What are the responsibilities and job description for the ESY - Elementary Special Ed Teacher (FOCUS Program - 6 weeks) position at Westwood Public Schools?
July 1, 2025 - August 8, 2025
Hours : 8 : 30am - 2 : 30pm, M-Th (4 days, 24 hours per week)
The Westwood Public Schools is committed to active equity-based, anti-racist education and the creation of a welcoming and inclusive school community in partnership with parents and community members.
NATURE AND SCOPE
The teacher plans, delivers, and implements effective instruction and assesses student learning in accordance with state curriculum frameworks and district goals. The teacher creates an educational environment in which all students are safe and achieve. The teacher collaborates with other professionals and students' families to help students succeed.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS / RESPONSIBILITIES
- Plan engaging lessons with clear and measurable objectives that are relevant to the appropriate curriculum and the students in the class.
- Manage class operation by enforcing high academic and behavioral expectations, implementing routines, anticipating potential problems and taking appropriate preventative measures, and treating all students with respect.
- Create a positive class environment by building a relationship with each student, encouraging students to build relationships with one another, treating all students fairly, promoting students' self-discipline and responsibility for learning, and not tolerating dangerous or destructive behaviors.
- Deliver instruction effectively by establishing high expectations for all students, presenting new material explicitly and in a developmentally appropriate manner, connecting new learning to students' prior knowledge, helping students understand the relevance of what they are learning, differentiating based on students' needs, and using a variety of pedagogic approaches.
- Assess student understanding of learning objectives with student self-assessments, frequent formative measures, and periodic summative measures.
- Collaborate with other professionals to analyze student work, draw conclusions, develop interventions and extensions, and implement new teaching strategies based on assessment data.
- Understand the Individual Education Programs and 504 Accommodation Plans of students in the class, participate in team meetings, and collaborate with specials education and support staff members.
- Communicate the students' academic, social, and behavioral progress to their parents or guardians in a respectful and responsive manner.
- Fulfill professional responsibilities by collaborating with other professionals and students' parents or guardians, using good judgment, participating in professional development, reflecting on performance and making positive changes to improve student learning, being receptive to feedback, and completing assigned duties.
- Assuming other responsibilities assigned by the building principal in accordance with collective bargaining provisions.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
MA DESE Licensure - Severe / Intensive
Massachusetts teaching certification in relevant area
Certification in Special Ed
Bachelor's degree, Master's degree preferred
KNOWLEDGE, ABILITY, AND SKILL
PERSONAL QUALITIES
JOB ENVIRONMENT
Work takes place in classrooms and other building rooms / areas, including offices, auditorium, gym, lunchroom and hallways, within a school building setting, primarily indoors. Job takes place in a high-performing school district with high expectations.
PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
The Westwood Public Schools does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender expression, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status.
