English Literature Teacher

Virtual School Victoria is the state’s leading virtual school, offering over 150 online courses to students from Prep through to Year 12. With an annual enrolment in excess of 4500 students more students enrol with Virtual School Victoria than any other school in Victoria.

Approximately 2000 students are enrolled full time, while around 2500 students, most in years 11 and 12, complete subjects with us while based in other schools.

The Virtual School Victoria student cohort is both diverse and unique. We provide education to:

• school-based students who do not have access to the courses they need in their own school
• children and young people with chronic physical and mental health circumstances that make it difficult for them to attend mainstream schooling
• children and young people involved elite level sports and performing arts
• children and young people who are travelling within Victoria, around Australia or overseas
• young adults wishing to complete their education in a way that they find engaging
  rural and regional children and young people who, due to distance, cannot attend a local school.
• rural and regional children and young people who, due to distance, cannot attend a local school.

In addition to offering a host of teaching and learning courses approved by the VCAA, our specialist teachers provide students with individualised learning and support. Virtual School Victoria teachers are dedicated to building the confidence and resilience of each and every student. Like any school, our teachers regularly support and interact with students, but they do so in a different way to most schools: they do so virtually.

A Learning Advisor role is undertaken by all teachers as a core element of their teaching position at the Virtual School Victoria. Building positive relationships with students and their support network in overall aim of the role is to connect with and encourage students to belong to the school community in order to optimise their student engagement, learning and wellbeing outcomes. The Learning Advisor role also involves team teaching the Social & Emotional Learning (SEL) program to students in Year 7 to Year 10.    

In 2016 Virtual School Victoria launched Australia’s first Prep to Year 12 pedagogical model for virtual learning, strengthening our role as a system leader and building on our goal of consistently providing high-quality and targeted teacher practice. Instantaneous, real-time, interactive learning is a key to teaching at Virtual School Victoria. Teachers develop engaging learning materials and utilise our online Learning Management System to create real time and asynchronous collaborative teaching and learning opportunities for students.

Virtual School Victoria students learn by taking part in online collaborative and interactive activities, communicating and interacting with other students and by receiving personalised support and feedback from their teachers. Students participate in active learning targeted to their needs. Teachers use purposeful ongoing assessment strategies to ensure continuous student progress. Data forms an important component in this process and guides personalisation and changes to student learning programs.

Virtual School Victoria’s expertise in virtual learning along with our school values of growth, empathy, respect and collaboration, have made us a school of choice for many students and the Victorian families who enrol their children with us annually.

Our vision is to see Virtual School Victoria as a system leader in online, virtual and blended learning: sharing our knowledge and expertise, and leading system conversations around online learning. Virtual School Victoria wants to lead a community of practice that will evolve and strengthen online learning in Victoria, and positively influence and support other schools to develop in this space.

Currently Virtual School Victoria is entering the third implementation year of the Government’s Expanding the VCE into Rural and Regional Victoria Initiative. The initiative will see VSV deliver all the VCAA VCE Studies Units 1 – 4 by 2023. Virtual School Victoria is responsible for the development and delivery of the Victorian High Ability Program.

Virtual School Victoria staff work mostly in teams in a rostered hybrid of remote and onsite work. As such it is important that they all demonstrate effective teamwork. In particular, staff must be collaborative, cooperative and recognise the value of others’ contributions with a view to negotiating the best outcomes for teams, students and Virtual School Victoria as a whole. Leaders in the school must be able to build and develop these teams.

