Teacher of Psychology or Sociology

We are currently looking to appoint an experienced and inspiring Teacher of Social Sciences, specialising in either Psychology or Sociology. You will join a dedicated team of teachers and staff supporting our excellent students. If you are looking for an opportunity to grow, inspire and develop, this may be the role for you.

The successful candidate will:

• Hold QTS (or equivalent) and a relevant undergraduate degree
• Have successful teaching experience at secondary level (can be teaching practice), ideally including experience in multi‑ethnic urban schools and of working in an 11‑18 school
• Understand the theory and practice of effective teaching and learning
• Understand the importance of high expectations and equality of access for all students, and of being a tutor
• Have knowledge of National Curriculum requirements at KS3 and KS4, and of writing lesson plans, developing resources and assessing students’ work
• Be able to work as part of a team and to develop and maintain positive relationships with all staff
• Have a good level of ICT skills, ideally including innovative use of interactive white boards
• Be able to create a motivating and safe learning environment for all students
• Be able to communicate positively with parents, carers and other external agencies where necessary
• Have good written and spoken communication skills
• Be able to lead and manage their own work effectively
• Have excellent time management skills
• Be able to motivate students and raise their aspirations through a range of strategies

At Harris Academy Merton we promote the ethos ‘Achievement is Success’ and believe every student has the right to the highest standard of education so that they can achieve their aspirations. Our aim is to give every student an enjoyable and holistic educational experience that develops them into responsible, articulate, and successful young people. We combine traditional values of strong discipline, good manners, respect, and pride in appearance with contemporary best practice in teaching and technology. With these core values embedded, we develop our students into confident and capable individuals who desire to excel academically and personally now and in the future.

Our people are at the heart of our success. We have developed a strong culture of collaboration and best practice, with professional development and career planning at its centre. We invest in our staff with support, coaching, mentoring, and a wide range of top‑quality training programmes delivered at every level. In addition to opportunities for career development and progression, we also offer a competitive rewards and benefits package which includes our Harris Allowance for teachers on MPS/UPS, a Performance and Loyalty Bonus, a generous Pension Scheme with employer contributions, a Wellbeing Cash Plan and many other benefits.

The purpose of your role will be:

• To implement and deliver an appropriately broad, balanced, relevant and differentiated curriculum for students and to support a designated curriculum area as appropriate.
• To monitor and support the overall progress and development of students as a teacher/form tutor.
• To facilitate and encourage a learning experience which provides students with the opportunity to achieve their individual potential.
• To contribute to raising standards of student attainment.
• To share and support the academy’s responsibility to provide and monitor opportunities for personal and academic growth.

Your main areas of responsibility will fall under the areas of:

• Operational and strategic planning (including lesson planning, developing resources and syllabuses, and contributing to the departmental plan).
• Curriculum planning.
• Staff development (including continuing professional development and engaging fully in the Performance Management Review process).
• Quality assurance (including contributing to the process of monitoring and evaluating the subject area).
• Management of information (including maintaining appropriate records and tracking student progress).
• Communications with students, parents and other stakeholders.
• Pastoral system (including being a form tutor to a selected group of students).
• Teaching, ensuring a high quality learning experience for students.

The Harris Federation and all our academies are committed to ensuring the highest levels of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and we expect all our staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All offers of employment are subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, references, an online search, and, where applicable, a prohibition from teaching check will be completed.