Ark Greenwich Free School
Head of Geography
Location: Ark Greenwich Free School
Salary: Ark MPS/UPS + TLR
Contract: Permanent
Start date: January 2025
Closing date: Monday 23rd September 2024 at 9am
About the role:
Objectives:
● To take a lead role in the maintenance of a transformational school community by developing and leading a rigorous and evidence-based curriculum which enables the highest level of scholar progress and attainment at KS3 and within GCSE Geography.
● To ensure the Geography curriculum is ‘future-proof’ and remain abreast of the significant changes in the National Curriculum and GCSE and A-Level Examinations and aligning Geography at AGFS with these new curriculum requirements, developing a coherent KS3-5 curriculum pathway that is an example of best practice for others.
● To model what it takes to be an outstanding teacher and subject leader and thus act as an example to all middle leaders.
● To demonstrate the highest standards of professionalism at all times.
● Lead and manage a professional community of subject teachers to ensure the highest scholar attainment and progress.
● Monitoring and accountability for the progress and attainment of scholars in Geography.
● To undertake procedures for inducting and mentoring NQTs, Teach Firsts, GTPs etc into the department where applicable.
● Contribute to the delivery of a high quality training program for teaching and learning, focusing on your areas of particular expertise.
● To act as a coach or mentor for other teachers as required.
● Modelling for all staff exemplary practice and establishing a culture of high expectations within your department.
● Uphold all school policies and procedures.
● Maintain and develop strong links with external organisations and Ark Geography Lead Network to promote exceptional achievement.
Leadership of Geography
● Design a broad, engaging and challenging curriculum that enables all scholars to enjoy and achieve at the highest level, supported by detailed schemes of work, to ensure consistency and coherence across all Geography lessons.
● Establish a clear department development plan and monitor and evaluate its delivery and effectiveness.
● Analyse ongoing scholar progress data and act accordingly to refine learning plans in order to close any gaps and address misconceptions.
● Facilitate rigorous and ongoing assessment as set out in the school assessment policy and provide QLA/PLC level information for scholars who will be expected to supplement in class learning with independent study.
● Meet with the Headteacher and line manager regularly for termly department reviews.
● Welcome stakeholders into your lessons and be prepared to discuss current and best practice in your areas of responsibility.
● Promote an open door policy.
● Teach and model the delivery of engaging and effective lessons that motivate, inspire and improve scholar attainment.
● Monitor the effectiveness of teaching and learning and planning processes within your department.
● Support the professional development of teachers and their training where appropriate.
● Follow the school structure for mentoring, coaching and monitoring staff (including supervision of NQT’s and beginner teachers).
● Manage the deployment of department resources effectively and efficiently.
● Monitor the progress of all scholars and sub-groups of scholars with staff and plan appropriate support / interventions to remedy slow progress.
● Produce, in line with the school self-evaluation cycle, Department Improvement Plans and Data Analyses to the highest possible standard, and ensure all members of your department engage with these where applicable.
● Liaise with all appropriate personnel regarding support for scholar progress.
Curriculum and Assessment Design
As a teacher:
● Implement the school approach to marking and feedback to inform planning, develop learning and evaluate scholars’ progress.
● Provide developmental oral and written feedback to help scholars reflect upon and improve their work.
● Make effective and regular use of the school’s assessment criteria and reporting procedures to inform learning.
● Set targets for raising scholar attainment in the context of whole school targets and work towards their achievement.
● Maintain regular records of scholars’ attainment and progress.
● Prepare and present informative written and verbal reports on scholars’ progress to parents in line with AGFS policies.
● Attend parents’ evenings, Open Evenings and school events as required.
● Assess how well learning objectives have been achieved and use this assessment and school provided data on a regular basis for future teaching and target-setting, as well as implementing strategies to address scholar underachievement.
● Liaise with external agencies about individual scholars as required.
● Facilitate the completion of agreed assessments as required.
As a Head of Department:
● Review and develop the curriculum on an on-going basis, taking into account the findings from monitoring and self-evaluation, and ensure all staff have short and medium term plans to deliver highly effective lessons.
● Set regular, measurable and significant assessments for scholars.
● Ensure all scholar data is understood and interpreted by staff and scholars and used to modify lesson planning.
● Analyse and interpret data on scholars’ achievement in your subject, ensure scholar performance data is used effectively and is in line with departmental targets.
