Learning Experience Designer, Core
Job description
About the role
You will shape the learning experience for a full grade level and safeguard consistency from unit to unit. This involves defining the narrative arc of a grade-level course so that texts, skills, and standards build knowledge coherently across the scope and sequence. You will act as the instructional conscience of the product, ensuring that every decision about scope and sequence reflects established educational frameworks and student needs. Much of your work will center on secondary English Language Arts, where you will design lessons that uphold the Newsela instructional framework and meet the needs of diverse learners. You will translate complex pedagogical goals into tangible classroom experiences that engage students and support teachers. Collaboration with product and engineering happens daily, embedding instructional expertise directly into the product development lifecycle. Design decisions are judged by outcomes such as usability, conversion, and customer satisfaction, requiring you to balance empathy with data. Most design teams keep a living design system to keep products consistent, and you will contribute to this evolving body of work.
Key facts
What you'll do
Unit progression is structured so that texts, skills, and standards build knowledge coherently across the scope and sequence.
Decisions about scope and sequence are shaped in collaboration with senior designers and product teams to reflect established instructional frameworks.
Lessons are designed to uphold the Newsela instructional framework and meet the needs of diverse learners.
Assessment development aligns to grade-level standards and ensures that measurements reflect intended learning outcomes.
Rubrics, checklists, and conventions are collaboratively developed and refined.
Documents are updated based on observed grade-level needs and real-world application.
Work is organized and reprioritized in line with business needs.
You will define and maintain the instructional integrity of a full grade-level curriculum.
You will partner with content and engineering to integrate AI tools that accelerate high-quality content development without sacrificing rigor.
You will create clear, useful feedback for other writers to ensure error-free materials and consistent voice.
You will manage multiple workstreams, prioritizing tasks to align with strategic business objectives.
You will surface risks early and hold yourself and others accountable to a high bar of quality.
You will ensure timely delivery and transparent communication to stakeholders.
You will leverage an independent, judicious eye for quality and acute attention to detail.
Requirements
The posting states a pay range of $60000 to $70000.
A Bachelor's degree in English, Education, Curriculum & Instruction, or a related field is required. A background in secondary ELA, Curriculum & Instruction, or related fields provides relevant context for this role.
A minimum of 5 years of experience in secondary ELA curriculum development, instructional design, or content creation is required. School- or district-based curriculum development experience is also considered valid.
Strong working knowledge of secondary ELA pedagogy is required, including familiarity with CCSS and best practices in reading, writing, and assessment.
Excellent English writing and editing skills are required to produce polished instructional content.
Skills are needed to give clear, useful feedback to other writers and to produce error-free materials.
An independent, judicious eye for quality and acute attention to detail are required.
Judgment supports making sound, well-reasoned content decisions independently.
A strong ownership mindset is required to follow through on commitments, surface risks early, and hold yourself and others to a high bar.
Accountability ensures timely delivery and transparent communication.
Comfort and fluency with AI tools are required to accelerate high-quality content development without sacrificing pedagogical rigor.
AI fluency supports efficient workflows while maintaining instructional quality.
Strong organizational and verbal communication skills are required.
Skills enable management of multiple workstreams and prioritization aligned with business needs.
Nice to have
Classroom teaching experience in secondary ELA is preferred.
Experience contributing to a core (basal) ELA curriculum at a curriculum provider is preferred.
Experience creating resources or scaffolds for multilingual learners and striving readers is preferred.
Experience reviewing or guiding the work of contributors, freelancers, or vendor teams is preferred.
Experience with digital content authoring tools or content management systems (CMS) is preferred.
A Master's degree in English, Education, Curriculum & Instruction, or a related field is preferred.
Practical notes
Employment is contingent on a successful background check.
Work aligns with Newsela's quality standards, instructional framework, and commitment to equity and access.
Good to know
The role focuses on curriculum design for secondary English language arts.
Instructional frameworks and AI tools are used to support content production at scale.
Collaboration across product, content, and technology teams is central.
Professional growth is supported through learning and development allowances.
The position contributes directly to classroom impact for teachers and students.