Tips for writing a top teaching CV!!

One of the most important aspects in obtaining a teaching position is the ability to sell yourself to a Headteacher. Your initial impression with a prospective Headteacher will be through your CV. Consequently your CV could either get you an interview or relegate you to the not wanted list. These notes are designed to offer you some simple but effective advice in order to make you a stronger candidate. > How should I lay out my CV? There is no right or wrong way to present your CV to an employer/school, what is important is that your CV should be clear and concise, outlining achievements in your teaching career and interests. Your CV should focus on the requirements and attributes that the Headteacher wants as well as interests that are relevant to his/her school. Your CV should be between 23 pages in length. > What fields/categories should I include on my CV? Again, there are no right or wrong answers but the following points will go a long way to help. Do remember that your teaching experience should always be in reverse chronological order (i.e., your most recent post first). Name: Make sure your name is clear and visible at the top of the front page. You can include your name at the top or bottom of each further page should you wish to. Health/drivers licence/identity number/ mothers maiden name/marital status etc: Must not appear on the CV. Date of birth: Use date of birth as a heading as it is more appropriate than age. Address/phone/email: This is up to you, but when we send out your CV to schools we delete this information. Education: University qualifications only. You must include the University name and the city in which the University is located. Any other certificates should be included in a separate section towards the end of your CV in something like Awards and Certificates. Once again the entries must be in reverse chronological order. E.g.: 2002 Bachelor of Education, University of Western Sydney 2000 Bachelor of Arts, Monash University, Melbourne Employment: This is obviously the most crucial section of the CV, it is here where you highlight your strengths and experiences. You should clearly label each position with a date range. For example, to write 1999 2000 assumes you worked 1 full year, however Jan 1999 July 2000 is 18 months. E.g.: January 2000 July 2001, Marabong High School, Sydney

Include the name of the school, the city and country. Make sure you state the year level you were teaching, subjects, any areas of responsibility, programmes you were involved in developing, special needs in your class etc. If you have been teaching for quite a few years, pay more attention to the most recent posts and simply list the schools, dates and grades as the years go back. Ensure that you do not leave any gaps in your employment history as this will be picked up during the interview. Professional Development: Any courses relating to teaching you have taken and the approximate dates of these. Once again these must be relevant to your role as a teacher. E.g.: July 2002 Implementing Circle time in the Primary school > What other areas are important to include on my CV? Here are some suggestions that you may want to include in your CV that will help you in your quest for an interview. These are extras and must be placed after your teaching experience. Awards and certificates: Can be activities both in and out of school. Interests: This will tell the Headteacher a little more about your extra curricular interests and could be exactly what the Head is looking for. Voluntary experience: This does not have to be teaching related but if it is, I would direct it towards the top end of your CV. Include the names of organisations (or even schools) and dates that you were involved with them. You may want to include any camps or summer programmes. However, if it is not entirely relevant to a teaching post, do remember to keep it brief. SEN experience: If you are looking to get into special needs, you may have had experience babysitting your autistic cousin or tutoring children with learning difficulties. This is all highly relevant experience to show why you have an appreciation and interest in the special needs environment. You must remember to keep it brief. References: There is no reason why you need to include this on your CV. You may end up sending the same CV to numerous employers and you may not want to give each and every potential employer these details as some could very well take the liberty of contacting these referees prior to your authorisation. Why not simply say References are available on request and if an employer asks you for them directly (such as ourselves) you can always give the details of the appropriate referees. > What can I do with my CV if I am a Newly Qualified Teacher? Teaching practice: If you are a newly qualified teacher, list the schools you have been placedin, what year levels you worked with and anything particular about the school that will enhance your credentials. You may want to include a teaching statement that encompasses your ideals, reasons and approach to teaching.

This can also be done if you are looking for a slight change in direction (i.e., special needs, EAL, support work, key stage level change, etc.) It is always nice to have some sort of statement that tells your prospective employer about you and where your interests in teaching lie.

CURRICULUM VITAE FORMAT Joanne Bloggs

Address : Ground Floor Flat 59 Axminster Rd Islington London N7 6 BP Telephone : 020 7272 7070 Date of birth : 23.10.1970

PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES This section should be used to list about 4/5 positive points about yourselfprofessionally and personally.
I am a flexible individual, aware of the.. I rise to the challenge . I regard myself as a . These are some suggested prompts. Please feel free to substitute them with ones that you feel are more appropriate.

CURRENT EMPLOYMENT Start with the job you are currently working in.
September 2000 Present Earlsmeade Primary, Surrey Class Teacher

( You can write a brief paragraph here, detailing your job description. Include here your responsibilities as well as how you do your planning; whether you work in a team of teachers etc) Achievements: Use bullet-points to list a couple of achievements you are proud of! My pupils have achieved 98% pass rate of C average or above. I have coached the regional winners of the under-13 football league etc

PREVIOUS EMPLOYMENT

Write brief descriptions of any other employment here. If you have been involved in a lot of temporary positions, try and combine them, under one heading, so that only the most important positions are listed and described.
September 99 August 00 Heartbreak High School, Kent

Taught English at Key Stage 3 and 4 (NCY7 10). Acting Head of Drama department. Taught across the Key Stages, including preparing the GCSE drama group for their exams. Planned and co-delivered the Literacy Summer School which was the basis for the implementation of the National Literacy Policy into NCY7 curriculum.

April 99 July 99

A* Teachers , London

Day-to-day supply teacher. Teacher New Zealand

March 93 December 98

I taught for four years at secondary level, teaching English and History to 12 16 year olds. I then moved to Primary environment where I taught English, History and PE to 9 12 year olds.

EDUCATION Begin with your tertiary qualifications and follow up with your school qualifications. These sections are intended to be incredibly brief, unless you are newly-qualified and then you might include more about your teaching qualifications.
Johannesburg College of Education Higher Diploma in Education Marist Brothers College Matriculation References available on request Some helpful hints: This is meant purely as a guide and a suggestion as to what, in our experience, headteachers look for in a CV. Your CV should not be more than 2 pages. It should be easy to read and aesthetically pleasing ie: use bold to highlight certain issues and ensure that everything is lined up. Make sure you have spaces between each section, so that it doesnt appear to be squashed and try to draw the readers eye down the page. Make sure you dont leave any gaps in your employment history. If you have any other interests or experience add them in at the end. DO A SPELL CHECK TO CORRECT ANY MISTAKES Johannesburg, South Africa 1993

Johannesburg, South Africa

1985