Do you know how you would answer this interview question: What are your thoughts on team teaching?

Have you been asked this question at a teacher interview before?

I am sure many of you have participated in team-teaching and realize the benefits of this strategy. The interviewer who asks this question wants to discover if you are flexible, enjoy working in a team environment, experience this area, and what your viewpoints are on the subject.

It is always wise to speak about some of the positive aspects of team-teaching, such as:

It is an effective strategy for teaching large groups of students.

Team teaching encourages teachers to collaborate and generate ideas—a perfect opportunity to learn from each other. As the saying goes, two heads are always better than one! Talk about the team-teaching experiences you had and the positive results that transpired.

If you haven’t had any hands-on experience, explain that you enjoy working in a team setting and are excited about the possibility of participating in extracurricular activities or team teaching. You have done some reading on the subject and can share some of the insights you gained with the interviewers.

It is vitally important to be honest when answering all questions during an interview. Organizing your thoughts in advance will help you deliver truthful and concise responses while highlighting the skills you possess that are most compatible with the school or district’s needs.

If you would like to learn about many other interview questions and see possible answers to them, look into our valuable interview resources.

What is your professional brand? A vital component of your career and job search is creating a brand relevant to education and communicates your authenticity.

It’s essential in your job search that the information schools find about you online is positive and professional. Many school hiring representatives will Google or search LinkedIn for their potential candidates to find personal and professional information about them. It’s important what they read is uplifting, relevant, and helpful.

You don’t want schools reading your inappropriate blog posts or Facebook pages. This type of information has cost applicants jobs. In some cases, it has even cost them a chance at an interview.

Now, before you go erasing your Facebook account and canceling your blog, the problem isn’t necessarily that these pages exist; you also need professional context to counteract and overshadow these personal pages while also ensuring that there is no damaging content on your personal pages.

Steps to Communicate a Positive Professional Brand

It will help your job search if schools can find your professional information to learn about your professional highlights, passions, goals, and accomplishments. A quick fix to keep your personal information more private is to tighten up the privacy settings on your MySpace, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and blog, etc.

Don’t write or post anything you wouldn’t want a potential school or parent/student to find. Think twice before posting pictures of yourself at a bar or the beach. This is not only detrimental to you in your job search, but you may not want this type of personal image of you floating around cyberspace at all.

This same rule applies to personal posts. Don’t post anything that you wouldn’t want a school principal to read. Don’t swear, discuss controversial topics, or make inappropriate comments. Develop a positive personal and professional brand by never posting negatively about your job, school district, students, or parents.

There have been many stories in the news about teachers being terminated for details they’ve posted on Facebook about their students or their school. Even though it should be obvious not to post something of this nature publicly, educators have gotten into trouble when they send ‘private’ correspondence. Just remember that nothing is ever truly private when it’s on the internet.

Teachers are held to a higher standard by the public because of their type of work, which includes your online personal identity.

Next, focus on the professional side of things. Build your professional brand by using branding tools such as LinkedIn, WordPress, and VisualCV. These will help you in your networking and making you visible to potential schools. Create a web presence by building a website and keeping a blog focused on your professional life or is specific to teaching.

Post your teaching portfolio online if you feel comfortable doing so. What a great way to improve your online identity and grow your professional brand at the same time!

Once you’ve built a professional brand, remember that you will need to work at it. It is an ongoing effort that will pay off in dividends.

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Integrating technology into the classroom is integral to students’ education and is transforming the way students learn in the classroom.

Today’s students are born into technology-heavy environments and are brought up knowing how to technology with ease. As a result, sometimes students have a greater understanding of technology than their teachers. Students’ reliance on technology helps drive the demand for integrating technology into the classroom.

Incorporating technology into the classroom helps students learn how to use the technology and teaches them how to approach projects and problem-solve creatively. There are resources and information available to help teachers incorporate technology into their classroom environments.

