Did you idolize your teacher and dream about becoming like him/her? If yes, you always had a penchant for a teacher's career which propelled you to complete graduation in a relevant degree so that you could get off to a brilliant start. You have passed all examinations with flying colors and are just a couple of days away from giving your first interview for a teacher's job. There is palpable excitement as well as uncontrollable jitters – how to frame answers that make your point believable. Why not just practice a few FAQs and prepare your answers to possible questions in advance? In this way, you would be able to understand the times you falter or go completely blank. A fresher teacher is likely to be asked the following questions in an interview.
Tell us about yourself
This is a common question asked by the interview panel comprising of senior teachers and the principal. Just take a deep breath and talk about your qualifications, family background, and hobbies if they are relevant to the applied job. Be concise and answer in 4-5 sentences.
Why pursue a teacher career?
A teacher career might have been your dream, but this is not known to the interviewer. So you have to explain why you have selected teaching profession and why it's the best choice for you. Try quoting an incidence from your school days or a situation you witnessed that influenced your mind to take up teaching profession.
What are the responsibilities of a teacher?
This might be asked to judge if you understand your duties as an educator. While different institutions may have listed various responsibilities, a common goal of a teacher is to ensure students learn basics of a subject which would prove useful to them throughout their lives. It's the role of a teacher to help a student understand his interests and encourage him to foster those skills which would be essential in shaping a career.
What will you do if students are unable to understand a lesson or couldn't follow your teaching approach?
It might sound like a tough question as your teaching method is being declared faulty. However unexpected this question might be, do not pull a face. Every single action you do is being closely assessed. Just try to frame a positive answer by saying you will try to collect feedback on what portions were not understood by the students and repeat the lesson with easy examples or give a practical demo on possible parts.
Describe your discipline philosophy
Another weird question you might think. Discipline is something that needs to be followed. – Talk about things like you ensure students adhere to rules set by the school, follow classroom discipline, and there is no yelling howsoever inappropriate the situation might be.
Imagine you come to know about a pupil/parent concern about a particular member of the staff from a different department. What would be your next step?
This could be a behavioral question to understand how you handle unprecedented situations. If hired, you would be still new at the job and cannot go on exercising power or boasting your authority right from the first day. Hence, to be on the safer side, just quote you would understand the matter, follow school policy in such cases and report the matter to a senior colleague who might have an experience in handling such situations. Also, you would ask the concerned pupil/parent to meet the specific teacher whom you have informed and ensure the problem gets resolved.
How would you contribute to the institution?
As you are a fresher, any institution would focus on what you could do for them instead of what you will be given in return. Tell them that you are willing to put in extra efforts both during and after duty hours, or assist senior teachers with their tasks as a team effort would bring positive results, and the ultimate goal is to provide the best education to students.
There might be questions on how to increase interest of students in studies to the importance of extra-curricular activities for development. Be clear on your teaching abilities, quote examples wherever necessary, and maintain a confident body language. While the types of questions are unpredictable, answering them like a pro would help in nailing an interview.
