Senior Content Editor at Learning Sandbox

Job description:

We are looking for an experienced editor to join our team, making engaging e-learning content in science and inclusive education. Learning Sandbox is a young, dynamic start-up working with top academic institutions, so you need to be flexible, versatile, and passionate about learning and researching new things as we work. As a content professional, you believe in making content clear, engaging, and easy to understand. As an editor, you can take a scythe to a piece of clumsy prose, and you can guide a writer to make their words shine. You know your em dashes from your en dashes. You consider yourself a life-long learner and you’re dedicated to finding the best ways to ensure everyone has access to education. You’re a deep thinker, ready to get stuck into complex and unfamiliar subjects. You’re also a team player, ready to turn your hand to whatever needs doing. You thrive in collaborative environments and embrace challenges as opportunities to learn.  

The basics:

• Remuneration: Market-related

• Type: Full-time, permanent

• Job level: Senior

• Reports to: Lead Writer and Learning Designer

• Location: Remote, with the option of coming into our shared office space in Constantia, Cape Town

• Company: Learning Sandbox

• Start date: As soon as possible

Responsibilities:

• Copy-edit different types of content, mainly in science, inclusive education, and anti-racism

• Copy-edit blogs, UX copy, internal guides, and other communications where needed

• Edit alternative descriptions (alt text) for accessibility

• Contribute to the development of accessibility processes as part of the writing and learning design team

• Support in the creation and implementation of editorial style guides, and ensure consistency

• Ensure readability and digital accessibility best practices across all written content

• Edit e-learning content on inclusive education (text, videos, infographics, and other content types)

• Proofread web content before it goes live

• Guide content creators and writers to create clear copy, giving constructive feedback

• Switch between heavy structural editing, lighter editing, and proofreading where needed

• Work with learning designers and educators to ensure learning objectives are achieved

• Stay updated with best practices in social justice language

• Support other editors and writers

• Support various teams with word dilemmas and grammatical crises, and be an extra brain to bounce ideas or solve a problem

Requirements:

• Excellent English communication skills

• A degree and at least 3 to 5 years of editing experience

• A passion for accessibility, inclusive education, and anti-racism

• Awareness of power dynamics and biases in language

• The ability to work both independently and with a diverse global team

• A passion for research and exploring ideas

• Proofreading precision

• Knowledge of different publishing and editing processes

• Experience adapting to different style guides (we use The Chicago Manual of Style)

• Proficiency in US English grammar (or able to learn the rules quickly)

• Ability to multi-task and switch between different types of tasks within a day

• Excellent work ethic and high standards

• Comfortable with receiving and giving feedback to both professional writers and non-writers

• Willingness to upskill 

• Enjoys a robust discussion about grammar and style rules

Good to have:

• Experience in learning design, instructional design, or online education

• Science editing experience

• A background or knowledge in life sciences or inclusive education

• Familiarity with the Google Suite and Trello