Your Teaching Position


The Inspired Teacher Certification Program prepares Fellows in three areas: Early Childhood (PK-3); Elementary (1-6).

For all teachers, the school day typically starts before 8 am, and the teaching day continues until at least 3:30, with many charter schools having extended hours. After school you may have staff or committee meetings, school or district professional development sessions, or parent meetings. In the first year of teaching, long evenings spent planning and reviewing student work, in addition to certification program coursework, are the norm. The first year of teaching is an incredible amount of work.


 

Residency Year

Residents are vital members of the professional community and serve as critical sources of support for lead teachers in the academic and social curriculum. Duties include planning lessons and learning expeditions with experienced teachers; working with students in small-group or one-on-one settings; accompanying students on fieldwork; and communicating with parents. The position also includes ongoing training in the skills and dispositions of an effective educator working in a collaborative setting.


Residents will study under a Lead Teacher for the entirety of the school year and engage in Inspired Teaching’s innovative, content-focused coursework. This intensive experience will allow teachers to immerse themselves in best teaching practices for a full year with the guidance and support of an experienced teacher who models exceptional instructional approaches as well as the habits of professional collaboration.

Residents will be placed at one of two DC Charter Schools that are aligned with Center for Inspired Teaching’s philosophies and mission for their first year of teaching.


Inspired Teaching Demonstration Public Charter School

Center for Inspired Teaching was approved by the DC Public Charter School Board to open the Inspired Teaching Demonstration Public Charter School in 2011. In its inaugural year (2011-2012,) the school will serve students from age 3 through third grade. The powerful combination of student and teacher learning at the Inspired Teaching PCS creates a dynamic school in which students experience more than what the average school provides. At the Inspired Teaching School students will excel in traditional academic subjects; students will use imagination and inquiry to build their critical thinking; and the school will be a place where students thrive and are joyful academically, socially, and emotionally.


The goals for  students are centered around four principles: Intellect, Inquiry, Imagination, Integrity. Students will master content in Reading & Literature, Communication & the Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies—and have the ability to apply their knowledge to relevant and current situations, problems, and experiences; students will develop the skills of a researcher, using their intellectual curiosity to pose and solve problems; students will exhibit the skills of divergent thinkers, with the courage to create, the willingness to approach problems with a joyful spirit, and the ability to play; and students will develop the skills and dispositions necessary to function as members of a democratic society.

 

Capital City Public Charter School

Capital City Public Charter School is an award-winning school of choice recognized as a national model for school reform. In 2008, the school had the highest reading and math scores among DC charter elementary schools, and was honored by a visit from President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. Capital City implements the Expeditionary Learning Model (www.elschools.org) in tandem with the Common Principles of the Coalition of Essential Schools (www.essentialschools.org). These approaches emphasize active pedagogy, depth over breadth, a strong social curriculum, and a commitment to equity and diversity. Capital City also boasts a strong inclusion model for learners with special needs. The school serves a highly diverse student population from across the city.


Capital City routinely fills full-time teaching vacancies with Fellows-in-Residence; currently, more than half of the Lower School lead teachers are former Residents.


Fellowship Year

Upon successful completion of the Residency year, participants become Inspired Teaching Fellows, who are eligible to teach in traditional or public charter schools within the District of Columbia. Fellows who teach in DCPS should anticipate beginning full-time teaching in late August and will be expected to report for district and school-based training approximately two weeks before students return to school. The DCPS academic calendar is available on their website. Academic calendars for charter and independent schools vary widely, often beginning prior to the DCPS school year. Charter school calendars are generally available on the school’s website.

Inspired Teaching will work to cluster small groups of Inspired Teaching Fellows at schools that have demonstrated a commitment to student-centered learning and a professional learning community approach to teacher development. Building on the relationships we have built principals throughout the city over the past 16 years, Inspired Teaching will actively support prospective teachers in finding the best fit possible at a DC school.


In the end, however, participants have the right and responsibility to secure their own teaching placement.