Department of Education Victoria – Sydney Western Suburbs NSW
6d ago, from Department of Education & Training Victoria
Located in Melbourne's Western suburbs, Sunshine Special Developmental School (SDS) offers a unique and innovative learning environment for students aged from 5‑18 years with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities. Sunshine SDS is a P‑12 school and is organised around a Primary and Secondary Learning Centre Model. The school is home to a wide range of students from diverse nationalities and cultural backgrounds. Our Vietnamese community is strong, and we welcome an increasing number of Burmese and African families into our learning community.
Sunshine SDS has an enrolment of 200 students and a staff complement of: 4 Principals, 2 Learning Specialists, 2 Leading Teachers, 1 Disability Inclusion Leader, 1 Learning Behaviour Specialist, 28 Teachers and 75 Education Support Staff.
Our teaching and learning programs are tailored to meet the individual needs of students and include the use of the ABLES (Abilities Based Learning and Education Support). The teaching and learning of the school are driven by data that is used to establish priority learning goals for students and to report on progress. Learning is aligned to the Victorian Curriculum, with an emphasis on English, Mathematics, Personal and Social Capability. The school delivers curriculum through a variety of engaging, hands‑on contexts for learning. Some of these programmes include play‑based learning, an Electives programme and Intensive Interaction. Students participate in specialist programmes to provide appropriate enrichment and stimulation. These include Visual Art, Performing Arts, Physical Education and Learn To Play.
The school's team of Allied Health Professionals form a vital part of the support for all students and staff. The team includes Speech Pathologists, Occupational Therapists, a Physiotherapist, and Allied Health Assistants. The school also has a full‑time nurse to provide additional support for both students and families.
Values: LEARNING | COLLABORATION | RESPECT | COURAGE | PERSISTENCE
Selection Criteria
* SC1: Demonstrated knowledge of the relevant curriculum, including the ability to incorporate the teaching of literacy and numeracy skills. Demonstrated experience in responding to student learning needs.
* SC2: Demonstrated experience in planning for and implementing high‑impact teaching strategies, guided by how students learn, and evaluating the impact of learning and teaching programmes on student learning growth.
* SC3: Demonstrated experience in monitoring and assessing student learning. Demonstrated experience in using data to inform teaching practice and providing feedback on student learning growth and achievement to students and parents.
* SC4: Demonstrated interpersonal and communication skills. Demonstrated experience in establishing and maintaining collaborative relationships with students, parents, colleagues and the broader school community to support student learning, agency, wellbeing and engagement.
* SC5: Demonstrated behaviours and attitudes consistent with Department values. Demonstrated experience in reflecting upon practice and engaging in professional learning to continually improve the quality of teaching.
Role
Learn to Play Teacher: We are looking for a passionate and empathetic special education teacher to deliver our play‑based programme, Learn 2 Play. This programme uses play‑based learning to help children develop their pretend‑play skills and social interactions. We aim to provide opportunities for students with additional needs to develop play skills that allow them to explore the world and learn about themselves. We use pretend play to improve multiple areas of child development, including language, self‑regulation, social interactions and problem‑solving.
We highly value and appreciate applicants with experience and passion for students with learning needs. The successful teacher will be working with the specialist team, providing time release for classroom staff, by taking 1‑hour sessions for a range of classes from foundation to grade 4 in our primary area. The successful candidate will join an enthusiastic, passionate team of educators at our school. Our classrooms have no more than 10 students and teachers are supported by on average 2 education support staff per classroom. Each classroom is also supported by a timetabled team including Speech Pathologist, Occupational Therapist, Allied Health Assistant. We follow the Victorian Curriculum and report to families each semester. Assessment is done via formative assessment as well as using Crosschecks and staff report against the Victorian standards; students are usually graded from A to D and some have access to curriculum from F to 2. Teaching staff also are provided with 4 hours of time release through our specialist programme that includes Physical Education, Visual and Performing Arts, Learn 2 Play and Kitchen Garden. Staff work in collaborative teams and are supported by Leading Teachers and Learning Specialists for additional 40 minutes weekly time release to focus on planning, assessment, PL and wellbeing. Like all schools, Sunshine SDS has an Instructional Model, a phonics programme in addition to a 1:1 AAC iPad programme to facilitate language acquisition.
Responsibilities
* Direct teaching of groups of students and individual students.
* Contributing to the development, implementation and evaluation of a curriculum area or other curriculum programme within the school.
* Undertaking other classroom teaching related and organisational duties as determined by the School Principal.
* Participating in activities such as parent‑teacher meetings, staff meetings, camps and excursions.
* Undertaking other non‑teaching supervisory duties.
Who May Apply
Teachers currently registered or eligible for registration with the Victorian Institute of Teaching and qualified to teach, and/or have demonstrated experience in the curriculum area(s) specified for the position.
Diversity and Inclusion
The department is committed to diversity and inclusion and developing a workforce that is representative of the community we serve. We value diversity and inclusion in all forms—culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQA+, 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 safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces is essential to high performance and promotes flexible work and diversity across all schools and Department workplaces. It is our policy to provide reasonable adjustments for staff with disability (see Workplace adjustment guidelines). Additional support and advice on the recruitment process is available to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander candidates from the Koorie Outcomes Division via
Applicants seeking part‑time employment are encouraged to apply for any teaching service position and, if successful, 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.
Child Safe Standards
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:
DE Values
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:
Other Information
Creating a supportive learning and inclusive environment where individuals feel valued.
Our School – Why work in Sunshine Special Developmental School?
At our school, the care and well‑being of our students and teachers come first. We foster a values‑based learning culture whilst supporting over 200 diverse students, ages 5‑18 years, with diagnosed moderate to severe intellectual disabilities.
Our unique and innovative learning programme is tailored to meet each student's individual needs. We use a play‑based and intensive interaction approach to enhance engagement and stimulated learning, offering activities like Visual Art, Library, Bike ED, Cooking, Life‑skills programme, Electives and Respectful Relationships.
The wellbeing, safety and engagement of our students, teachers and other professionals is essential to our continued success. We are committed to offering:
* Support for our students both in and out of the classroom through a dedicated team of teachers, education support staff and allied health professionals, a physiotherapist and a nurse.
* Intensive behaviour and wellbeing support for teachers to navigate complex situations.
* Training and development, induction in the first 6 weeks of starting the role. Staff are coached and mentored by a leading teacher and learning specialist as part of the teaching and learning team to support the pedagogical practice and engagement of students in the classroom.
* Ongoing professional learning is provided via school‑based PL, dedicated collaborative time as well as off‑site PL.
To discover more about us, please visit our website. We also offer school tours for interested applicants. Please contact the school directly to organise a suitable time.
You will need to provide a response to the Key Selection Criteria listed below along with a Resume/CV.
Conditions of Employment
* 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 programmes provided.
* Detailed information on all terms and conditions of employment is available on the Department's Human Resources website at:
Qualification Requirements
* The person must have provisional or full registration approved by the Victorian Institute of Teaching; and
* If the person completed an Australian postgraduate level initial teaching program or course of study on or after 1 January 2024, they must demonstrate that they have satisfactorily completed a postgraduate level accredited initial teacher education programme that has been accredited by an Australian State or Territory Teacher Regulatory Authority as satisfying the requirements of the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership 'Accreditation of initial teacher education programmes in Australia: Standards and Procedures'; and
* A person who graduated from a Victorian Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programme after 1 July 2016 must also 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 ITE programme completed by the person).
Details of qualification requirements as updated from time to time can be found at Recruitment in Schools.
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