Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Heliotrope
Posts: 1167
Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am

Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by Heliotrope »

For an article I'm writing (and for whenever I'll be moving on in the future), can I have your input on one, some or all of the following questions:

1. What are the questions you get asked most, in almost every job interview as an international teacher?
2. What's the best question you've been asked by a school's recruiter during a job interview?
3. What's the worst or weirdest question asked?
4. What question would you ask if you were a recruiter?

And often overlooked:

5. And what questions should an IT ask the school during the interview?

Thanks in advance!
PsyGuy
Posts: 10789
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Northern Europe

Response

Post by PsyGuy »

Most Common Questions Asked:
1) Tell us about yourself/career (I dont really know how to do interviews)?
2) How do you work with other people (whether they call it collaboration or committees)?
3) How do you address students with different learning needs (whether its differentiation or working with second language learners)?
4) How do you manage behavioral issues in the classroom (usually means you have a bunch of powerful spoiled students that are untouchable)?
5) How do you communicate with parents (way more important in IE, parents run the show)?
6) What is your experience with technology in the classroom and in your planing (are you a millennial who only knows social media, or are you a dinosaur, that still thinks power point is the epitome of lecturing)?
7) What are your long term goals or plans (how long will you stay, can our opportunities help you stay longer)?
8) Do you have any family that will be traveling with you (logistical question, usually a deal breaker or not very relevant). This can lead to several follow up questions?
9) What do you like to do in your free time (how do you handle stress).?
10) Why did you get into teaching (if your a second career IT)?
11) Why are you leaving DE (tourist teacher trap)?
12) What are your salary and compensation expectations (have you done research about IE, and being an IT)?

Best Recruiter Questions:
1) How do you see yourself fitting into our IS, describe what you see your typical day as being (its an open ended question, thats unrestricted, and answers everything, thats essential to "fit").
2) Are you a planer, a promoter or a parent (took me a long time to figure out the answer but anyone who picks one is a non-hire, they are too much work and too self absorbed, anyone who picks two is someone you can train if you need too, anyone who picks all three and has a detailed explanation is a non-hire, they cant learn or change, anyone who picks all three but cant elaborate or explains simply, understands the totality of an ITs job).
3) Who do you most admire and how does their influence guide you in the classroom?

Worst/Weirdest Question:
1) Worst: How much would you pay me for this job?
2) Weirdest: How do you feel about mud?
3) Stupidest: Whats your ideal favorite student?

Question I Ask:
1) Im considering someone for HOD as part of this position (Im not) and part of that position is hiring part time tutors and ASP ITs, setting side academic and professional qualifications what attributes would you be most interested in preferring to hire and what characteristics would be deal breakers for you?

Questions ITs to ask, that are often overlooked:
1) What are the contact and teaching hours (how long do I have to stay including meetings, etc, and how many hours are teaching), so many ITs focus on the comp they dont ask or think what they have to do for the comp.
2) What are your projected plans for growth opportunities and comp in the future (so many ITs think asking about coin and advancement is rude, uncouth, greedy, etc., but this is a job, your providing them a service not a favor, and many coming from DT dont have the opportunity to ask for or participate in the bargaining process).
2) What are the ISs long term strategic goals (whats their problem)?
3) If its a leadership member, what are your professional goals (whats been their conclusion on the journey they have taken)?
4) What are the challenges living in X region now and when you first got here (over selling the region and minimizing hardships while addressing support outside professional issues)?
5) What are the parents learning priorities?
muguet
Posts: 20
Joined: Mon Feb 01, 2016 5:22 pm

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by muguet »

worst/weirdest question: So what do you think about John Adams?
Doctor
Posts: 98
Joined: Wed Jun 20, 2018 1:28 am

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by Doctor »

Most frequent questions:
1. What would I see if I walked into your class or describe a typical class.
2. How would your students/coworkers/headmasters describe you?
3. Questions about differentiation.
4. Questions about classroom management.

I could go on but it's to boring; I have a stack of index cards with answers to questions I've been asked.
I was stumped once though. A recruiter asked me two questions I totally flubbed:

1. How do you integrate ATLs in your MYP math classroom?
2. How do you integrate IB learner profile traits in your DP physics classroom?
PsyGuy
Posts: 10789
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Northern Europe

Comment

Post by PsyGuy »

@Doctor

Those were douche questions from someone who drank their IB koolaid that morning instead of coffee/tea.
twoteachers
Posts: 120
Joined: Tue Dec 23, 2014 9:15 pm

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by twoteachers »

Psyguy:

Can you elaborate on your point about planner, parent..etc? It seems very lose/lose.
seinfeld
Posts: 112
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2008 11:47 pm

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by seinfeld »

PsyGuy wrote:
> @Doctor
>
> Those were douche questions from someone who drank their IB koolaid that morning
> instead of coffee/tea.

