Work Type: Fixed-term - Full-time
Salary: Salary not specified
Grade: Classroom Teacher
Occupation: Classroom teacher
Location: Melbourne - Inner South East suburbs
Reference: 1509597
We are an inner bayside school located in the City of Port Phillip, established in 1917 with students drawn from within our neighbourhood boundary. The school is in a quiet, residential area close to other facilities such as public transport, beaches and shopping villages. The school forms part of the Elwood Learning Hub, an education precinct which includes the Poets Grove Maternal Health, Childcare and Kindergarten Centre, Elwood Primary School and Elwood College.
The school population reflects the diversity of Elwood and one of our strengths is the value placed on `community'. Parents and staff work in partnership to support each child's learning journey and parental involvement in the many aspects of school life is highly valued. Our school markets provide a strong sense of connectedness and are a major source of fundraising for our school. The mix of creative and performing artists in the community also supports and enhances the school¿s learning and teaching programs.
Elwood Primary School has a student population of approximately 650 and there are 29 classes. There has been significant development of the school's internal and external facilities recently. We enjoy spacious playgrounds including a park, half soccer pitch, cricket pitches and nets, asphalted basketball, volleyball and bat tennis courts, creative play areas, a play pod and sandpits. Classrooms have all been modernised and refurbished with information and communication technology integrated into all learning and teaching programs.
The school's programs reflect our priority focus on the wellbeing of students, and are designed to assist in developing skills for life-long learning. The values which form the basis of the school's values are: Empathy, Resilience, Respect, Integrity and Responsibility. They include the Foundations of organisation, persistence, getting along and confidence, all of which promote resilience in students. Programs are based on the belief that students have the ability and the right to learn and we ensure that the environment is friendly, calm and orderly, safe, and responsive to the community's diversity.
We celebrate success in all areas of student achievement. We specifically focus on high quality programs with a clear commitment to student achievement in English and Mathematics as well as all other Victorian Curriculum areas. Professional learning is a key strategy for the school with a literacy and numeracy coaching model in place. The school is focused on personalising its curriculum to further meet student needs and abilities. The inquiry approach to learning has been adopted in all grades, with P-2 following a Developmental Curriculum (Investigations) and 3-6 delving into Educational Research Projects.
The Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program is a fun, hands-on program for our students in Grades 3 and 4 to experience the links between growing, harvesting, preparing and sharing fresh, seasonal produce. This program is a key driver in the ethos of the school and helps facilitate our strong community links.
Specialist teaching areas include Music, Visual Arts, Physical Education and Sport, Library/ICT, Indonesian, Wellbeing, and STEM. Outside School Hours Care program and School Holiday programs are operated on the school site by TeamKids.
SC1 Demonstrated knowledge of the relevant curriculum, including the ability to incorporate the teaching of literacy and numeracy skills. Demonstrated experience in responding to student learning needs.
SC2 Demonstrated experience in planning for and implementing high impact teaching strategies, guided by how students learn, and evaluating the impact of learning and teaching programs on student learning growth.
SC3 Demonstrated experience in monitoring and assessing student learning. Demonstrated experience in using data to inform teaching practice and providing feedback on student learning growth and achievement to students and parents.
SC4 Demonstrated interpersonal and communication skills. Demonstrated experience in establishing and maintaining collaborative relationships with students, parents, colleagues and the broader school community to support student learning, agency, wellbeing and engagement.
SC5 Demonstrated behaviours and attitudes consistent with Department values. Demonstrated experience in reflecting upon practice and engaging in professional learning to continually improve the quality of teaching.
SC6 Demonstrated high level understanding of and commitment to Developmental Curriculum as Inquiry Learning and community partnerships.
The classroom teacher classification comprises two salary ranges- range 1 and range 2. The primary focus of the classroom teacher is on the planning, preparation and teaching of programs to achieve specific student outcomes. The classroom teacher engages in critical reflection and inquiry in order to improve knowledge and skills to effectively engage students and improve their learning.
