RECRUITMENT


When it comes to recruiting in the core subjects, the


deficit of teachers has created a candidate-driven market. Chris Thompson discusses the strategies schools can use to recruit quality core subject teachers


Q


UALITY TEACHERS placed in the right school raise standards. However, the current deficit in core subject teachers, particularly maths, physics and chemistry, has created a candidate-driven market, whereby quality teachers now have a multitude of institutions from which to choose. To recruit top


teachers, schools must devise ways to stand out from the crowd and recruit early before the talent pool shrinks. Recruiting the right teachers who not only support


the culture and aspirations of a school, but can engage every student in their learning and drive a school’s transformation agenda, is a challenge faced by every secondary school. The biggest piece of advice I can give to schools


is to start the recruitment process as early as possible. For a September start, candidates will be assessing their options from early spring and will be keen to pin down their position quickly. An issue we come across time and time again is schools that leave the process so late that the quality of teachers from which they have to choose drops considerably, forcing them to make a substandard appointment. This comes at a high cost to schools as the wrong appointment is both time- consuming and expensive to rectify.


Mathematics


AST/SLT scale: £38,722 - £55,466 Teacher Scale: £23,024 - £33,489


We are looking for an ambitious Maths Teacher. You may be in the early stages of your career, or you may be an experienced established Maths Teacher looking to join us as either an aspirant AST or in a SLT development position.


You will have high expectations and a commitment to getting the best out of your pupils. We will be ambitious for you and provide you with the professional development which will enable you to achieve the next stage in your career.


For further information and an application form: Visit www.basildonacademies.org.uk


Telephone Nannette Windsor on 01268 498687 or email recruitment@basildonacademies.org.uk


The Basildon Academies are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects staff to share this commitment. The successful applicant will be subject to CRB and health checks.


The Basildon Academies, Wickford Avenue, Pitsea, Basildon, Essex SS13 3HL Cost


As the removal of local authority support puts schools under mounting pressure to make maximum use of their budgets, traditional recruitment processes are becoming increasingly costly and inefficient, taking over six to 10 weeks, on average, for a school to fill just one teaching post. This includes identifying the recruitment need, designing and advertising the position, reviewing and shortlisting applicants, formal interviews, and finally the selection process. This drawn-out method often involves interviewing


many unsuitable candidates, or losing the right ones to a competing school further along in the process.


Stand out from the competition


Reading through traditional recruitment pages and websites, teachers are faced with hundreds of


Science


AST/SLT scale: £38,722 - £55,466 Teacher Scale: £23,024 - £33,489


We are looking for an ambitious Science Teacher. You may be in the early stages of your career, or you may be an experienced established Science Teacher looking to join us as either an aspirant AST or in a SLT development position.


You will have high expectations and a commitment to getting the best out of your pupils. We will be ambitious for you and provide you with the professional development which will enable you to achieve the next stage in your career.


For further information and an application form: Visit www.basildonacademies.org.uk


Telephone Nannette Windsor on 01268 498687 or email recruitment@basildonacademies.org.uk


The Basildon Academies are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects staff to share this commitment. The successful applicant will be subject to CRB and health checks.


The Basildon Academies, Wickford Avenue, Pitsea, Basildon, Essex SS13 3HL


similar advertisements. To stand out from the crowd, headteachers must consider what distinguishes them from other schools and makes their particular school an attractive place to work. This is especially important for schools that


cannot capitalise upon an outstanding Ofsted report or great league table results. Every school should think about the individual career opportunities their institution presents. For example, are they a specialist college, do they have an ambitious transformation agenda and what makes their school and its location an attractive place to work? One effective way to attract top teachers is to


present a school’s offering face-to-face. This enables headteachers and senior leadership teams to present an overview of their school’s culture, aims, student population as well as the personality and skillsets


Finding quality teachers


they require from each teacher. It also represents a good opportunity to gain a better understanding of the teacher’s experience and career aspirations.


Clear strategy


Recruitment is a two-way process, so to successfully compete for the top teachers, it is vital that schools have a clear recruitment strategy. From the moment a candidate walks through the school gates, their experience and interview process should be meticulously planned to ensure they meet the right decision-makers and understand the culture of the school. Schools that pre-plan and put in the extra effort have significantly higher success rates in recruiting the right teachers.


Agencies?


Many schools are now recruiting quality core subject teachers from across the Commonwealth, as far afield as Canada, Australia and New Zealand, so this is worth exploring with a professional agency. If you decide to work with an education recruitment agency, ensure they have been Quality Marked by the Department for Education.


Multiple recruitment


To achieve ultimate time and cost efficiencies, explore options to recruit for multiple roles. Some dedicated recruitment events provide the opportunity to meet many selected candidates in just one day, meticulously matched by skillset, teaching style and personality, short-cutting the selection process.


Establish best fit


The interview is the prime time to determine the passion and dedication of the candidate and if they will fit well into the culture of your school. Consider some of the challenges teachers face on a day-to-day basis in your school and ask the candidate to demonstrate how they have tackled similar issues. If behaviour management is a key requirement of


your post, ask the candidate how they have tackled difficult behaviour in the past, how and why such problems arose and what they did to resolve it. You should also examine how successful their methods are by discussing the impact they had. For example, were they able to successfully integrate difficult student/s back into the classroom? Did they improve exam results for the class/department?


SecEd


• Chris Thompson is head of iday recruitment events at Engage Education. Visit www.iday.co.uk


Time Effi cient ways of developing your People Skills


Schools are like businesses in that they spend a huge amount of time and energy on trying to sort out people issues.


If you are serious about developing your management skills but don't have the time to attend training courses then this is for you, go to www.merechats.co.uk


And get your FREE Coaching Session when you sign up to a membership this term.


You will get the opportunity to discuss topical issues with others on weekly conference calls and discussion forums and we’ll give you access to lots of useful self coaching resources which are updated monthly.


basildon maths.indd 1 English


AST/SLT scale: £38,722 - £55,466 Teacher Scale: £23,024 - £33,489


We are looking for an ambitious English Teacher. You may be in the early stages of your career, or you may be an experienced established English Teacher looking to join us as either an aspirant AST or in a SLT development position.


You will have high expectations and a commitment to getting the best out of your pupils. We will be ambitious for you and provide you with the professional development which will enable you to achieve the next stage in your career. For further information and an application form:


Visit www.basildonacademies.org.uk, Telephone Nannette Windsor on 01268 498687, or email recruitment@basildonacademies.org.uk


The Basildon Academies are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects staff to share this commitment. The successful applicant will be subject to CRB and health checks.


The Basildon Academies, Wickford Avenue, Pitsea, Basildon, Essex SS13 3HL All recruitment advertisements


will also be placed on our website free of charge


www.sec-ed.com 17/05/2011 11:51 basildon.indd 1 17/05/2011 11:52


The website is live now! Go to www.merechats.co.uk or call Dot Struthers on 020 8408 3782


SecEd • May 19 2011


15


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16