Integrating Technology into the Classroom Tips

Gain the Knowledge and Teaching Skills

Ensure you are knowledgeable about what you are teaching. Just like you need to be an expert on your subject matter, you need to know what technology you are using in your classroom.

Your students will likely be technology-savvy; you will need to know at least as much as they do. If you need to brush up on your technology skills or gain a better understanding of a particular skill like Twitter or SMART boards, then you can take professional development courses.

Additionally, it’s important to brush up on the latest technology trends so that you can communicate on the same level as your technology-savvy students. Whether it’s learning about the latest social media or the newest computing trends like iPads, take some time each week to stay up-to-date.

Take Advantage of Available Resources

There are many avenues that you can use to help you incorporate technology into your classroom. For instance, school districts have professional development programs available to help you develop ideas, strengthen your technical skills, and introduce you to new technology resources.

You can also look to programs available through universities and corporate programs to expand technology options for teachers. As a school, you can also look at receiving a technology grant to help your entire school elevate its technology resources and evolve its technology integration.

Know Your Audience

To better connect with your students, find out what types of technology they use in their personal lives and which internet sites like Facebook or Pinterest are using. You can use this information to strengthen your students’ connection and integrate this knowledge into your everyday classroom activities.

Set Realistic Goals for Integrating Technology

Establishing effective methods of incorporating technology into the classroom is a process and cannot be done all at once. Keep your goals realistic, and don’t expect to transform your classroom overnight. Each teacher will approach it differently and at their own pace.

Depending on where you start, it may take you a while to get to your end goal. Just remain patient and make small steps to keep your goals attainable and the margin for error small. One thing is for sure; however, the digital student is here to stay and has changed the face of our 21st-century classrooms.

What is the Role of a Principal and an Assistant Principal?

When interviewing for any position in education, you may be asked to describe the roles of both the principal and the vice-principal in the school community. If you are applying to become one of these positions, the interviewers will want to make sure you understand the job’s ins and outs. If you are applying to become a teacher, the interviewers will be interested in knowing what you expect from your principal and vice-principal as a teacher. The answer you give to this question can also help interviewers determine whether you would fit in well with their school community and vision.

Consider the following when answering this question.

The assistant principal’s role includes supporting the school principal in the school’s general administration. In the school principal’s absence, the vice-principal takes over his/her responsibilities. The vice-principal completes any tasks assigned by the school principal, which can include but is not limited to: handling student discipline (usually); assisting with faculty meetings and teacher observations. Monitoring playgrounds and other school sites; interacting with parents; ordering supplies; coordinating student events; attending administrative meetings with or in place of the principal; handling truancy, advising the PTA, and chairing the Student Study Team for Special Education Placement.

A principal’s role is to provide overall leadership, direction, and coordination of the school community. He/She works as part of a School District Administrative Team to help schools implement and meet the district’s objectives. Developing and maintaining effective educational programs and improving teaching and learning within the school would be a high priority.

Furthermore, the school principal will support the school district superintendent and complete tasks assigned by them, managing and supervising teaching and support staff. Developing and overseeing all educational programs, including special education; budgeting, report writing, coordinating state reviews and evaluations; making sure all appropriate federal and state education laws are adhered to.

Enforcing student discipline; chairing faculty meetings; completing teacher observations and evaluations of teachers and support staff; planning and implementing curricular changes; evaluating test data. Monitoring playgrounds and other school sites; ensuring school campus safety;  interacting with parents and handling public relations; ordering supplies; coordinating student events and extracurricular activities; attending administrative meetings; handling truancy; advising the PTA; fund-raising; and chairing the Student Study Team for Special Education Placement.

When answering these questions, remember that you will only be able to go into so much detail and so state something to this fact in your response. It can also be highly beneficial to use an example in your answers. As a teacher, if you have an example of a principal providing the staff with great support, use this in your reply. And as a potential administrative candidate, you can do the same. By explaining the type of principal you value, you will be explaining to the interviewers the type of administrator you hope to emulate.

