Math Curriculum Specialist
Position Description
Math Curriculum Specialist
The Math Curriculum Specialist supports the strategy and execution required to meet Phillips Brooks School's goal to support all students in their mathematical journey, meeting them where they are and encouraging them to reach their fullest potential through differentiation and extension. These enrichment experiences are intended for students of all levels to reach their potential to be great mathematicians through substantial and rewarding math instruction. The Math Curriculum Specialist, reporting to the Assistant Head of School for Academics, will work with faculty and staff teams to enable curricular and program innovation and growth and to expand teacher expertise so we can ensure that our curriculum is meeting all of our current and future math teaching and learning needs.
PBS welcomes and encourages applicants from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and identities and is committed to an inclusive work environment. You'll have an opportunity to contribute to an upbeat professional learning community that appreciates creativity and an innovative approach to program development.
For more information on Phillips Brooks School, please visit: phillipsbrooks.org
Top Focus Areas for the Role
- Enhance differentiation in the classroom so that all students are challenged to deepen their learning and reach their fullest potential
- Develop math learning extensions and challenge in service of excellent classroom experiences for students whose performance is high or beyond grade level
- Extend the current program to develop an advanced math approach that prioritizes:
- Curiosity and love for math learning
- Deep number sense and automaticity
- Conceptual math understanding as a foundation for algorithmic and systematic thinking
- Love for math learning with high computational fluency
- Challenge for all students
- Expand teacher expertise so we can ensure our curriculum is meeting all of our current and future math teaching and learning needs
- Increase parent understanding about our math program philosophy, how we execute in the classroom, and how they can support math learning at home
Position Responsibilities
- Dedicate 75% of time towards classroom teaching and utilize 25% of time for coordinating curriculum, providing co-curriculum support, coaching teachers, and facilitating parent education
- Stay up-to-date on best practices, model flexibility, and support teachers to incorporate relevant resources and instructional practices to supplement, enhance, and create opportunities for low-threshold, no-ceiling learning and increased student engagement
- Expand teacher expertise by collaborating with faculty and sharing professional development opportunities to ensure our curriculum is meeting all of our math teaching and learning needs
- To enhance the school-home partnership, increase parent understanding and build access to resources about our math program philosophy, how we execute in the classroom, and how math learning can be supported at home
- Create and implement events outside of the regular school day that promote curiosity and a love of math. Some examples include YouCubed classes, Math Festival days, robotics, coding, or Math Olympiads
Our Math Program Values
- Intentional Exploration: Teachers use open-ended investigations to help students see patterns, raise questions, and make discoveries.
- Differentiation: Teachers offer choices, provide manipulatives, and increase rigor to meet students at their individual levels.
- Ownership: Students learn to see themselves as mathematicians through choices about how to approach their work, opportunities to share their thinking, and real-world situations in which to apply their knowledge.
- Communication: Students often work in partnerships and groups to learn from each other and grow as mathematicians.
- Flexibility: Students learn multiple approaches and ultimately the most effective and efficient strategies to solve math problems.
- Justification: Teachers require students to explain how they solved a math problem, reflect on the efficacy of the strategies they used, and defend their solutions and thought processes with mathematical reasoning.
Our Philosophy of Math Teaching and Learning
- Math is cognitive and social.
- We value digging more than racing in math learning.
- We are informed by neuroscience and educational research.
- Math skills include automaticity as well as strategies for problem-solving.
- Students need conceptual understanding as well as fluency with efficient algorithms and computational accuracy.
- Every student benefits from exposure to advanced problems.
Key Attributes and Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree required, with either a mathematics or mathematics-related undergraduate degree; master’s degree preferred
- Eagerness to simultaneously (1) lead program development, working both independently and collectively for the betterment of our school, while (2) staying connected to our students through creative and dynamic teaching
- Exceptional oral and written communication skills, with a strong focus on taking educational concepts and effectively translating them to reach a variety of audiences
- Highly organized and detail-oriented, with the ability to effectively manage deadlines and multiple tasks
- Strong interpersonal and intrapersonal skills; must be an active listener and open-minded collaborator
- Availability for after-school work to facilitate math enrichment activities
Other Position Information
This is a full-time position with a salary range from $93,400 to $110,000 depending on background and experience. PBS has an excellent benefits program in addition to salary.
How to Apply
Candidates for this position should submit a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three to five references (including their current supervisor).