Selection Criteria

1. Content of teaching and learning
   1. Demonstrated high level knowledge of the relevant key learning area(s) and the way students learn, especially via flexible online learning.
   2. Demonstrated capacity to respond at the school level to emerging educational needs and priorities.
2. Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning
   1. Demonstrated high level knowledge of the concepts and structures of effective online instruction and the ability to create learning experiences to enable student success.
   2. Demonstrated high level understanding of and experience in the use a range of technologies, both existing and emerging, that effectively support learning and engagement in an online environment.
   3. Demonstrated capacity to reflect critically upon professional practice and learning to continually improve the quality of teaching.
3. Assessment, provision of feedback and reporting on student learning.
   1. Demonstrated high level practice in the provision of frequent, ongoing assessment and monitoring of student progress.
   2. Demonstrated high level competency in using data from assessments and other sources to modify content and guide student learning.
4. Creation and maintenance of supportive and safe learning environments
   1. Demonstrated high level competency in the creation and management of a learning environment that supports and engages learners.
   2. Demonstrated high level experience in modelling, guiding and encouraging children and young people in the legal, ethical and safe behaviour related to technology use.
5. Professional Expectations
   1. Demonstrated high level experience in meeting the diversity of student learning and social/emotional needs both in the classroom and through online learning.
   2. Demonstrated high level communication and interpersonal skills when relating to students, parents, supervisors and other teachers.
   3. Demonstrated capacity to build and sustain effective relationships with students and parents

Role

The classroom teacher classification comprises two salary ranges- range 1 and range 2. The primary focus of the classroom teacher is on the planning, preparation and teaching of programs to achieve specific student outcomes.

The classroom teacher engages in critical reflection and inquiry in order to improve knowledge and skills to effectively engage students and improve their learning.

As the classroom teacher gains experience his or her contribution to the school program beyond the classroom increases.

All classroom teachers may be required to undertake other duties in addition to their rostered teaching duties provided the responsibility is appropriate to the salary range, qualifications, training and experience of the teacher.

Classroom teacher Range 2

Range 2 classroom teachers play a significant role in assisting the school to improve student performance and educational outcomes determined by the school strategic plan and state-wide priorities and contributing to the development and implementation of school policies and priorities.

A critical component of this work will focus on increasing the knowledge base of staff within their school about student learning and high quality instruction to assist their school to define quality teacher practice.

Range 2 classroom teachers will be expected to:

• Have the content knowledge and pedagogical practice to meet the diverse needs of all students
• Model exemplary classroom practice and mentor/coach other teachers in the school to engage in critical reflection of their practice and to support staff to expand their capacity
• Provide expert advice about the content, processes and strategies that will shape individual and school professional learning
• Supervise and train one or more student teachers
• Assist staff to use student data to inform teaching approaches that enable targets related to improving student learning outcomes to be achieved.

Classroom teacher Range 1

The primary focus of the range 1 classroom teacher is on further developing skills and competencies to become an effective classroom practitioner with structured support and guidance from teachers at higher levels and the planning, preparation and teaching of programs to achieve specific student outcomes.

These teachers teach a range of students/classes and are accountable for the effective delivery of their programs.

Range 1 classroom teachers are skilled teachers who operate under general direction within clear guidelines following established work practices and documented priorities and may have responsibility for the supervision and training of one or more student teachers.

At range 1, teachers participate in the development of school policies and programs and assist in the implementation of school priorities.

The focus of a range 1 classroom teacher is on classroom management, subject content and teaching practice. New entrants to the teaching profession in their initial teaching years receive structured support, mentoring and guidance from teachers at higher levels.

Under guidance, new entrants to the teaching profession will plan and teach student groups in one or more subjects and are expected to participate in induction programs and other professional learning activities that are designed to ensure the integration of curriculum, assessment and pedagogy across the school.

Teachers at range 1 are responsible for teaching their own classes and may also assist and participate in policy development, project teams and the organisation of co-curricula activities.

Responsibilities
The role of classroom teacher may include but is not limited to:

• Direct teaching of groups of students and individual students;
• Contributing to the development, implementation and evaluation of a curriculum area or other curriculum program within the school;
• Undertaking other classroom teaching related and organisational duties as determined by the School Principal;
• Participating in activities such as parent/teacher meetings; staff meetings; camps and excursions;
• Undertaking other non-teaching supervisory duties.

Who May Apply

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.