They're not douche questions if they want experienced IB teachers...it's douche if they're not an IB school!
PsyGuy
Posts: 10789
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Northern Europe

Reply

Post by PsyGuy »

@twoteachers

I cant actually, it wasnt my point or concept, I got it at an interview and it tool several years before it was explained to me, apparently it came from some pop.ed leadership management book.

@seinfeld

They are still douche questions for experienced IB practitioners.
chilagringa
Posts: 335
Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2011 7:19 pm

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by chilagringa »

PsyGuy wrote:
> @Doctor
>
> Those were douche questions from someone who drank their IB koolaid that morning
> instead of coffee/tea.

I have to agree with PsyGuy on that. I would be wary of a school that overemphasizes IB jargon. Then again, I teach at an MYP school and I think all the money the school dumps for an empty program with fancy jargon is ridiculous.
Heliotrope
Posts: 1167
Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am

Re: Comment

Post by Heliotrope »

PsyGuy wrote:
> @Doctor
>
> Those were douche questions from someone who drank their IB koolaid that
> morning instead of coffee/tea.

Perfectly valid questions for an IB school, while I agree with @chilagringa that MYP needs lots of improvements.
Doctor
Posts: 98
Joined: Wed Jun 20, 2018 1:28 am

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by Doctor »

@Heilotrope
"Perfectly valid questions for an IB school, while I agree with @chilagringa that MYP needs lots of improvements."

Can you suggest some answers for my stack of index cars?
Heliotrope
Posts: 1167
Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by Heliotrope »

Doctor wrote:
> Can you suggest some answers for my stack of index cars?

It's not a question with one answer, like asking what the capital of Uzbekistan is (Tashkent), so your answer should reflect how you teach.

Pro-tip for dealing with unexpected questions:
If you teach yourself to throw up at will, you'll always have a way of getting out of a tough question.
Thames Pirate
Posts: 1150
Joined: Fri Jul 05, 2013 8:06 am

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by Thames Pirate »

Doctor wrote:

> 1. How do you integrate ATLs in your MYP math classroom?
> 2. How do you integrate IB learner profile traits in your DP physics
> classroom?

These questions can be translated:
1. Do you know the ATLs?
2. Do you know the IB learner profile?

If someone asks you how you incorporate being a risk taker or being an inquirer in your physics class, it's an easy question. They don't expect you to talk about all of them. If you were asked about differentiation or teaching self-management skills in math, again it's an easy question. Pick the two or three of each that apply most easily or maybe prepare an answer for the most surprising ones ("here's how I teach being balanced in physics" or "here's how I develop my teaching in a local and global context in maths") to show that you take them seriously. You don't need to talk about all 10 traits or 11 ATLs. If you can throw in some additional IB jargon or acronyms or name all of the traits/ATL, you get bonus points on this one.
Doctor
Posts: 98
Joined: Wed Jun 20, 2018 1:28 am

Re: Most/best/weirdest questions at job interviews

Post by Doctor »

Thames Pirate wrote:
> If someone asks you how you incorporate being a risk taker or being an inquirer in
> your physics class, it's an easy question. They don't expect you to talk about all
> of them. If you were asked about differentiation or teaching self-management skills
> in math, again it's an easy question. Pick the two or three of each that apply most
> easily or maybe prepare an answer for the most surprising ones ("here's how I teach
> being balanced in physics" or "here's how I develop my teaching in a local and global
> context in maths") to show that you take them seriously. You don't need to talk
> about all 10 traits or 11 ATLs. If you can throw in some additional IB jargon or
> acronyms or name all of the traits/ATL, you get bonus points on this one.

Very useful answer. And you are right come to think of it - ATL skills do go to differentiation.
PsyGuy
Posts: 10789
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Northern Europe

Discussion

Post by PsyGuy »

This is why its such a douche question, youd save time just asking the candidate to name as many of the ATLs or the LP traits. Either you have a canned response that focuses on 1 or 2 terms or you dont. Its much more informative for a recruiter to ask a generic question "how do you address differentiation", etc. and note how often the candidate includes ATLs, or LPs in their response. If they are an IB practitioner, do they include and talk about IB terminology.
This is a douche question, that over emphasisis terminology, and measures only if the candidate drinks as much IB Koolaid as the recruiter/leadership.
Post Reply