After a job interview, don’t stop the job search campaign. Interview follow-up is a critical step you can’t afford to overlook if you want to land an offer.

The interviewer has finished asking their questions, you’ve had a chance to ask the interviewers some questions, and now you are shaking hands and are walking out the door of the interview room. Now the interview process is over, and you have to wait.

No!

The interview process should not end when you walk out the door, and you should strive to ensure it doesn’t. There are a few things you should do to follow up after your education interview, and there could be information the school representatives will want from you to assist them in deciding who they should hire.

When the discussion is over, it is beneficial to ask the school principal the next step in the hiring process. For instance, will there be another round of interviews, a demo lesson plan, and when will they let you know when they’ve made a decision?

It’s essential to find out what your next contact with the school will be. Otherwise, the interview will be left up in the air, and you will be confused as to which follow-up steps you should take.

Determine who will be calling to arrange another meeting or to inform you of the decision. Sometimes the school will phone the candidates to let them know of their choice. Other times the school will leave it up to the candidates to phone and find out.

To keep yourself fresh in the school principal’s mind after your job interview, it is a great idea to send a thank you letter. Not only is it polite to thank your interviewer(s) for their time and consideration, it’s good to refresh the hiring panel about the skills and benefits you have to offer.

Write a professional thank you letter to bring up anything you didn’t explain fully during an interview or that you didn’t get to discuss what you think is valuable to the position.

The thank you letter serves to remind the interviewers of your interest in the position. Sometimes, after an interview, a candidate will change their mind about wanting the position. By sending a note, you will communicate to the interviewers you are motivated and interest in the job.

Send the thank you letter right after your interview within 24 hours if you want to take advantage of its maximum benefit.

If the hiring representative states at the end of the interview that they will call you within a particular time frame to let you know of their decision, make sure you are available to receive the call. If the administrator doesn’t call on this day, you should make a follow-up call. Not only will this let you know of the decision, but it will show your interest in the position.

Many schools will only call successful candidates, so call the school if a week or two go by without hearing anything. This may be your only way of finding out for sure whether or not you got the job. If you don’t get the position, thank them for the opportunity to interview. Confidently and politely ask for some feedback regarding the job interview and your credentials so that you can improve for your next meeting.

All of these little steps taken after an interview can mean the difference between gaining a dream teaching position and being disappointed. The job interview process isn’t over right after the meeting!

If you haven’t made any interviewing mistakes during your job interview, you could land a job offer.

Teaching abroad can be a fascinating and fulfilling career and an excellent learning experience. Are you wondering what kind of work experience and credentials you need to teach internationally?

This is a fundamental question to ask when looking into teaching abroad because there is conflicting and biased information. Some websites state that you need a certain certification to sell a course they are offering. Another reason for the conflicting information is that necessary qualifications change depending on which country you want to teach.

There are many critical things to keep in mind when considering teaching abroad. Let’s discuss some here.

Teaching Abroad Experience and Credentials Needed

Be Careful What Information You Trust

You may come across information about teaching abroad that states you need a degree in education, a license to teach, and two years of teaching experience. This is very misleading, as most of the time you will not need all three of these. Usually, you need some form of qualifications or experience. That being said, there are teaching opportunities for almost everyone.

If You Don’t Have the Experience—Don’t Panic.

If you don’t have two years’ teaching experience, you will need to search for job placements through advertisements instead of international teaching job fairs. One of the criteria for attending career fairs for teachers is having two years’ teaching experience. Without this, however, it is still more than possible to find attractive teaching positions.

If you hold a Bachelor’s degree and a Teach English as a Foreign Language Certificate (TEFL), you will be able to teach in an ESL position in most schools. You don’t necessarily have to have your degree in a subject matter relating to teaching – you need to hold a degree to qualify for a working visa.

Having your TEFL certification can help you teach ESL in international schools, and it is quite easy to get your TEFL certificate. It normally takes between 2-4 weeks of full-time study to complete, and you have the option of either distance or part-time study as well.

