Secondary Head of Science Department

WHO WE ARE

Collège du Léman is one of Switzerland’s most prestigious international schools, located on the edge of Lake Geneva in view of the Swiss Alps.​ We welcome children from 2 to 18 years old to become part of a truly international community with more than 120 different nationalities. Our vision is to shape generations that harness differences and empower our students to change the world for the better.

We nurture individual strengths through our outstanding educators and the sheer breadth of opportunities that we offer as part of our curriculum and activities.

Collège du Léman is part of the Nord Anglia Education family of more than 80 premium schools, educating students in over 30 countries.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Leadership responsibilities

• To actively promote the school's Vision, Mission and RISE (Respect, Internationalism, Spirit, Excellence) values.
• To develop strategic plans for the department, collaborating with colleagues and using data to inform and establish a Vision (or ‘Future Design’ - where do we want to be?), ‘Current Reality’ (where are we now?) and ‘Learning Plans’ (how do we plan to fill the gap?).
• To liaise with Head of Science Departments in the Middle School and Francophone section, ensuring alignment of departmental business, such as curriculum design and mapping and book ordering.

• To liaise with Head of Science Departments in the Middle School and Francophone section and with the section Principals in leading teachers in the department through the TAPD performance evaluation process, such that good practice can be recognised, refinements to teaching approaches made and the level of performance documented.
• To oversee the induction of new teachers into the department, including the appointment of a mentor/buddy for an initial induction period of at least the first three months of activity.
• To create and develop a positive team atmosphere.
• To innovate and promote collaborative, interdisciplinary project work inspired by real-world (authentic), complex problems, thereby providing opportunities for students to develop transferable, higher order problem-solving skills.
• To provide curriculum leadership for the Science department, ensuring that written curricula are implemented and reviewed in accordance with the Curriculum Review Policy.

Duties and other responsibilities

Curriculum

• Developing and reviewing curriculum guides and policy.
• Overseeing curriculum review and development.
• Standardising and aligning curriculum content and learning objectives.
• Optimising vertical and horizontal articulation of the curriculum.
• Promoting interdisciplinary curriculum design and development.
• Reviewing student assessment data to inform curriculum review and teaching.
• Compiling, and periodically checking a department inventory.
• Managing departmental resources to support curriculum delivery.

Communication

• Arranging and chairing departmental meetings (structured and documented through use of an agenda and action/decision log for each meeting).
• Following and communicating both internal and external directives and other information.
• Representing the department at events such as school, staff, student and parent meetings.
• Coordinating/facilitating communications between students, teachers and parents/House Parents, particularly in relation to student academic performance and subject support.

Teacher/Course Allocations

• Allocating courses to teachers.
• Checking teacher timetables (correct allocations, number of periods etc.).

Teacher Appraisal and Professional Development (TAPD)

• Teacher Appraisal
• Guiding and supervising teachers through the teacher appraisal process.
• Ensuring that classroom practice across the department is consistent with CDL’s definitions of ‘High-Quality Learning’ and ‘Effective Teaching’ and Teacher Appraisal Criteria by:
  • Undertaking class observations against these standards and giving feedback to teachers.
  • Establishing and monitoring Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) where appropriate.

Professional development

• Keeping abreast of developments in the department field and communicating these to staff.
• Arranging and advising on professional development activities which support teachers in reaching CDL’s standards of ‘Effective Teaching’, the NAE and CDL Teaching Standards and their own professional objectives.
• Promoting the use of the Nord Anglia University professional development platform.
• Facilitating team building and cohesion.
• Promoting collaboration on internal and external projects and with NAE colleagues.

Examinations

• External examinations (High School)

• • Liaising with Exam Coordinators concerning examination candidates and arrangements.
  • Meeting examination board requirements (such as moderation and predicted grades).
  • Reviewing external examination results and standardised assessment data to identify patterns and to inform curriculum review, teaching and student support strategies.
  • Implementing examination programme reforms.

• Internal examinations

• • Managing departmental examinations (preparation of examination papers etc.).
  • Reviewing end-of-year departmental examinations to determine their appropriateness and quality against course standards.
  • Reviewing departmental examination results to identify patterns and to inform curriculum review, teaching and student support strategies.

• • ItsLearning and ISAMS
  • Overseeing Master Plans for each course in the department.
  • Checking for systematic posting of Plans by teachers, to include appropriate content and homework activities (which must appear in the calendar).
  • Checking that teacher gradebooks are maintained in ISAMS.
  • Ensuring the construction and implementation of ISAMS gradebooks is clear.

• Quality control

• • Analysing standardised test results and promoting ongoing improvement in performance.
  • Liaising with Pastoral Heads and Homeroom Advisors to ensure smooth transitions between sections (aligning course standards, checking student performance and supporting learning needs).
  • Advising Principal(s) concerning the special needs of students (such as extra subject support, tutoring, learning support and/or individual programmes or online courses).
  • Monitoring learning areas to ensure that the facilities support learning and are attractive, organised, functional, clean and safe.

• Extracurricular

• • Liaising concerning staffing, course content, standards, learning expectations/outcomes and reporting for courses related to the department disciplines.

• Recruitment

• • Participating in the recruitment of new teachers to the department.
  • Arranging and leading the induction of new teachers into the department and school.
  • Ensuring course and learning continuity for the students of absent teachers, particularly during long-term absence.

Duties and other responsibilities specific to some departments

• Laboratories

• • Managing day-to-day and longer-term operations, including planning, administration, resourcing and staff support in relation to the laboratory preparation area and the technicians.

• Book orders

• • Managing and coordinating the annual book-ordering process.

CANDIDATE PROFILE

Qualification

Required

• University degree in Science subject. Master’s degree is preferred
• Recognised teaching qualification

Experience

Required

• Teaching in a variety of secondary classrooms
• Teaching an external examination course (IB, IGCSE, AP).
• Team working
• Work to tight deadlines

Preferred

• Working in an international school
• Working in a boarding environment
• Management/leadership role
• Ability to teach more than 1 Science at IB, AP level.

Prior skills and knowledge

• Ability to use and integrate ICT into the curriculum
• Emergency procedures
• Internal school rules and procedures

Preferred

• Bilingual English – French
• Administrative aspects of programmes (such as IGCSE, IBDP)

Additional skills

You communicate with clarity and confidence, and you’re able to build strong, positive relationships with both students and colleagues. You enjoy working collaboratively as part of a team and bring a growth mindset to your role — you're open to new challenges and committed to ongoing professional development. You know how to organise your workload, set priorities effectively, and stay calm and focused under pressure and tight deadlines.

ESSENTIAL INFORMATION

It is important that the post holder is always aware of Child Protection guidelines and observes a professional distance from students whilst still developing effective working and caring relationships.

You understand and embrace the importance of diversity and inclusion and stand against discrimination in any form.

Background investigations and reference checks for the past ten years will be conducted during the selection process.

About Nord Anglia Education

Nord Anglia Education is the world’s leading premium school’s organisation, with 89+ schools located across over 33 countries in the Americas, Europe, China, Southeast Asia, India and the Middle East. Together, our schools educate over 75,000 students from kindergarten through to the end of secondary school. 

Our philosophy for education rests on our four pillars of creativity, wellbeing, excellent academic outcomes, and global connectedness. These are delivered through innovative use of educational technology to create a personalised 21st century learning experience for all students.

Every parent wants the best for their child — so do we. Nord Anglia schools deliver high quality, transformational education and ensure excellent academic outcomes by going beyond traditional learning. Our global scale enables us to recruit and retain world-leading teachers and to offer unforgettable experiences through global and regional events, while our engaging learning environments ensure all of our students love coming to school.