The Lower School Staff consists of highly-qualified teachers, assistants and specialists from Peru and around the world.

The Tutor is the primary caretaker of the emotional and developmental needs of the pupils. The Tutor is also responsible for working with pupils on topics within a special pastoral care programme. In Primary 2 there is one teaching assistant per tutor group; in Primary 3 there are two rotating teaching assistants (1 English & 1 Spanish) where needed; in Primary 4 & 5 there are three rotating teaching assistants (1 English, 1 Spanish and 1 Maths) where needed.

There are also specialist teachers for each of the following areas: Music, Art, Science, Information Technology, Physical Education, Drama, Maths (P4 & P5) and Religion.

 

New methodologies

All teachers in Lower School participate in collaborative projects where they can choose an area of focus. In 2018 the focus is on inquiry and problem-based learning:

• strategies for fostering collaboration
• using technology in transformative ways
• transitioning from information-giver to facilitator/coach
• teacher questioning for problem-based learning
• real-world learning/authentic assessment
• strategies for getting students thinking
• planning for Problem Based Learning (PBL)
• strategies to help students pose questions
• exploring case studies of PBL/Skills-Based Learning in action around the world
• strategies for developing student creativity and innovation

 

Teachers may select areas of interest from these focus areas and work with their colleagues to investigate and trial new practices and strategies. The collaborative project groups hold regular feedback sessions where they share their learning. We encourage teachers to observe other teachers’ classrooms to see how these new methods can apply to their own teaching.

 

The most successful learnings are shared with the whole-school teaching community in an end-of-year fair where they present their year-long projects.

 

On-going training

We support our staff’s ongoing training in different ways:

• we organise yearly In-Service Education and Training (INSET) trainings where international teacher trainers are invited to speak a focus topic
• we organise bimestral INSET trainings where local teachers share their knowledge and expertise and/or report back on a course they have taken, based on the section needs
• in monthly departmental meetings, staff discuss how to improve teaching and learning
• we host a dedicated staff library with specialist material
• the Teaching and Learning newsletter is shared with all staff. It includes the latest educational research
• we have a Teaching and Learning website for staff that includes resources and information to help them stay up to date
• there are departmental blogs where teachers share ideas and hold useful discussions with their peers