● Review with teachers their assessments of progress for classes and quality-assure such assessments through moderation, sampling and review.
● Oversee the setting of scholars into appropriate ability groups and review half-termly.
● Ensure procedures for both internal and external exams are carried out according to the School’s procedures and the Boards’ regulations as appropriate.
● Have a deep understanding of the exam specification and JCQ guidelines.
● Ensure the maintenance of accurate and up-to-date information on the management information system meeting all associated deadlines.
● Disseminate and make use of analysis and evaluate performance data provided.
● Identify and take appropriate action on issues arising from data, systems and reports; setting deadlines where necessary and reviewing progress on the action taken.
● Oversee the production of reports on scholar progress in line with AGFS policies.
● Produce reports on examination performance, including the use of value-added data.
● Oversee your subject’s collection of data.
● Provide the Senior Leadership Team with relevant information relating to the subject areas’ performance and development as requested.
● Actively monitor, and respond to, curriculum developments and initiatives in your subject at national, regional and local level.
View the full job description and person specification here
How is Ark Greenwich different?
• We are part of the Ark family of schools and benefit accordingly from outstanding networking and career opportunities and first-class CPD.
• Staff wellbeing is one of our main priorities. We provide breakfast for staff each morning, lunch for early careers staff and have a 6pm/weekend work-related communication cut off. We do not do knee jerk reactions, fads or last-minute deadlines. Our systems and processes for communication, marking and feedback and assessment are streamlined and the approaches we take are research led and based on our local context. We offer a WFH day to HoDs for curriculum design and also offer external marking of scripts to support workload. Our full approach to staff wellbeing/workload can be found here.
• This is a small school model (600 scholars aged 11-16) because we believe that our close-knit family community provides the optimum conditions for success.
• Scholar behaviour is exceptional with clearly defined and embedded routines. This means our teachers can focus their time on the things that matter – planning and delivering brilliant lessons for our scholars.
• This is a strict no excuses, no mobile phone school. Phones are not permitted onsite at all. Scholars wear business dress to prepare them for a professional career.
• Our curriculum is traditional and academic, and we do not take shortcuts to seek to boost our position in school league tables – we do not, for example, offer equivalencies such as Btecs or Vcerts. >90% Ebacc entry rate.
• We put high-quality teaching at the heart of what we do. We are committed to providing staff with weekly high-quality training. We run coaching for staff who want to see rapid progress in their discipline. Live coaching and current best practice in the field of education is central to our approach.
• We don’t grade individual lessons or ask for lesson plans but we do place a primacy on curriculum design, independent learning and formative assessment.
• Our scholars enjoy a compulsory co-curricular program on a Wednesday afternoon which includes a strong focus on community volunteering and we facilitate 12 drop-down days per academic year ensuring scholars benefit from a range of life-enriching experiences.
If you are ready to add further value to our high performing Geography department and to work alongside a brilliant school leadership team, then you will find this job extremely rewarding.
Alignment with the school’s vision, values and approach to education is essential.
Learn more about our school and community at https://arkgreenwichfreeschool.org/.
We offer:
· Salaries 2.5% higher than main pay scale.
· Twice as many training days as standard.
· Generous pension scheme.
· Access to Ark rewards – a scheme offering savings from over 3,000 major retailers
· Interest-free loans – up to £5,000 available for season ticket or to buy a bicycle.
· Gym discounts – offering up to 40%.
· Access to Employee Assistance Programme – providing free, confidential counselling, legal advice and a range of different support.
Click here to find out more about the benefits we offer.
How to apply:
Please visit this website and submit your application. Please note we will be reviewing applications on an on-going basis and this advert may close earlier than advertised depending on the level of response. Early application is strongly advised.
If you wish to discuss this opportunity or for any questions, please contact Leann Cripps at lcripps@arkgreenwich.org.
For any technical issues, please contact our system support team by clicking the chat function on the bottom right of the advert screen.
Ark is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people in its academies. In order to meet this responsibility, its academies follow a rigorous selection process to discourage and screen out unsuitable applicants.
Ark requires all employees to undertake an enhanced DBS check. You are required, before appointment, to disclose any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975. Non-disclosure may lead to termination of employment. However, disclosure of a criminal background will not necessarily debar you from employment - this will depend upon the nature of the offence(s) and when they occurred. To read more about Ark’s safer recruitment process, please click this link.