Even if you have no teaching experience and qualifications, there are still opportunities available to you. Look into one of the many non-government organizations that sponsor or offer internships teaching in different countries. Many of these are non-paid work training but will offer you free room and board, as well as great international experience.

Numerous of these teaching placements also tend to occur in lower economic areas and third-world countries where they need the most educational help. As a result, these types of teaching experiences are advantageous.

How Your Age Factors In

As far as age is concerned, there are many opportunities for both new and more mature teachers. Age may be an issue in some countries because of visa requirements, but international schools usually find mature teachers attractive. Mature teachers can be viewed as stable. That being said, many schools operate on a salary scale that makes less experienced teachers financially attractive. This often plays out as a tradeoff between experience and affordability. If you’re a veteran teacher with awesome experience and qualifications, you’re well worth the money to a school that needs those specialized skills. If you have less experience, your value could seal the deal.

How to Find the Requirements

The best bet for finding out what type of credentials you need to teach abroad is to decide which country you want to teach in and then determine the specific country’s requirements. As the credentials differ so much from place to place, this is probably the least confusing course of action to take. Overall though, it is probably best to have a Bachelor’s degree and a TEFL certification, as these two credentials will open the most doors for you abroad.

We hope this information has been helpful. If you have any job search tips to offer fellow teachers wishing to teach abroad, please comment and share this post.

Do you know how you would answer this teacher/administrator job interview question: What makes an excellent elementary, middle, or high school?

Here is a sample response to give you some ideas.

A good high school has state rankings (based on test scores and other criteria) near or above the “effective school” level. Also, it has high-quality AP and International Baccalaureate programs, an orientation toward post-secondary education, and teaches a rigorous academic curriculum that includes a broad range of subjects, as well as values.

It offers an efficient special education program, has school teachers with full credentials and years of experience, has a high-quality library and technology program, has support programs for both gifted and struggling students, is well thought of by parents and community members, is safe and well-maintained, and promotes parent involvement.

The school climate includes a strong sense of belonging, school pride, discipline, and student participation in various extracurricular activities, including sports programs for boys and girls. An active high school has enough counselors, high graduation rates, high rates of entry to universities, anti-drug, anti-gang, anti-harassment programs that are vigorously enforced, and a secured campus on which entry and exit of students and others are monitored.

If you would like to prepare yourself further, then check out the resources written by Candace Alstad – Davies that prepares teachers and administrators for job interviews.

If you want your teacher resume and cover letter to pass the ultimate test and gain the principal, hiring manager, or recruiter’s attention, it needs to be an exciting read. Your goal is to compel the reader to find out more about you.  You want them to pick up the phone, give you a call, and invite you for an interview.

The recipient of your resume and cover letter makes up their mind within seconds of the initial glance. Therefore, your cover letter should be reader-friendly, visually-appealing, demonstrate passion, and include keywords.

These powerful tips will dramatically improve your teacher resume and get results. They will explain “what you have done” and “how you have done it successfully” in your teaching profession.

1. Value Proposition:

Your value proposition is a statement of the unique things that you bring to the table as a teacher.  It establishes your capability to excel in the role and demonstrates that the hiring manager should care about hiring a person with qualities like yours. A great place to start is in your professional profile, which will demonstrate your unique selling point by highlighting your top teaching strength.

2. Support Evidence for Your Value Proposition:

Explain what you’ve done while teaching that added value to the school community. Tell your story in such a way that shows that you have accomplished a great deal and are ready for the new challenges that this position would bring, and are capable of continuing your record of accomplishment in your new position. Make sure that you back up your value proposition with facts, figures, and concrete examples. A value proposition without concrete evidence of how you have established value in the past and how you can bring value to your new role is just bragging.  Don’t brag.  Demonstrate your value.  This is the content that will help to get you hired by a school.

