Position: Upper School Spanish Teacher (Grades 5th - 12th) - this position will start in the 2025/2026 school year

Reports to: Upper School Principal

Primary Responsibilities: 

Providing daily instruction in the subject area to all assigned students in a manner that is effective, appropriate, and fitting with the mission of Traders Point Christian Schools (TPCS). 

Position Goal:

The teacher is to provide a carefully planned regiment of learning experiences that are fully integrated with the Christian worldview. The primary focus of this position is to ensure that each student receives the kind of instruction that grants knowledge, develops skills, and creates a Christian way of thinking. This person must work in harmony with the School Principals and the Head of Schools at all times. We are Jesus-centered, relationally-driven, and educationally-anchored. 

The teacher is responsible for creating a classroom setting where the lesson plans are delivered in the Second Language. The philosophy of the Spanish program is that languages are acquired through inductive, right-brain processes, rather than learned in the more traditional left-brained, conscious process. Language researchers, Krashen and Terrell have found that people acquire languages when the following three things are available:

• Comprehensible Input (CI): is understandable language. This means that students must be able to hear the target language and understand the meaning of the language without knowing the language. This is accomplished through gestures, pictures, and modeling.  
• Silent Period: a one to two years time period when students listen, listen, listen.  They take in the language and make sense of it in their brains.  Students are not verbal in the target language during this period of time, thus its name.
• Affective Filter: the emotional response a student has to new information in a learning scenario. Many language teachers refer to it as the “screen” between themselves and their students that hinders learning. When a student feels comfortable, safe, and motivated, the affective filter is low. However, when a student feels nervous, afraid, or defeated, the affective filter is high. The ideal scenario is for the filter to be very low. 

To that end, Second Language programs use an acquisition technique called TPRS (Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling). TPRS facilitates the learning of the second language through the use of gestures, pictures, looping comprehension questions in the target language, games, reading, and some writing. Vocabulary is acquired through storytelling – listening and reading stories with said vocabulary, and then speaking and writing their own.

Qualifications:

Educational and Experience Requirements:

• Candidates must be professing and maturing Christians enthusiastically supporting the School’s statement of faith and mission statements. 
• A bachelor’s degree in the content area is required and an ACSI teaching certification is preferred. 
• Candidates should demonstrate a successful career in teaching the subject area in an academic setting. 
• The ideal candidate will excel at developing collaborative relationships with all constituencies. 
• Excellent communication skills are a must, including writing and presentation abilities. 
• In addition, the position requires the ability to organize and prioritize work, resolve problems, follow through, and manage multiple priorities to ensure that goals are met in a timely manner.

Qualifying Characteristics:

• The teacher has a clear biblical testimony of salvation with an authentic and mature personal relationship with Jesus Christ in both their professional and personal life with a calling and commitment to Christian education. 
• The ideal teacher must have the desire to work closely and nurture a positive relationship with students, teachers, parents, staff, school administrators, and community members. 
• The teacher must demonstrate respect for all students and community members. 
• The ability to exercise good judgment, set a good example, and comply with school standards is a must as well as the ability to deal with sensitive and confidential issues in a tactful and professional manner. 
• As a teacher at TPCS, you are expected to instruct and model important religious functions that include Bible instruction, prayer, participation in weekly chapels, and other religious duties. 
• At TPCS, your role as a teacher involves a pastoral element whereby through example and direct instruction, you are acting as a minister of our Christian faith. 
• You must be able to address concerns and offer suggestions in an appropriate and confidential manner.

Responsibilities and Duties: 

Instructional Responsibilities:

• Responsible for working with students as they navigate through social, personal, academic, and, most importantly, spiritual growth.
• Meet and successfully instruct assigned classes in the locations and at times designated.
• Develop and maintain a classroom environment conducive to effective learning within the limits of the available resources.
• Encourage students to set and maintain standards of classroom behavior.
• Employ a variety of instructional techniques and instructional media consistent with the available resources.
• Take reasonable precautions to protect students, equipment, materials, and facilities.
• Evaluate student progress and enter scores in FACTS SIS on a regular basis as requested by the building principal.
• Assist in upholding and enforcing school rules, administrative regulations, and Board policy.
• Assist in the selection of books, equipment, and other instructional materials.
• Continue to remain current with updates in technology and technological resources.
• Work to establish and maintain open lines of communication with students and their parents concerning student’s academic and behavioral progress.
• Collaborate with colleagues to discuss the results of assessments and strategies for individual and school-wide academic improvement.
• Lead a mentor group.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Upper School Principal.
• Teach classes as assigned following the prescribed scope and sequence and curriculum outline.
• Prepare weekly and unit lesson plans and submit them to the appropriate principal as required.
• Integrate Biblical principles and the Christian philosophy of education throughout the curriculum.
• Use a variety of teaching methods/techniques to meet the needs of various learning styles.

Professional Responsibilities:

• Utilize educational opportunities and evaluation processes for professional growth.
• Acquire and maintain ACSI certification within the first year of employment.
• Attend and participate in scheduled devotional, in-service, committee, faculty, and parent meetings.
• Attend New Staff Orientation and/or Teacher Orientation as appropriate.
• Attend appropriate activities as explained in the Teacher Handbook.
• Maintain open, positive communication with parents, administrators, and peers.
• Non-Instructional Responsibilities:
• Cooperate with the Board and administration in implementing all policies, procedures, and directives governing the operation of the school.
• Maintain accurate attendance records as established by school policy.
• Keep students, parents, and administration adequately informed of progress or deficiencies and give sufficient notice of failure.
• Maintain the classroom in a clean, attractive, orderly manner.
• Fulfill any extra-curricular assignments in an efficient manner.
• Attend special events of the school as deemed required by the school administration.

Exempt Status: Exempt, salaried

Work Schedule: Academic Year