Needham Public Schools is an inclusive, dynamic, and multicultural community seeking an energetic, skilled, and warm .5 FTE 6th Grade English Learner (EL) Teacher to join our team. This position is at our 6th grade school, High Rock Middle School. To enhance our goals of supporting every child, Needham Public Schools seeks candidates with diverse backgrounds and experiences. 

About Needham Public Schools (NPS): NPS has a deep commitment to the success of our diverse students and families and to the professional accomplishments of its educators. Needham devotes itself to cultural proficiency, equity, and community collaboration to fulfill the vision of the Portrait of a Needham Graduate. This METCO district comprises 5 elementary schools, 2 middle schools, and 1 nationally-ranked high school serving approximately 5,500 students. NPS is committed to addressing equity in the district by focusing on improving academic performance for historically marginalized students and ensuring our schools are safe for every child and free of bias, bullying, and hurtful acts that demean and diminish. Read more about our equity work here. 

Position: .5 FTE 6th Grade English Language Learner (EL) Teacher

Location: High Rock School

Schedule: 2024-2025 School Year

Salary: Per Teachers Contract

To Start: August 26, 2024 (plus 2 days of mentoring prior to start date)

Job Responsibilities:

• Assesses English proficiency of incoming students to determine EL eligibility.
• Delivers direct instruction aligned with the WIDA standards to students who have been identified as English language learners.
• Collaborates with EL colleagues to develop and revise EL units and lessons
• Communicates regularly with parents of students in order to assist in the development of language acquisition and academic advancement.
• Facilitates frequent and effective home-school communication including conferences; written communication; other meetings/events; and administrative support for interpreting, translating, etc.
• Completes progress reports and grades for EL students.
• Develops, implements, and consistently monitors language proficiency goals and objectives for EL students and keeps parents informed about student progress in their requested language.
• Provides leadership within the school with respect to parent communication 
• Consults with and assists classroom teachers of EL students to scaffold lessons, assignments, and assessments as appropriate for individual students.
• Observes and models lessons to provide classroom teacher additional capacity to support English Language Learners. 
• Collaborates with classroom teachers to monitor the progress of EL students and offers suggestions for intervention to meet students’ linguistic, academic and cognitive needs through differentiated instruction.
• Collaborates with other school staff, such as counselors and special education staff, to support the needs of current and former English learners.
• Provides leadership within the school with respect to the academic, social and emotional needs of English Language Learners.
• Works with principals and K-12 EL Director to ensure effective and efficient integration of EL and regular education resources in efforts to support English language learners. 
• Analyzes EL student ACCESS scores, MCAS scores, and other relevant data to determine areas of student need and provide appropriate instruction.
• Supports monitoring of former EL (FEL)  students
• Administers the annual ACCESS for ELLs 2.0 Online test for EL students.
• Maintains documents/records required by the DESE for ELs.  Provides EL Director with requested documents in a timely manner.
• Participates in in-service and teacher training provided by the district.
• Meets with principal, designee, and/or EL Director at regular intervals.
• Takes all necessary and reasonable precautions to protect students, equipment, materials, and facilities.
• Performs other related tasks as assigned by the EL Director, Principal, or designee

Required Qualifications:      

• Bachelor’s degree required, Master’s Degree preferred
• Holds a Massachusetts Teaching License in ESL PreK-6 or ESL 5-12
• Bilingual proficiency preferred
• Holds an SEI endorsement, dual certification in ESL, or qualifies for such certification
• Core Academic Teachers (early childhood, elementary, teachers of students with moderate and severe disabilities, English, reading, language arts, mathematics, science, civics and government, economics, history, and geography)

Application and Selection Procedure:

• Applications will be accepted through April 25th. Interviews and demonstration lessons will be held during the month of May.
• All resumes will be screened and selected candidates will participate in a thorough interview process.
• All members of the hiring team are required to attend bias training

Compensation and Benefits: 

Please review Unit Contract A and this page to learn more about employee compensation and benefits. This position is benefits eligible.

The Needham Public Schools does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, age, active military/veteran status, ancestry, genetic information, or national or ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, employment policies, and other administered programs and activities. In addition, students who are homeless or of limited English-speaking ability are protected from discrimination in accessing the course of study and other opportunities available through the schools.

Needham Public Schools has a strong commitment to equity. Candidates who also have a strong commitment to this work are encouraged to apply. For more information on our equity work please visit our equity website.

All positions are subject to the approval of the 2024-2025 Needham Public School budget by the Town of Needham.