Job title: Secondary English Language and Literature teacher
Teaching group: Year 7, 8 and 9.
Hours of work: One day a week8:30am to 2pm
Subject areas: English Language and Literature.
Start date: 4/09/23
"But, above all it is the education of adolescents that is important, because adolescence is the time when the child enters on the state of adulthood and becomes a member of society."
(Maria Montessori, From Childhood to Adolescence, p. 60)
We are seeking an exceptional secondary school teacher to join our team at Cardiff Montessori High. Become part of a new and exciting educational provision.
About Cardiff Montessori High School
Cardiff Montessori High is made up of 40 students- approximately 10 students per year group. Year 8, 9, 10 and 11 all form the adolescent community. Year 7 students also attend Cardiff Montessori High on occasion but will have the majority of their lessons in the upper elementary class (they are referred to as upper elementary seniors).
Montessori recognized that that are 4 stages (often referred to as planes) of development. The first plane (0-6 years) is one of self construction, where the child is saying to us "help me to do it myself". The second plane (6-12 years) is the one in which moral reasoning is developing and the child is asking us to "help me to think for myself". The third plane child (12-18 years), is now undergoing social construction. Much like the first plane child they want to do things for themselves but this time what they seek can be articulated as "help us to do it for ourselves". Unlike the first plane child they now want to do things with their peers and to achieve their aims as a collective.
In the 6-12 years they have learnt through the Montessori elementary program how society works and now they need to experience it. Secondary is where they take the 12 years of construction and experience they have had and enter with it into the next phase, leaving childhood behind as the birth of the adult begins.
Montessori recognizes that this is a time of fragility as great changes in the physical body as well as mental and cognitive functions are taking place. They need independence from the family unit, while still requiring support from an adult guide who understands and loves teenagers. They need experiential learning, to be able to design projects and run enterprises instead of rigid lessons. They must learn how to work as part of a group and discover what are their unique capabilities and how they can contribute to their community and the world around them.
Students are expected to complete a minimum of 5 GCSEs while at Cardiff Montessori High but are encouraged to complete 8-10.
The role of the teacher
The teacher is responsible for delivering lessons during the morning work cycle. They have one morning a week (3.5hrs) allocated to English Language and 1 hour in the afternoon work cycle allocated to English Literature.. During these time they provide small group lessons to students. Group lessons are usually done with 5-6 students. When students are not in group lessons they are expected to be doing follow up independent work.
The successful candidate must have a sense of humour and love for this stage of human development. Recognising the deep transition the teenagers are undergoing, they provide students with the support and guidance needed to navigate this turbulent time. The teacher develops an open and welcoming relationship with students while ensuring firm boundaries of acceptable behaviours and work expectations are set. They work closely with the High school guide who oversees the year 8-11 students and is on hand to help direct students with follow up studies.
Montessori Secondary is different to mainstream teaching and we encourage interested applicants to visit the school for an informal discussion about the role with the headteacher.
As part of their secondary education, students will be responsible for setting up and running their own business. The teacher delivers business studies lessons to aid this. The conception and running of the business is done by the students.
Hours of work and Salary
5.5 hrs a week as above.
Competitive pay offered in line with upper pay range of teacher pay scale in Wales depending on experience.
Cardiff Montessori is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.We particularly welcome applications from under represented groups including ethnicity, gender, transgender, age, disability, sexual orientation or religion.
