Organization Overview

The mission of Citizens of the World Los Angeles (CWC LA) is to provide a socio-economically, culturally, and racially diverse community of students in Los Angeles with an intellectually challenging, experiential learning environment that develops each student's confidence, potential, and individual responsibility as citizens of the world. CWC schools:

• Service a socioeconomically, culturally, and racially diverse community;
• Develop students’ social and emotional skills to prepare them to become citizens of the world in an ever-changing future; and
• Promote academic rigor through a constructivist, project-based learning approach, to support and develop children’s natural intellectual curiosity

CWC LA has a Regional Support Office that supports all CWC LA schools. We work with our network partners at Citizens of the World Charter Schools, linking the schools in Los Angeles to CWC schools in other parts of the country.

Our core values are embraced by the entire community:

• Excellence: we demand lasting quality
• Diversity: we are better and stronger because of our differences
• Authenticity: we are our true selves in this work, and we are candid
• Community: we care deeply about people. We share and build partnerships. We celebrate, laugh, and seek joy, even in the tough times
• Change: we welcome the unknown, embracing the unexpected and new. We adapt to meet the ever-changing times. We find new ways

Position Description

The Teaching Associate is an experienced and innovative elementary school educator who is energized by our unique charter school environment. Teaching Associates will be expected to work with a Lead Teacher to implement a high-quality, rigorous and engaging academic program. In addition, Teaching Associates must have a passion for and interest in pedagogical practices grounded in constructivism, project-based learning and the multiple intelligences theory.

A Teaching Associate’s job responsibilities include:

• Ongoing assessment of student progress and achievement using a variety of means to collect and report on academic data
• Use of data to tailor instruction to meet individual student academic and social needs
• Support the creation of a strong classroom culture that is developed through CWC’s social-emotional learning focus, and contributes to the broader school community

• Participation in professional development activities, both internal (led by the principal, lead teachers, and visiting experts) and external (visiting other schools, attending conferences, and engaging in best practice sharing with others in the charter school community, etc.)
• Collaboration with other Teaching Associates to plan school-wide community events

• Frequent communication and engagement with students’ families, colleagues, and other school stakeholders, as coordinated and led by the Lead Teacher
• Creating and facilitating social-emotional learning (SEL) lessons with groups of students that help facilitate student interrelational and human development
• Supervision of meals and recess, leading students in an active play designed to facilitate social, emotional, and cognitive development
• Participation as an active member of the community to provide stewardship of the school and adherence to its mission and guiding principles
• Facilitation of conflict resolution strategies when conflicts arise

• Maintenance of a high level of professionalism, exhibited by meeting deadlines, and commitments to self, students, and the community
• Facilitation of instructional safe, fun, and inclusive Physical Education/Active Playtime (site-by-site basis)
• Other duties, as assigned by the Lead Teacher or school administration

Candidates must have the following:

• An AA degree or two years of college with a minimum of 48 semester units.
• Some experience working in relevant elementary grades, or other high-quality educational settings
• Experience working in a socio-economically, racially, and culturally diverse classroom setting

The ideal candidate will also have:

• A California multiple-subject credential or demonstrated progress toward attaining one
• Fluency in a second language (ideally Spanish or Korean)

Skills/Traits

A Teaching Associate must have:

• Maturity, humility, strong work ethic, sense of humor, and a can-do attitude
• Personal investment in creating a classroom in which social-emotional learning is the foundation of culture
• The belief that all students can learn and achieve at high levels and the willingness to support all learners to do so
• Ability to effectively manage and instruct both small and large groups of students
• An exhibited ability to work with children in a caring and respectful manner in order to create a joyful, caring classroom environment where instructional time includes community building, conflict resolution, skill-building, and empowering students to be peacemakers and agents for positive social change
• Strong communication skills, verbally and in writing, and the ability to effectively use those skills to engage a diverse audience
• Enthusiasm for the opportunities and challenges inherent to working with school-aged children