AddressAitken Hill Primary School neighbours rapidly growing residential areas in the suburb of Craigieburn. The school is located at the intersection of Elevation Boulevard and Rhyolite Drive. The school will work in partnership with the community to provide authentic learning opportunities and best academic outcomes for all students.
Aitken Hill Primary School opened in 2019, with a current enrolment of 834 in 2024. The school truly presents as an innovative, unique and contemporary school. The curriculum, approach to pedagogy and culture that the new school develops will work in harmony with the design of the school buildings.
At Aitken Hill Primary School, architectural form and educational ethos align to emphasize creativity, collaboration, innovation, wellbeing and community engagement.
The Learning Communities have been carefully designed to allow for a flexible learning space incorporating a variety of different educational modes to take place in the one building. There are 2 Learning Community buildings which can each house up to 200 students. This P-6 Learning Community incorporates a rich array of educational activities including messy wet areas, quiet reflective areas, withdrawal spaces, some library spaces and small classroom spaces.
Each learning community building houses 8 groups of 25 students with the key focus on flexible spaces. Below is further information regarding the layout of the Learning Community buildings.
Focus on Teaching and Learning
The quality of classroom teaching at Aitken Hill PS will be a significant indicator of the school¿s effectiveness. Effective teachers know how students learn and build on the knowledge their students bring with them. Purposeful teaching will ensure that all students have the opportunity to learn in a classroom environment that has clear learning objectives, challenging learning goals and ongoing and systemic monitoring and feedback.
Curriculum links include:
- Science: wet and messy activities (freezing, melting) basic physics (dropping objects)
- Art: painting, drawing, sculpting etc.
- All learning areas: model-making, experiment and investigation.
High Expectations for All Learners
Aitken Hill PS has high expectations for all members of the school community. Teachers and students will be challenged to take advantage of all opportunities to learn and to persist when confronted with situations that require new learning. An explicit focus on effort rather than ability underpins learning interactions and the modelling of desired behaviours as there is a shared belief that all students can learn to high levels.
High expectations are also evident in the quality of the relationships between all members of the school community and their engagement and contribution to the wider community. A commitment to continuous improvement will be reflected in the way that the schools consistently communicate the importance of self-improvement and higher standards when initial targets and goals are met.
Accountability
The school is establishing a rigorous and intelligent system of accountability through which school, teacher and student performance can be monitored and evaluated. The school will use performance data to identify, support and monitor all students and plan professional learning activities for staff. Valid and reliable accountability measures will also allow the school leadership team to provide parents with meaningful information about the progress of the school and their children.
Learning Communities
Aitken Hill is aspiring to become a learning community that shares a common vision and goals, where all members work collaboratively to enhance the teaching and learning environment. Learning communities comprised of individuals with diverse expertise and knowledge which is valued, and through collaboration, drawn out, shared and used to solve school-based challenges. The learning community fosters openness, dialogue, inquiry, risk-taking and trust. In this environment, teachers feel they can make informed and responsibly decisions about innovative teaching strategies.
Stimulating and Secure Learning Environment
Aitken Hill PS understands that the nature and quality of the environment in which students and teachers work in has a significant impact on their learning. Effective schools are stimulating places to those learning, working and visiting. The design of the environment embodies the values and principles of the school and fosters creativity and a culture of learning. Quality relationships contribute to an environment where all members feel safe, secure and valued.
Staff will be expected to contribute to:
- Creating a professional learning community
- Developing a shared practice where all are engaged to continually improve
- Developing a pedagogy and curriculum reflective of 21stcentury learning which maximises the use of flexible spaces
- Developing safe and supportive learning communities based on School Wide Positive Behaviour Support
- Community engagement and involvement in the life of the school
School contact details: **************@education.vic.gov.au
Phone: 8377 1000
SC1 Demonstrated knowledge of the relevant curriculum, including the capacity to incorporate the teaching of literacy and numeracy skills. Demonstrated capacity to respond to student learning needs.
SC2 Demonstrated capacity to implement high impact teaching strategies, guided by how students learn, and evaluate the impact of learning and teaching programs on student learning growth.
SC3 Demonstrated capacity to monitor and assess student learning. Demonstrated capacity to use data to inform teaching practice and to provide feedback on student learning growth and achievement to students and parents.
SC4 Demonstrated interpersonal and communication skills. Demonstrated capacity to establish and maintain collaborative relationships with students, parents, colleagues and the broader school community to support student learning, wellbeing and engagement.
SC5 Demonstrated behaviours and attitudes consistent with Department values. Demonstrated capacity to reflect upon practice and engage in professional learning to continually improve the quality of teaching.
