Preparing for Interviews and Job Fairs
Be Prepared for These Common Interview Questions Dr. Thomas A. Kersten Dr. Allison Slade Professor Emeritus, Roosevelt University, Illinois Director of Instructional Leadership, Roosevelt University, Illinois
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ne of the most exciting aspects of the job search process, especially for candidates completing their teacher education programs, is receiving a call for a personal interview. Whether the interview is in person or remote, you want to be as prepared as possible to respond well to questions you will be asked. Hiring administrators put great weight on the interview component. To help you be as prepared as possible, we surveyed almost 4,000 elementary, middle school, high school, and public charter school principals to identify questions administrators would most likely ask teacher candidates. Summarized below is a synthesized list of the most common questions.
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How do you differentiate classroom instruction to accommodate all students?
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What is the number one factor that contributes to student learning??
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What would you do with a student who continually fails to complete homework?
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What do you see as the single most important variable impacting student learning?
Classroom Culture Management
Getting to Know You
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ü What is the most important reason that you went into teaching?
How do you create a classroom climate where students are excited to come each day?
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If I walked into your classroom during an outstanding lesson, what would I see?
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What is your experience with positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS)?
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How do you feel about noise in the classroom?
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Describe the toughest disciplinary situation you encountered and how you handled it?
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If you were having classroom management difficulties, when and whom would you ask for help?
ü What is it about this position that attracted you? ü Describe a personal experience that had an impact on your teaching? ü If I were to ask your most challenging students to describe you in three words, what would they say? ü What would your worst critic say about you? ü What are you most passionate about? ü What makes you the best candidate for this position?
Interpersonal/Communication Skills
Equity & Inclusion ü
What experiences have you had working with diverse groups of students?
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Describe a time when you had a conflict with someone. What was the situation and what was the result?
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If confronted by an angry parent (or colleague) on an issue, how would you respond?
How do you create a classroom environment that recognizes cultural diversity?
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How important is it to be liked by your students?
How have your life experiences shaped your understanding of students and families from diverse cultural backgrounds?
How would your students know that you genuinely cared about them?
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How do you accommodate students with special needs?
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When is it appropriate to talk about your co-workers?
How would respond to a student or colleague who made a racially/culturally insensitive comment?
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Have you ever taken part in a conversation about race/culture in an educational setting? If yes, describe the conversation and how you reacted to it.
Instruction & Assessment ü
If I walked into your classroom on a typical day, what would I observe?
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What instructional strategies have you found most effective?
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How do you know if your lesson was successful?
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With the recent increased use of remote/online instruction, what have you learned about how to make it an effective instructional tool?
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What specific online platforms have you used with remote instruction?
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What are the most important components of a balanced literacy program?
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Describe an assessment tool that you’ve found to be highly effective for measuring achievement?
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How do you measure student success?
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Tell me about a student who did not make the growth you had anticipated. If you taught this student again, what would you do
58 American Association for Employment in Education
Personal Development & Self-Reflection ü
During your student teaching, what did you find most challenging?
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How do you judge whether you are successful in the classroom?
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Describe the best lesson you ever taught and explain why it was great.
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Describe the most effective professional program you have experienced.
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What was the biggest mistake you have made as a teacher?
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What have you read lately or what professional development program have you attended that led you to make a change in your teaching?
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Describe a challenge you faced during student teaching and what you learned from it.
