Sophia Zafar

- Diligent, organised and dedicated professional with excellent attention to detail and a passion for education.
- Offering 9 years of teaching experience in co-ed and single-sex, inner-city London secondary schools.
- Head of Department in an Outstanding school since 2017.

About me :
· Consistently graded Outstanding practitioner - all lessons have been graded Outstanding in every Performance Management Cycle in my 8 years of teaching for all abilities and ages (11-18).
· Achieved above national average outcomes for students – From 2016 to 2019, all students in my department achieved 100% Grade 9-4 (GCSE pass), over 30% higher than the national average.
· Designed curriculum for ages 11-18, to support National Framework - MP Harriet Harman described my Year 7 Italian lesson as “impressive” which was later published on her twitter page following a school visit.
· Actively led transformation in subject area - In my decision to enter 97% of students for a Languages GCSE was congratulated by the Minister of State for School Standards as being “exceptional,” putting my department in the top 3% of the country, at a time when language learning popularity was on the decline for being too academic.
· Delivered successful results for students with Special Educational Needs (SEN) – in July 2019, my intervention secured extra English support, non-verbal cognitive test and access to the school counsellor. 100% of SEN students were on/above target as a result of these measures.
· Analysed assessment data to monitor progress and set targets – using data to analyse exam results, devised strategies/support plans for teachers in the department and tackled underachievement on a termly basis. July 2019, pass rate increased from 60% in December mock exams to 100% in Summer national exams, as a result of the additional classes, study clubs and group support I put in place.
· Created and delivered whole-school training – presented to over 100 members of staff on Ofsted Framework and Teaching practice. An example was praised in the school newsletter for being a “detailed and inspiring assembly on diversity.”