This position may attract an incentive payment of $5,650 (pre-tax) for the successful candidate who meets the eligibility criteria set out under conditions of employment.
The primary focus of the range 1 classroom teacher is on further developing skills and competencies to become an effective classroom practitioner with structured support and guidance from teachers at higher levels and the planning, preparation and teaching of programs to achieve specific student outcomes.
These teachers teach a range of students/classes and are accountable for the effective delivery of their programs. Range 1 classroom teachers are skilled teachers who operate under general direction within clear guidelines following established work practices and documented priorities and may have responsibility for the supervision and training of one or more student teachers.
At range 1, teachers participate in the development of school policies and programs and assist in the implementation of school priorities.
The focus of a range 1 classroom teacher is on classroom management, subject content and teaching practice. New entrants to the teaching profession in their initial teaching years receive structured support, mentoring and guidance from teachers at higher levels.
Under guidance, new entrants to the teaching profession will plan and teach student groups in one or more subjects and are expected to participate in induction programs and other professional learning activities that are designed to ensure the integration of curriculum, assessment and pedagogy across the school.
Teachers at range 1 are responsible for teaching their own classes and may also assist and participate in policy development, project teams and the organisation of co-curricula activities.
Core responsibilities include:
- Planning and implementing a range of teaching programs or courses of study
- Teaching an area of the curriculum or a general curriculum to a year level
- Monitoring, evaluating and reporting student progress in key learning areas
- Implementing strategies to achieve targets related to student learning outcomes
- Maintaining records of class attendance and recording student progress
- Implementing effective student management consistent with the school charter.
- Working with a mentor to participate in professional development planning, implementation and reflection developing a professional portfolio
Additional responsibilities may include but are not limited to:
- Supervising a range of student activities including support and welfare programs
- Contributing to a range of co-curricular programs
To be eligible to apply for a position advertised through the Teacher Graduate Recruitment program, a teacher must:
- have completed their course requirements and graduated in the last 4 years, and
- not be employed as a teacher by the department at the time the advertised position is to commence
Applicants must also be currently registered or eligible for registration with the Victorian Institute of Teaching.
Applicants seeking part-time employment are encouraged to apply for any teaching service position and, if they are the successful candidate, request a reduced time fraction. Such requests will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis and will be subject to the operational requirements of the school.
The Department of Education is committed to the principles of equal opportunity, and diversity and inclusion for all. We value diversity and inclusion in all forms - gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQ+, disability and neurodiversity. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for roles within the Department. The Department recognises that the provision of family friendly, supportive, safe and harassment free workplaces is essential to high performance and promotes flexible work, diversity and safety across all schools and Department workplaces. It is our policy to provide reasonable adjustments for persons with a disability (see Workplace adjustment guidelines).
Additional support and advice on the recruitment process is available to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islanders from the Koorie Outcomes Division (KOD) via *******@education.vic.gov.au
Victorian government schools are child safe environments. Our schools actively promote the safety and wellbeing of all students, and all school staff are committed to protecting students from abuse or harm in the school environment, in accordance with their legal obligations including child safe standards. All schools have a Child Safety Code of Conduct consistent with the department's exemplar available at:
https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/child-safe-standards/policy
The department's employees commit to upholding the department's Values: Responsiveness, Integrity, Impartiality, Accountability, Respect, Leadership and Human Rights. The department's Values complement each school's own values and underpin the behaviours the community expects of Victorian public sector employees, including those who work in Victorian Government Schools. Information on the department values is available at:
https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/values-department-vps-school-employees/overview
All staff employed by the Department and schools have access to a broad range of employment conditions and working arrangements.
Appointment of successful applicants will be made subject to a satisfactory pre-employment conditions check.
A probationary period may apply during the first year of employment and induction and support programs provided.
Eligibility for incentive payments:
- The successful candidate is committing to a minimum of 1 year employment at this school
- The successful candidate will not be a Graduate Teacher Incentive recipient from a previous vacancy
- The successful candidate must not be employed as a teacher by the Department at the time the advertised position is to commence
Detailed information on all terms and conditions of employment is available on the Department's Human Resources website at http://www.education.vic.gov.au/hrweb/Pages/default.aspx
To be eligible for employment, transfer or promotion in the principal or teacher class a person must have provisional or full registration from the Victorian Institute of Teaching. In addition, from 3 August 2020, to be eligible for employment in the principal class or teacher class, a person who graduated from a Victorian Initial Teacher Education program after 1 July 2016, must demonstrate that they have passed the literacy and numeracy test for initial teacher education (LANTITE) requirements. This condition is satisfied where the LANTITE requirement is part of the Victorian Initial Teacher Education program completed by the person.
