i went on my eighth interview a week ago and didn't get the job. i decided to email the principal and ask him for some feedback. i figured why not...if i haven't gotten a job after eight interviews i might as well ask! so he actually replied (Shock!) and said a few things. he told me a lot of positive things (knowledge of balanced literacy and assessment). what he told me to improve was: express more how I would interact with and build relationships with children. Let the passion I have about students and teaching become more apparent in my answers. mmhmm,mmhmm. any advice on how to do that?!
I'm not sure how to do it. Just remember you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Here I am trying to give advice and I have been on more interviews then I can count. I would love to hear more responses.
I think that the key to any kind of behavior management system is building positive relationships with your students. Maybe you could incorporate that into any questions on classroom management.
maybe give some concrete examples of working with a special student or a difiicult situation in which you turned it around. At my last interview, I was asked specifically how I handled a difficult ED child.
I don't know if you've read Love and Logic.. but the author stresses that it is incredibly important to build positive relationships with students and to let them know that you care for them. I talked about L and L in my interviews, and it was successful. If you looked into that, that would be a way to wiggle in developing positive relationships with students.
i just answered how it would be used in my classroom and my experience with it since they use in the school. and i definitely discussed building positive relationships. i guess i should have used more examples.
When I interviewed for a job as a chef instructor, I adapted my elementary teaching portfolio to culinary arts. In addition to having pictures of former classrooms, I included an award winning recipe, pictures of food that I've prepared, and culinary activities from the 3rd grade that were used to reinforce the teaching of math measurement skills and reading/following sequential directions. As the interviewing committee asked questions about my experience, I used the portfolio to illustrate my responses. My body language and tone of voice was enthusiastic, warm, and encouraging. I leaned forward in my seat, smiled, and made eye contact as I elaborated on various points. I am not by nature a very gregarious person, but I've been told that I can become quite animated when I discuss subjects of interest. In other words, when it comes to teaching and food, I am "passionate." Passion is something that administrators like to see. When it boils down to filling a vacancy and an administrator has four applications for the job - how does this person make a hiring decision if the applicants all have roughly the same experience? Administrators look for passion. They look for teachers who will be dedicated to their jobs. They want to hire people who will go the extra mile for their students. Some educators will tell you that teaching is "scientific." They point to educational research regarding various teaching methodologies and use educational psychology to discuss the best approaches for instructing children. I agree to some extent with this point of view ... but I also believe that teaching is an art or craft. I think that good teachers make a personal connection with their students. To me, teaching is not just a matter of educational methodologies or understanding the concept of multiple intelligences. As far as I'm concerned, it all boils down to two things: communication and caring. We have GOT to be able to get our instructional messages over to the students. We have GOT to be able to metaphorically reach into their souls, grab their attention, and get that proverbial light bulb to go off over their heads. We can't do this unless we're effective communicators. We also can't do this if we don't care about our kids. If teaching is just a job, why teach? Why not work for a bank? The hours would be better and the pay would also be better once you were promoted from being a teller. I think that teachers who are passionate about their jobs are not just people who teach for a living. They are also people who have embraced teaching as a way of life. Last winter I'm sorry to say that I lost one of my cats. My cat, Charlie, died after an agonizing but blessedly short illness. When a friend told me about some kittens who were going to be put down if nobody adopted them, I went to the local shelter. I didn't necessarily want another cat. Charlie had after all, been one of a kind. I couldn't replace Charlie the way I could replace a burned out light bulb ... but the thought of kittens being put down because nobody wanted them really bothered me. While waiting to see the kittens, a six year old kid asked me about a fountain display in the office. I found myself explaining about electric pumps and how the pump pushed the water up to the top of the waterfall. I showed him the water reservoir, the tubing that led to the top, and the electrical line for the pump. Part of me forgot why I was at the shelter ... and when I turned around I found the parents and an animal control officer standing at the counter with a huge grin on their faces. "You're a teacher, aren't you?" asked the father. I smiled and had to admit that I was.
