; educational content creation; teaching experience in high schools, community colleges, or universities; and/or creative roles within edtech.
• Strong understanding of evidence-based teaching practices and pedagogical approaches in the context of digital education.
• Excellent analytical skills with the ability to interpret and apply data-driven insights.
• Ability to set priorities, meet deadlines, and work independently.
• Adaptable to change, and quick to internalize technology, systems, and practices relevant to the role.
• Strong interest in identifying and solving problems.
• Proven ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing to exhibit influence and impact.
• Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to form productive working relationships with authors and in-house teams.
• Ability to travel for in-person meetings, less than 10% of the time.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Certificate or graduate work in educational technology, instructional design, or learning science is a plus.
• Experience teaching AP® or as an AP® Reader is strongly desired.
• Knowledge of JIRA, PowerBI, Pendo, and Amplitude.