Head of Modern Languages Department
The Glasgow Academy
Glasgow City
- Quick apply
- Expired
- Job type:
- Full Time, Permanent
- Start date:
- 01/08/2025
- Apply by:
- 7 March 2025
Job overview
The position
We seek an inspirational leader and gifted practitioner to develop further the standards and work of a very successful department. The objective will be to continue to raise standards of learning, teaching and outcomes, building with sensitivity and flair on the achievements of an already strong team. Please see further details relating the responsibilities of this position on our website here: Vacancies | The Glasgow Academy
The person
You must be passionate about motivating young people, about inspiring excellence, and providing great pastoral care. You will have an enthusiastic "can do, will do" attitude and will instil high standards and high expectations in children, plus the belief that ability is not fixed and that abilities can be developed considerably through sensibly focused endeavour.
You will have the confidence to lead - to shape a vision, and to take the team with you, working collaboratively and inspiring continued growth, reflection and improvement. Some experience of leadership and management would be very welcome but is not a pre-requisite for the right candidate.
You will care deeply about children's success and will be skilled at motivating children and colleagues to work to their full potential. Above all, you will work very hard and effectively for the young people and colleagues in your department.
A willingness to participate in some aspect of the school’s co-curricular programme, Combined Cadet Force (CCF), or Duke of Edinburgh programme is expected of teaching staff.
The Department
The Department consists currently of the Head of Department, with six other teachers. There are also French language specialists in the Prep School, along with a French and a Spanish assistant attached to the Senior School.
French is taught from P1 to S6 at our main Kelvinbridge campus and from P1 at our two sites in Milngavie and Newlands. Pupils sit exams at National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher in both French and Spanish, and National 5 in Mandarin. All pupils study either French or Spanish or both to National 5, with the exception of a few who choose to study only Latin or Mandarin.
The Department runs several highly successful annual trips including to Madrid, Barcelona and Geneva, and have taken pupils to many other French or Spanish speaking locations over recent years.
We pride ourselves in making all our children's learning experience enjoyable, challenging and contemporary, while at the same time producing strong SQA results. To foster a love of languages, we expect the department to run events across the school, and a range of clubs at lunch or after school.
Further information is available on our web site here: Senior School | The Glasgow Academy please select Modern Languages from the subject list.
The Appointment
The appointment is for August 2025 and is a full-time permanent post.
All teachers at The Academy must be registered with the General Teaching Council Scotland.
The Academy Salary Scale, which is currently around 6.7% above the national scale, runs in six unequal increments. Placing on the scale will be according to experience.
The salary includes a competitive allowance for Head of Department responsibilities.
A very competitive defined contribution pension scheme is also available.
The Glasgow Academy is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, and all appointments are subject to membership of the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme
It is a legal requirement that all employees must demonstrate that they are entitled to live and work in the UK. You will be required to produce documentary proof e.g. passport and work permit, where applicable, to demonstrate your eligibility to work if selected for
interview.
The Glasgow Academy is committed to providing equality of opportunity and ensuring that no job applicant receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of age, disability, gender and transgender status, race and ethnicity, religion and belief, marriage or civil partnership status or sexual orientation.
The Glasgow Academy is a War Memorial School with a long history of employing ex-serving personnel, reservists and spouses of serving personnel.
We look favourably on applications from those mentioned above; we understand the extra burdens placed on these individuals and as an organisation are fully committed to supporting them and their families.
The Glasgow Academicals' War Memorial Trust is an educational charity registered in Scotland, Charity No SCO15638
About The Glasgow Academy
About The Glasgow Academy
The Glasgow Academy is an ambitious, warm, welcoming, thriving and forward-thinking fully co-educational HMC independent day school of around 1600 pupils aged 3-18. It is highly popular, growing in a planned way over the last 14 years. It consists of the Senior School, of around 800 pupils of 11-18 years of age, and a Preparatory School (which has three sites and also around 800 children, counting all those in Nursery/Kindergarten).
The school gains excellent SQA exam results, and raising academic results further is the central target of its School Improvement Plan. Our performance in SQA exams is consistently amongst the best at independent schools and, for example, in August 2024 73% of Highers in S5 were awarded a grade A, and 96% of the Highers sat were passed. In August 2024, also achieved our best ever performance at National 5 with a pass rate of 99% ( 86% awarded A grades). In S6, our pass rate is 92% for Advanced Higher with 51% of entries awarded grade A.
Beyond academic achievement we want all of our pupils to thrive and contribute to a rapidly developing modern world and to do that we must ensure they leave The Academy with a socially conscious, innovative and global outlook. Our aim is that we provide our pupils with rich learning experiences that best prepare them for life after The Academy also places value on the importance of sustainable education for future generations. Through further development of our local, national and global partnerships our aim is that we have a greater impact on lives within and out with The Academy community.
The school's latest £15 million new building won Best Building in Scotland 2016, the UK's richest architectural prize. The school has invested around £27 million in its facilities over the last decade or so and continues to invest heavily and strategically.
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