- Has at minimum, a bachelor's degree in subject area; MA preferred
- Has three+ years of teaching experience in relevant subject area and appropriate grade level division
- Has ability to create and communicate well-organized, meaningful, and creative lesson plans that incorporate teaching strategies in a thoughtful manner to further and maximize student learning
- Demonstrates collaboration, collegiality and organization
- Demonstrates a commitment to lifelong learning
- Embraces the school’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiates.
- Embraces the school’s commitment to student wellness and sustainability
Overarching Expectations - Upholds the mission of the school and acts as a positive ambassador for the school.
- Understands and upholds all policies & procedures outlined in personnel, faculty, & student/parent handbooks.
- Maintains respectful & cooperative interactions with students, parents, teachers, co-workers, & administrators.
- Maintains timely communications with parents, students, administrators, and co-workers.
- Is punctual, has a positive attendance record, and consistently meets deadlines; such deadlines include but are not limited to those pertaining to submission of grades, department deadlines, and deadlines set by other department offices at The Harker School.
- Able to successfully learn, navigate and use Harker’s many internal programs and systems.
- Has strong organizational skills and attention to detail; manages sensitive & confidential information well.
- Maintains a positive attitude, is self-motivated, and can work well independently and in a team environment.
Expectations in the Classroom - Serves as a positive role model for students, taking into account the teacher’s influence on each student’s personal growth, academic ability, and emotional stability.
- Creates a classroom environment of respect and maintains a classroom environment where the social and emotional welfare of the students are protected to the best of a teacher’s abilities.
- Creates a classroom environment that allows a student’s confidence to grow and one where the student is inspired and feels safe enough to think creatively.
- Creates a classroom environment where a culture of learning is fostered, and high expectations are the norm.
- Creates well-organized, meaningful, and creative lesson plans to carry out the curriculum in thoughtful and engaging ways and that incorporate teaching strategies to further maximize student learning.
- Has an excellent grasp of knowledge of subject and content-related pedagogy; such knowledge should be apparent to the students and to a classroom observer.
- Grades students on their ability to achieve the goals set by the teacher and grades efficiently so that students receive helpful and timely feedback.
- Maintains clear oral and written communication with students regarding expectations and classroom performance, as appropriate for the ages one teaches.
- Creates organized, meaningful, and engaging substitute plans in their absence, notifies the division head and department chair in advance of planned absences.
Expectations that Extend Beyond the Classroom - Carries out all duties associated with teaching the classes on a teacher’s given schedule. This includes chaperoning, participating in spirit activities, being available for all office hours/extra help periods, writing reach outs to all families, communicating with families as appropriate, and other duties as needed.
- Attends meetings as directed by the division head or department chair. This includes but is not limited to weekly Wednesday meetings after school.
- Keeps counselors informed of students with significant academic, social, or emotional concerns and maintains open lines of communication with parents/guardians, promptly notifying them when student issues arise.
- Participates in school functions that extend beyond normal school hours but are necessary to maintain the positive community in which we pride ourselves. Such functions include but are not limited to Back to School Night, Parent-Teacher Conferences, Family Picnic, the faculty retreat, Open House, etc.
Speech and Debate Specific Duties: - Work with the Middle School head speech and debate coach to carry out the following duties:
- Foster broad participation in the program and at tournaments. Harker’s vision is that speech and debate are helpful to the growth of students ranging from the very invested in speech and debate to those with less time. All students should feel encouraged and welcome on the team.
- Maintain a robust tournament competition schedule. This includes but is not limited to travel logistics, tournament entry, managing permission forms, and communicating to families about tournament details in a timely manner. This includes regular season tournaments and the middle school NSDA tournament in June. As a sample, the schedule from the previous year can be seen here: https://sites.google.com/staff.harker.org/harkerspeechdebate/tournament-calendars?authuser=0
- Support a robust practice schedule. After school practices are typically held Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays from 3:45 – 5:00 PM.
- Host at least two intramural competitions a semester. These typically involve three preliminary rounds and time for feedback.
- Meet financial responsibilities regarding the speech and debate budget, such as tracking receipts and cost-efficient travel plans.
- Provide support for all of the events in which our students compete (public forum debate, Lincoln-Douglas debate, Congressional debate, and NSDA speech events).
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