Work Type: Ongoing - Full-time
Salary: Salary not specified
Grade: Learning Specialist - Range 3
Occupation: Learning specialist
Location: Melbourne - Western suburbs
Reference: 1495711
Welcoming families through our gates since its establishment in 2004, Parkwood Green Primary School has proudly built a strong reputation within the community. Located in the suburb of Hillside - part of the outer growth corridor of Western Metropolitan Melbourne. We are a large multicultural school with 495 students, who love to celebrate the diversity and uniqueness of our students and staff. From Harmony Day to designing our own Indigenous Garden, and everything in between, culture and community is important to us.
We are constantly reinforcing and strengthening our whole-school approach to the teaching of literacy, numeracy and STEM. This commitment is emphasised with the introduction of the PMSS initiative in science, thus enhancing and demonstrating the ongoing commitment of all staff to develop their professional teaching and learning skills to the highest level. Students are supported by our dedicated teachers and wellbeing team to develop and foster life-long learners to reach their full potential.
Inspiring students to be active participants in their learning, we encourage and promote student voice and agency. Inclusiveness with our students includes ILP's, where collaboration between staff, parents, and students achieve appropriate learning outcomes. Our teachers strive to meet the needs and strengths of students through differentiation and the use of 21st century learning.
Families form an integral part of the learning experience through our strong volunteer base and allow us to provide valued and necessary programs. Our successful Kitchen Garden Program is led by an Education Support staff member and is supported by numerous volunteers.
We embrace our families to celebrate the learning accomplishments of all students. Special Persons Day, Footy Day, Book Week, Science Week, our annual Christmas Concert and Art Show are just some of the events our families are able to attend and come together to unite our diverse and inclusive community. Creating a positive learning environment that empowers and supports students will encourage a sense of belonging and build a strong school community at Parkwood Green.
At the end of each school assembly we always conclude with "Look after one another".
Learning Specialist do not have a classroom allocation, the focus will be on planning and coaching within teams.
Learning Specialist will oversee Numeracy and will lead/oversee the planning and delivery of professional learning across the whole school. The successful applicant will also lead the Year 3-6 teams. This position may have a tutoring component.
A specific focus and our new School Strategic Plan is to optimise the learning growth of every student and empower students to be resilient and engaged learners and leaders.
Future Directions
Goal 1: Optimise the learning growth of every student.
Key improvement strategies
1. Enhance teacher capability to use research informed quality teaching strategies
· GRR
· Explicit teaching
· teacher content knowledge
· coaching, observation and feedback
· build teacher content knowledge
· consistency and continuity of practice across the school
2. Optimise the tiered response to teaching and learning
· tiered structures, systems and resourcing
· rich and open learning, use of mixed ability groupings and collaborative learning
· student feedback
3. Strengthen the use of assessment practices
· use data and evidence to monitor impact
· responsive and differentiate teaching at student point of need
· formative assessment
· strengthen the alignment between assessment, curriculum and instruction
4. Strengthen staff collaborative structures and processes
· team teaching
· collaborative planning
· PLC
· use of evidence and data (formative assessment) to make decision and monitor impact
· adult voice and agency
Goal 2: Empower students to be resilient and engaged learners and leaders
Key improvement strategies
1. Affirm, communicate and enact the shared vision for Parkwood Green PS
2. Enhance staff capability to engage students in learning tasks that are rich and purposeful
· matching curriculum, assessment, pedagogy
· tap into student passions and interests
· real - life connections
3. Expand the toolkit of staff to enhance learner resilience
· staff and students
· staying the course with learning, accept the challenge
· challenge, higher order thinking, cognitive load
4. Strengthen collaboration amongst students, staff and families to empower learners
· communication,
· giving students the language to talk about themselves as learners
· goal setting
· student feedback
SC1 Demonstrated expert knowledge of the relevant curriculum. Demonstrated ability to model exemplary teaching practice, including the teaching of literacy and numeracy skills across the curriculum, and implement school priorities.
SC2 Demonstrated expertise in the implementation and modelling of high impact teaching strategies that respond to student learning needs. Demonstrated ability to support teachers to evaluate the impact of learning and teaching programs on student learning growth
SC3 Demonstrated exemplary ability to model the monitoring and assessment of student learning. Demonstrated ability to support others in using data to inform teaching practice and to provide feedback on student learning growth and achievement to students and parents.
SC4 Demonstrated exemplary interpersonal and communication skills. Demonstrated ability to engage in collaborative relationships with students, colleagues, parents and the broader school community to support student learning, agency, wellbeing and engagement.
SC5 Demonstrated ability to model behaviours and attitudes consistent with Department values. Demonstrated ability to support others to reflect on their practice and facilitate school-based professional learning.
Learning Specialists will be highly skilled classroom practitioners who continue to spend the majority of their time in the classroom delivering high-quality teaching and learning and have a range of responsibilities related to their expertise, including teaching demonstration lessons, observing and providing feedback to other teachers and facilitating school-based professional learning. Learning Specialists are expected to have deep knowledge and expertise in high quality teaching and learning in delivering improved achievement, engagement and wellbeing for students. The role of the Learning Specialist will be to model excellence in teaching and learning through demonstration lessons and, mentoring and coaching teachers in improving the skill, knowledge and effectiveness of the teaching workforce.
The Learning Specialist role is aimed at building excellence in teaching and learning within the Teaching Service.
In recognition of the importance of exemplary practice for improved student learning outcomes, the key roles of the Learning Specialists may include but are 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.
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.
The Department of Education is committed to the principles of equal opportunity, and diversity and inclusion for all. We value diversity and inclusion in all forms - gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQ+, 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 family friendly, supportive, safe and harassment free workplaces is essential to high performance and promotes flexible work, diversity and safety across all schools and Department workplaces. It is our policy to provide reasonable adjustments for persons with a disability (see Workplace adjustment guidelines).
Additional support and advice on the recruitment process is available to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islanders from the Koorie Outcomes Division (KOD) via [email protected]
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.