Details
Posted: 06-Jun-22
Location: Studio City, California
Type: Full Time
Categories:
Science
HIGH SCHOOL SCIENCE TEACHER
Bridges Academy, the premier school for gifted students with learning differences, is looking for a High School Science Teacher. We educate a unique population of students with challenging learning differences and unique personalities, who are amazingly bright, outside-the box-thinkers, capable of developing expertise at a very young age in any number of fields, from robotics to religion, string theory to Sanskrit, politics to poetry. We refer to these students as twice-exceptional or 2e.
Our strengths-based approach leverages students’ gifts, talents, and areas of interest to cultivate their academic, cognitive, and social-emotional skills.We also prioritize exploration, inter and transdisciplinary learning activities, and student agency. The Bridges team approach allows us to explore the many internal and external variables that impact the educational experience of students. Children share many similarities and demonstrate profound differences. We celebrate and honor their complexity and design environments, programs, and curriculum to both challenge and support their journey. The school prepares students for the 21st century with many opportunities, including university studies, and artistic and entrepreneurial endeavors.
Faculty are key to successful 2e students and to a successful school. Bridges teachers are experts in their field and have a broad worldview with significant exposure to human diversity. They have a wealth of rich life experiences (hobbies and interests), as well as an open-minded personality and even temperament. We are looking for smart, articulate teachers who have a passion and love for their subject, teaching pedagogy, and learning theory and processes. The ideal candidates will appreciate and thrive in a 2e educational environment and enjoy being a part of a team charged with building a positive, energetic, learning dynamic.
Classes are typically limited to 9 students. A typical, full time teaching schedule includes some combination of: lead teaching in core courses, electives, advisory, and team teaching with other faculty in a supporting role, with prep periods and lunch built into the schedule.
Description of preferred and required preparation
- Bachelor’s degree in content area, or related to the teaching field.
- Master’s degree preferred for position in grades 7-12.
- Previous teaching experience, with a progressive, constructivist orientation.
- Experience with project and problem based learning.
- Strong communication skills, both oral and written.
- Ability to comfortably work in a team environment.
- An understanding of the needs of neurodiverse students. Training will be provided.
- The ability to create new, stimulating activities.
- A willingness to participate in a community that looks for the strengths in all students rather than their deficits.
- The ability and commitment to celebrate the many differences of our community
Description of the job
- Create learner profiles and dynamic lesson plans aligned with division themes and goals.
- Embed activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, and model positive social interactions at all times.
- Differentiate lessons when needed to give all students access to the curriculum.
- Evaluate student performance on tasks, using different methods, such as: observation; evaluation of productivity, resilience, and perseverance; instinct; and other practices.
- Deliver high-quality, engaging instruction in the form of discussion, direct teaching, demonstrations, and independent practice.
- Collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of novel and engaging project-based-learning curricula.
- Provide a positive environment in which students are encouraged to be actively engaged in the learning process.
- Maintain a safe, orderly, and supportive classroom by modeling expected behavior and standards, promoting positive interactions, and quickly addressing negative behaviors following the school discipline plan.
- Periodically communicate with parents regarding student progress, potential, and behavior through phone calls, emails, and parent/teacher conferences.
- Confer with parents or guardians, teachers, counselors, and administrators to develop an in-depth knowledge of students' learning profiles.
- Prepare students for later grades by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
- Guide and counsel students to explore interests within and outside of the regular curriculum.
- Supervise, evaluate, and plan assignments for interns and volunteers.
- Plan and supervise class projects, field trips, visits by guest speakers or other experiential activities, and guide students in learning from those activities.
- Attend staff meetings and serve on committees, as required.
- Perform administrative duties, such as assisting in hall and cafeteria monitoring, and carpool loading and unloading.
- Sponsor extracurricular activities, clubs, student organizations, and academic contests on occasion.
- Improve skills and knowledge in teaching by regularly taking classes, attending workshops, and discovering new methods of delivering exciting content to students.