The BPS Teaching Fellowship is seeking exceptional educators who are licensed reading specialists and/or trained to instruct Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) or other evidence-based literacy programs such as IMSE Orton Gillingham Comprehensive. This instructor will teach a total of 7 sessions on Early Literacy instruction, including topics such as: phonemic awareness, decoding, encoding,  fluency, language comprehension, vocabulary, reading comprehension, and writing.

REPORTS TO: Director of Teacher Pipeline Programs

BACKGROUND: 

Boston Public School’s Teacher Pipeline Programs (BPS TPP) are part of the larger strategy of the Office of Retention, Cultivation, and Diversity (RCD) Programs to address the demand for highly qualified, equity-minded and racially literate teachers for Boston’s classrooms. Our core belief is that the next generation of Boston’s teachers are in the schools, homes, and communities of Boston right now. This permeates all the work we do.  BPS TPP are multigenerational, community-based teacher preparation programs for preservice and in-service teachers. We represent the third generation of teacher preparation programs in the US—Teacher 3.0 (Kretchmar & Zeichner, 2016)—where our candidates are prepared to work in solidarity with their families and students by interrupting racism at personal and systemic levels using the critical literacy of race (Sealey-Ruiz 2020). Our teacher preparation programs are unique: we are among the few nationally and certainly the state’s only locally-embedded, state-approved, multigenerational, “grow your own'' educator preparation program. The flagship program of BPS TPP is the Bilingual Education/Accelerated Community to Teacher Program.

BPS Teaching Fellowship (BPSTF) is the only district-based, DESE-approved educator preparation program that provides Moderate Disabilities and/or ESL endorsement for Initial Licensure. This is an in-district initial licensure program geared toward increasing the number of licensed ESL and Moderate Disabilities teachers who remain in the district. BPSTF specialists guide Fellows, who are beginning BPS teachers of record, through DESE’s Candidate Assessment Portfolio (CAP) process, alongside teaching them required coursework. Once participants become SEI endorsed classroom teachers in BPS through BE/ACTT, they are eligible to apply to the BPSTF.

Beginning in SY24-25, DESE is requiring all educator preparation programs in the state to include Early Literacy curriculum. 

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

Instruct 7 three-hour evening sessions (3 virtual, 4 in-person) in the following manner for the 38 BPS Teaching Fellows. The schedule is as follows: 

• Design course syllabus and teacher preparation curriculum that adheres to DESE’s Early Literacy Program Approval Criteria
• Prepare an assessment for each session, to be submitted on Google classroom
• Submit a syllabus prior to the first class taught (January 13, 2025)
• Collaborate with the Director of Teacher Pipelines as well as BPSTF specialists to ensure instruction is robust and meaningful for the Fellows
• Attend 7 30-minute planning meetings with the Director and a specialist the week prior to each class taught. The purpose of this meeting is to review the upcoming lesson in its entirety in order to get feedback from Fellowship staff for final revisions prior to teaching the session. 
• Establish and maintain a confidential, trusting, and professional relationship with cohort members.
• Provide ongoing quality feedback on all assignments

Core Competencies: Using the Rubric of Effective Teaching, the Office of Human Resources has identified priority skills and abilities that all BPS teachers should possess:

• Accountability for Student Achievement 

(II-A-1. Quality of Effort and Work, II-D-2. High Expectations, I-B-2. Adjustments to Practice)

• Sets ambitious learning goals for all students, creates cognitively demanding tasks, and models the belief that all students can master challenging material through effective effort
• Assesses students’ understanding regularly with ambitious learning goals in mind and takes ownership of making necessary adjustments to instruction to reach goals despite setbacks
• Passionate and optimistic about their students, their content, and the teaching profession

• Communicating Content Knowledge

(I-A-1. Subject Matter Knowledge, I-A-4. Well-Structured Lessons)

• Demonstrates mastery of and enthusiasm for the content area and the pedagogy it requires
• Demonstrates understanding of how the subject matter applies in real-world settings and connects to other content areas and relevant standards
• Can convey content in creative and engaging ways that align to standards

1. Equitable & Effective Instruction 

(II-A-3. Meeting Diverse Needs, II-A-2. Student Engagement, II-B-1. Safe Learning Environment)

• Scaffolds and differentiates instruction in order for all students to do complex thinking and rigorous academic work
• Uses instructional practices that are likely to challenge, motivate, and engage all students and facilitate equitable, active student participation
• Builds a productive learning environment where every student participates and is valued as part of the class community

• Cultural Proficiency 

(II-C-1. Respects Differences, II-C-2. Maintains a Respectful Environment)

• Actively creates and maintains an environment in which students’ diverse backgrounds, identities, strengths, and challenges are respected

• Parent/Family Engagement 

(III-A-1. Parent/Family Engagement)

• Engages with families and builds collaborative, respectful relationships with them in service of student learning

• Professional Reflection & Collaboration 

(IV-A-1. Reflective Practice, IV-C-1. Professional Collaboration)

• Regularly reflects on practice, seeks and responds to feedback, and demonstrates self-awareness and commitment to continuous learning and development
• Seeks to participate in and contribute to a collaborative adult learning community.

QUALIFICATIONS—REQUIRED

• Hold a Massachusetts reading specialist license
• Hold a Masters degree in Education
• Hold either a Massachusetts ESL License at any level or SEI Endorsement
• Experience leading Professional Development and adult learning at the school or district level
• Meet all state and federal guidelines in order to be fully licensed and Highly Qualified
• Meet the Standards of Effective Teaching established by the Boston Public Schools as outlined above
• Experience designing curriculum for teacher to engage in early literacy instruction 
• Strong facilitation and presentation skills
• Communicate digitally using the BPS e-mail system, Google Drive, and other digital resources
• Demonstrate commitment to diversity and equity, closing the opportunity gap, and ensuring all students have access to the highest quality instruction
• Strong interpersonal skills and an ability to work effectively with a team, fostering collaboration and growth
• Expertise in designing and implementing standards-based instruction
• Flexibility and adaptability in instruction; ability to work with the cohort to accomplish goals
• Commitment to professional growth and learning
• Experience facilitating and building relationships with adult learners
• Current authorization to work in the United States; candidates must have such authorization by their first day of employment

QUALIFICATIONS—PREFERRED

• Hold a Massachusetts license in Moderate Disabilities at any level
• Experience teaching in Boston Public Schools
• Possess mastery of pedagogical and subject matter skills

TIME COMMITMENT/COMPENSATION

Commitment

• Designing, planning, and implementing Early Literacy curriculum  for 7 sessions (3 virtual, 4 in-person), grading and providing feedback asynchronously (approximately 35 hours)
• Individual conferencing hours for Fellows as needed (approximately 10 hours)
• Attend seven 30-minute planning meetings with the Director and a BPSTF specialist to review upcoming lesson plans, agreeing to revise any curriculum necessary (3.5 hours)

Compensation: Stipend $4,000

All interested candidates, please apply by Friday, November 22, 2024. 

Contact: Marisa Olivo, Director of Teacher Pipeline Programs, molivo@bostonpublicschools.org 

As an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer, we actively seek applications from candidates of color, women, and candidates committed to our focus on children.