Open to opportunities

Candice Steytler

@candicesteytler

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Strategic academic leader driving curriculum innovation and teacher development.

South Africa

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What I'm looking for

I seek a senior academic role where I can lead curriculum innovation, scale teacher development, strengthen safeguarding/SEND, and drive measurable learner outcomes within a collaborative, mission-driven organisation.

I am a strategic and operational educational leader with deep experience in academic leadership, curriculum design, teacher development, safeguarding, and international programme implementation.

As Head of Academics at Purple Ruler, I transformed instructional quality—lifting lesson scores from 3.2 to 4.6/5—built QA frameworks, and delivered KS3–KS4 UK schemes and U.S. K–8 courseware for multiple programmes with 100% standards compliance.

I have led safeguarding and SEND work as Deputy DSL and functional SENDCo, running case reviews, training staff, and reducing escalations by 40%, while also designing centralised exam and assessment systems that cut teacher prep time 45% and improved marking consistency 60%.

I combine cross‑functional leadership with HR and operations experience—managing recruitment and onboarding for 120+ teaching roles, improving teacher utilisation and retention, and authoring policies—always focused on scalable, measurable learner impact.

Experience

Work history, roles, and key accomplishments

Current

Head of Academics

Current

PurpleRuler

Nov 2023 - Present (2 years)

Transformed instructional quality and QA frameworks across UK, USA and AP programs, raising average lesson scores from 3.2 to 4.6/5 and boosting participation from 68% to 88%. Led curriculum design (KS3–KS4 and U.S. K–8), delivered a centralized exam and assessment platform that cut teacher prep time 45%, and managed safeguarding and SEND case reviews reducing escalations 40%.

Curriculum Design Quality Assurance Teacher Training Assessments Edtech Program Management

HR Manager Operations Manager

PurpleRuler

Mar 2023 - Nov 2023 (8 months)

Managed recruitment and onboarding for 120+ teaching roles, reducing ramp-up time 30% and achieving 95% 90-day retention; reallocated staff to improve utilization from 68% to 92% and implemented HR policies that cut policy queries 70%.

Recruitment Onboarding HR Policies Resource Allocation Performance Monitoring Compliance People Management

English, Geography, History and ESL Teacher

PurpleRuler

Jan 2023 - Apr 2023 (3 months)

Prepared and delivered British-curriculum online lessons (Year 7–11), following iPGCE standards and improving learner engagement through curriculum-aligned instruction.

IPGCE Secondary Education Lesson planning ESL Student Engagement Remote Teaching

ESL Assistant Director of Studies

EnglishFirst

Apr 2018 - Feb 2020 (1 year 10 months)

Oversaw 20+ teachers and 700 students, ran bi-weekly observations and CPD to raise teaching quality, led recruitment and transitioned classes online within two weeks maintaining 80% attendance.

Observations & CPD Recruitment Online Teaching Transition Mentoring Parent engagement

Education

Degrees, certifications, and relevant coursework

Sheffield Hallam University

International Postgraduate Certificate in Education (iPGCE), Education / Postgraduate Certificate in Education

Activities and societies: Prepared and delivered online lessons following the British curriculum; taught mixed-age secondary cohorts.

Completed an international postgraduate Certificate in Education (iPGCE) delivering British curriculum lessons for Years 7–11 in Geography, History and English.

goFluent

TEFL/TESOL (150-hour), TESOL / TEFL

2022 - 2022

Grade: Grade A (Masters course noted)

Activities and societies: Delivered live Business English sessions and assessed learner progress.

Completed a 150-hour TEFL/TESOL course while delivering Business English training to global clients.

Cambridge Assessment / Cambridge Teaching Qualifications

Cambridge TKT Modules 1–3; CLIL (Tier 3); Young Learners, English Language Teaching

2018 - 2021

Activities and societies: Undertook teacher training modules to support classroom practice and assessment.

Completed multiple Cambridge TKT and CLIL tiered modules and Young Learners training to support English language teaching and assessment.

English First (EF) / Global Language Training

ESL Teaching Qualifications / Professional Experience, English as a Second Language (ESL)

2017 - 2021

Activities and societies: Mentored staff, ran observations and CPD, converted courses online, and led parental engagement and extracurricular programs.

Taught ESL across multiple roles including Senior Teacher and Assistant Director of Studies, delivering instruction for learners aged 4–17 and managing teacher development.

Stellenbosch University

Bachelor of Arts, History, Geography, English Literature

2013 - 2016

Grade: Cum Laude

Activities and societies: Assessed learners with CEFR tools; led curriculum and extracurricular initiatives; involved in recruitment and training activities during studies.

Completed a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities with a triple major in History, Geography and English Literature, graduating Cum Laude.