Head of Creative Technology

Details of the Role

Head of Creative Technology 

Teaching Design Technology from Year 7 to A level

Full-time, up to a maximum of 33 lessons, Monday to Saturday morning

Reporting to the Deputy Head

Start date: September 2022

 

The Department 

The Design Technology department has just undergone a major refurbishment with investment of nearly £500,000 into its building and facilities. As part of that, it has been rebranded from being the Design Technology Centre to the Centre for Creative Technology. The intention is to underline the fact that robotics, coding, app development and other forms of modern technology are also represented there and will become central to what we do.

The department is linked to the Art department and the two have traditionally close ties. The intention is now to see these develop further, especially at A level, where the boundaries between art and technology are ever thinner.

Downstairs the department has a large space for physical work. CAD/CAM facilities are hosted at one end, with more traditional facilities for working in wood, metal and polymers, including a specific area for welding and forge work. 

Upstairs there are three large classrooms, two of which can be joined into one very large flexible space to enable activities as varied as green screen media work through to robotics.

 All pupils at Culford have laptops and blended learning using digital media is a strong feature of what we do. Culford uses iSAMS and the Google Suite of Applications, including Google Classroom, Google Meet, Google Drive and Google Sheets. Whilst experience in the use of these products would be advantageous, full training will be given as necessary to the successful candidate.

The department has a generous budget and provides all necessary resources. Teachers wishing for specific resources are encouraged to apply for them to develop our educational offer further.

 At GCSE level Design Technology is currently studied by approximately 40 pupils at GCSE. At A-Level we teach 1 set in each year group and top students often apply to read subjects such as Mechanical and Electrical Engineering and Product Design at university. The department follows the OCR Product Design specification for GCSE and A-Level.

The department has a strong tradition of successful results at both GCSE and A-Level and is now ambitious to be a central part of the wider academic life at Culford.

The Role

This is a moment of real change for creative art and creative technology at Culford and we are looking for a dynamic leader who is academically ambitious for his or her pupils. The new head of creative technology will wish to drive his or her department forward, increasing uptake of the subject, improving results further and offering a wider range of relevant skills to pupils through the curriculum. This is an exciting opportunity for the right candidate to take ownership of the department and create a lasting legacy.

Culford believes in professional and personal development and will seek to support the successful candidate in all areas. We are a member of the Teachers’ Development Trust and seek to offer a wide range of professional development opportunities to all staff. We aim to ensure that our pupils are receiving the best possible experience in the classroom, while our staff are supported in developing their careers.

Teaching in the Senior School at Culford was judged as Excellent in our last ISI inspection (2020). We value dynamism and risk-taking, and colleagues are given freedom to teach creatively in ways that inspire pupils.

 

The successful candidate will: 

• Lead colleagues in the department, modelling our values and ambitions

• Be an ambassador for the creative arts and technologies within the school

• Lead and develop the academic life of the department through curriculum design

• Lead and develop the wider life of the department by ensuring it provides opportunities for enrichment beyond the curriculum to all pupils.

• Teach pupils of a range of ability, from Fourth Form (Year 9) to A Level

• Care for a tutor group of around 10 pupils

 

Person Specification

The ideal candidate will be:

• Experienced at teaching Design Technology from KS3 to A level.

• Experienced at teaching the AQA Specification

• Experienced at teaching a range of abilities, including different educational needs

• Experienced at supporting pupils pastorally

 

More importantly, we are looking to appoint a colleague who will:

• Model our values of flexibility, innovation, dynamism and resilience

• Be passionate about teaching and take a collaborative and reflective approach to it

• Be keen to engage with educational research to inform their teaching practice further

• Be adept at using technology to support learning

• Be excited by blended learning and the opportunities it offers

• Promote pleasurable and successful learning for all pupils

• Demonstrate excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Have a firm commitment to safeguarding children and a good knowledge of policy

• Be supportive of the aims and ethos of an independent boarding school

• Deal confidently with pupils, staff and parents, showing natural empathy

• Work under pressure and meet deadlines

More information can be found at 

https://www.culford.co.uk/about-us/work-for-us