As the classroom teacher gains experience his or her contribution to the school program beyond the classroom increases. All classroom teachers may be required to undertake other duties in addition to their rostered teaching duties provided the responsibility is appropriate to the salary range, qualifications, training and experience of the teacher.
Classroom teacher Range 2
Range 2 classroom teachers play a significant role in assisting the school to improve student performance and educational outcomes determined by the school strategic plan and state-wide priorities and contributing to the development and implementation of school policies and priorities.
A critical component of this work will focus on increasing the knowledge base of staff within their school about student learning and high quality instruction to assist their school to define quality teacher practice.
Range 2 classroom teachers will be expected to:
- Have the content knowledge and pedagogical practice to meet the diverse needs of all students
- Model exemplary classroom practice and mentor/coach other teachers in the school to engage in critical reflection of their practice and to support staff to expand their capacity
- Provide expert advice about the content, processes and strategies that will shape individual and school professional learning
- Supervise and train one or more student teachers
- Assist staff to use student data to inform teaching approaches that enable targets related to improving student learning outcomes to be achieved.
Classroom teacher Range 1
The primary focus of the range 1 classroom teacher is on further developing skills and competencies to become an effective classroom practitioner with structured support and guidance from teachers at higher levels and the planning, preparation and teaching of programs to achieve specific student outcomes. These teachers teach a range of students/classes and are accountable for the effective delivery of their programs. Range 1 classroom teachers are skilled teachers who operate under general direction within clear guidelines following established work practices and documented priorities and may have responsibility for the supervision and training of one or more student teachers.
At range 1, teachers participate in the development of school policies and programs and assist in the implementation of school priorities.
The focus of a range 1 classroom teacher is on classroom management, subject content and teaching practice. New entrants to the teaching profession in their initial teaching years receive structured support, mentoring and guidance from teachers at higher levels.
Under guidance, new entrants to the teaching profession will plan and teach student groups in one or more subjects and are expected to participate in induction programs and other professional learning activities that are designed to ensure the integration of curriculum, assessment and pedagogy across the school.
Teachers at range 1 are responsible for teaching their own classes and may also assist and participate in policy development, project teams and the organisation of co-curricula activities.
The role of classroom teacher may include but is not limited to:
Teachers currently registered or eligible for registration with the Victorian Institute of Teaching and qualified to teach and/or have demonstrated experience in the curriculum area(s) specified for the position.
The department is committed to diversity and inclusion and developing a workforce that is representative of the community we service. We value diversity and inclusion in all forms - culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQA+, disability and neurodiversity. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for roles within the Department. The Department recognises that the provision of safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces is essential to high performance and promotes flexible work and diversity across all schools and Department workplaces. It is our policy to provide reasonable adjustments for staff with disability (see Workplace adjustment guidelines).
Additional support and advice on the recruitment process is available to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander candidates from the Koorie Outcomes Division (KOD) via [email protected]
Applicants seeking part-time employment are encouraged to apply for any teaching service position and, if they are the successful candidate, request a reduced time fraction. Such requests will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis and will be subject to the operational requirements of the school.
Victorian government schools are child safe environments. Our schools actively promote the safety and wellbeing of all students, and all school staff are committed to protecting students from abuse or harm in the school environment, in accordance with their legal obligations including child safe standards. All schools have a Child Safety Code of Conduct consistent with the department's exemplar available at:
https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/child-safe-standards/policy
The department's employees commit to upholding the department's Values: Responsiveness, Integrity, Impartiality, Accountability, Respect, Leadership and Human Rights. The department's Values complement each school's own values and underpin the behaviours the community expects of Victorian public sector employees, including those who work in Victorian Government Schools. Information on the department values is available at:
https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/values-department-vps-school-employees/overview
To be eligible for employment, transfer or promotion in the principal or teacher class:
Details of qualification requirements as updated from time to time can be found at Recruitment in Schools.