3. Establish Your Personal Brand:

Tell the school who you are and how you do what you do. Your brand will be echoed throughout your resume and cover letter. Your brand explains how you teach and how your teaching style affects your outcomes in the classroom.  The evidence that you present to support your value proposition should also contribute to establishing your personal brand.  You want to be known as a professional with specific strengths, and personal branding is where you bring your strengths forward.

4. Differentiate Yourself from the Competition:

Differentiate yourself from the competition by telling the principal why he/she should hire you over everyone else. Remember that you can’t be all things to all people, nor should you want to be. Your resume needs to be targeted and showcase your unique talents. Show your strengths in the classroom by highlighting the areas where you excel and backing them up with examples.  Demonstrate that your experience lends itself to the specific needs of the position, the campus, and the community that the campus serves, and you’ll go a long way towards standing out from the crowd.

5. Communicate Your Passion:

Tell the school what you think and how you feel about teaching your cover letter to convey your passion. The most effective area to display your passion will be in the cover letter before the principal even gets to your resume. Cover letters are often called “letters of interest,” so it’s a great place to explicitly state why you are interested in this particular position at this particular school and how your previous experience ties into your future growth as an educator in this specific role.

Your cover letter allows you to introduce yourself to a school and highlight your personality and teaching style. You can discuss things that are peculiar to the job posting in the cover letter, which was not showcased in your resume. Highlighting your passion for teaching and the joy you get out of successfully reaching students is vital in a letter of application. Showcase your personality and have a zest for learning in your resume’s professional profile section.

A branded value proposition resume and cover letter are both built around these five concepts. When writing your resume and cover letter, every word should count and no word should be wasted. Share on X

Avoid describing particulars about you that are not unique to you or not relevant to the type of position you wish to secure. If you have put generic descriptions in your resume or cover letter that sound like something any teacher could say, take this out. Space is limited, and every word used should be spent explaining what makes you different and unique as an educator. It’s your time to shine, so only highlight those things that you set you apart from the rest of the competition.

Don’t stop here. Check out our resume and cover letter samples.

A school administrator will ask you this question to determine your knowledge of the results parent-teacher conferences can have. Some parent-teacher conferences go really well, while others may have a negative effect, resulting in the administration becoming involved.

Regardless of how many parent-teacher conferences you have facilitated, there will always be difficult parents and children who may or may not listen to reason or agree with you. Before responding to this question, consider ways to turn a negative experience into a positive and devise methods for maximizing positive results.

Holding a successful parent-teacher conference all comes down to planning. This is the key to how you should approach a parent-teacher conference, and, therefore, this is what interviewers are looking for in your answer.

Determine your purpose for holding the meeting and the goals you wish to accomplish during the parent-teacher conference and in the future. Determining these things ahead of time will allow you to better plan the parent-teacher conference’s scope and help you prepare for it.

Delivery is another key factor when it comes to parent meetings. If a child is having problems in school, it is best to be direct but tactful and polite in the delivery.

Instead of focusing on just the negatives, compliment the parents on other areas their child excels in. On the other hand, if the student seems to excel in almost every area, determine whether there may be one or two areas they should work on to help them become well-rounded individuals.

When answering this question, you need to emphasize communication, effective listening, and cooperation between teacher and parent. It is a joint effort to ensure students receive a quality education and support in the home environment.

Talk to the parents and ask them if they have any additional ideas for helping their child. Families need to play an active role in educating children. They should have a say in how to accommodate the student and maximize the learning process. Be open and eager to listen to what the parents have to say. If you disagree with their methods, suggest ways to improve or adapt their ideas to what you have in mind.

Regardless of the “type” of student you are addressing, reassure the parents you are there to provide their child with quality education and will do everything in your power to make sure that they reach their fullest potential.

If you incorporate these ideas into your answer to this teacher interview question, you should positively impressed the interviewer. There are many other difficult questions to prepare for before entering the interview room.

If you would like to prepare yourself further, connect with Candace Alstad – Davies. For 16 years, she has helped teachers prepare for job interviews.