Science Teacher

Science Teacher

Salary:                              Inner London Pay Spine

Proposed Start Date:      ASAP

Contract:                           Permanent – Full-Time

Rutlish School has an exciting opportunity in its’ Science Department for an enthusiastic, experienced teacher, or ECT, who has a genuine passion for the subject and enjoys working as part of a highly effective team. This post provides an opportunity to work in an outstanding school where staff make a REAL difference to the lives of young people.

What we can offer? Experience of working in an “outstanding” oversubscribed school. In September 2024, Ofsted rated Rutlish as “Outstanding” in all five areas of judgement. Rutlish School is proud to consistently be one of the top schools nationally, being in the top 2% of schools nationally for progress at GCSE and the top 8% for attainment. Rutlish is the second highest performing non-selective boys' school in the country for progress and the highest performing boys', non-selective school in London. Rutlish is the highest performing of all secondary schools in Merton and consistently achieves outstanding results.

If you have a commitment to achieving high standards and would like to join our dynamic team, then we look forward to receiving your application. A Job Information Pack and application form can be found on the school website www.rutlish.merton.sch.uk

Completed application forms should be sent to jobs@rutlish.merton.sch.uk by 10.00am on Wednesday, 8th January 2025. No Agencies or CVs please as these will not be considered for shortlisting.

We are committed to safeguarding the welfare of children, therefore all applicants are required to undertake an Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service check. We fully support the London Borough of Merton’s Equal Opportunities Policy.

Science at Rutlish “Welcoming”, “Friendly”, “Supportive”; all words used by new teachers, to describe the Science Department at Rutlish School. We believe in the value of working together to ensure the best education for our students, aiming to give them both outstanding results and a real love of Science. We aspire to empower our students to learn and our teachers to get the very best out of them. One of our new recruits said that what he liked about working in our Department, compared to his previous school, was that “people are trusted to do their work and get things done”.

Staff Profile The department consists of eleven teachers and two full-time technicians, with specialisms across the three sciences. The department is led by Heads of Biology, Chemistry and Physics, each supported by a 2ic and line managed by a Deputy Headteacher. There are numerous opportunities within the school to take on additional cross-curricular responsibilities and CPD.

Accommodation The department occupies nine dedicated Science labs, a Physics room and an A-level laboratory. These are supported by three prep rooms and a resources room. 

Curriculum Information

KS5 We teach A-Level Biology, Chemistry and Physics alongside our partner school, Ricards Lodge. BTEC Level 3 Applied Science is also offered, but is not currently taught at the Rutlish site. Students study nine lessons per fortnight of each of their A-Level options; lessons are normally split between two or more teachers.

Biology – Students follow the OCR specification. We are anticipating that one Year 12 group and one Year 13 group will be taught at the Rutlish site next year. We are constantly looking for additional extracurricular opportunities to help develop our A-level students’ skills beyond the classroom. 

Chemistry – Students follow the AQA specification. We are anticipating that one Year 12 group and one Year 13 group will be taught at the Rutlish site next year. We are currently planning to take our Y12 students to a spectroscopy day at Queen Mary University later this term which has proven a successful trip in previous years.

Physics – Students follow the AQA specification. We are anticipating that two Year 12 groups and two A2 groups will be provided next year, all A-Level Physics teaching is on the Rutlish site. We regularly run a range of trips including the Science Museum, the Royal Observatory Greenwich, and CERN.

KS4 Students start their GCSE courses with a transition year in Year 9. They study Biology, Chemistry and Physics separately, with specialist teachers whenever possible. They have three lessons of each subject per fortnight. All students follow the same common curriculum until the end of Year 10, at which point we determine whether they will be examined in Core and Additional Science or the three separate Sciences. All students follow AQA triple or trilogy specifications. We support students with after school revision classes throughout the year, holiday revision sessions and coursework catch-up sessions on occasional Saturdays. Saturday and holiday sessions are voluntary and paid overtime.

KS3 We run a two-year Key Stage 3 curriculum. Students study Biology, Chemistry and Physics separately, with two periods per fortnight of each subject. We currently teach and adapted version of the AQA syllabus in Biology and Chemistry. In Physics we teach a new bespoke course based on the national curriculum. Students are assessed using end of unit tests and end of year exams. They are taught in mixed ability groups when they join in Year 7 and placed into sets at October half term.

Extra-Curricular Provision We run a weekly Science Club for Key Stage 3 students, supervised by a member of the department. If teachers want to provide further extra-curricular opportunities, such as trips and clubs we are keen to support them in doing so.

Professional Development We are keen to support the development of all members of the department, regardless of the stage of their career. We regularly use department meetings to share best practice, using the strengths of our team to provide training for each other. Recent topics have included effective management of practicals, use of peer assessment and accurate summative assessment. We also encourage teachers to attend externally provided CPD. The school provides a comprehensive NQT programme and we regularly welcome PGCE students into the department. We believe that providing support for PGCE students is an excellent way to develop the skills of our qualified teachers as it encourages them to reflect on their own practice.