gsquaredmom
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,078
Jun 26, 2014 17:43:22 GMT
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Post by gsquaredmom on Jul 22, 2015 11:22:51 GMT
I'll give you an example of going the extra mile. The school asked what I was able to do beyond teaching that grade. I told them : religious ed, forensics, track, scouts. All of which I have done. I have that experience. I interviewed for a K5 job. In the middle of the interview they asked if I'd teach Algebra because I did teach it...20 years ago. I said yes. What more can I do? That was not the correct answer. I'm sorry. I am a department head and sit on the hiring panel with other school administrators. I kind of see where you appear to be. Don't be defensive, you've asked: you're trying to be everything to everyone. It's poor practice in teacher. Be good at what you're good at and OWN it. If you're a SpEd person, show how you inclusive practices are valuable to them in the K5 group. I also don't know this, so this may not apply. The best interviews and most hirable candidates in teaching are those who answer the question directly, succinctly and with an on-point example. Not rambly and diffuse. If we've asked about how you plan, talk about that and ONLY that until asked something else. If I was asked that question (and I teach 4th grade), I would reply: "My skill set is directed at late elementary students and I have very strong emergent and developing language literacy pedagogy. My greatest asset to the school is in that direction." I agree. Algebra is also not a typical K-5 topic, so not only were they testing you on your too-good-to-be-trueness, they were getting a sense of what you know about elementary level curricula. There are pre-Algebra concepts that show up depending on the math curriculum used, but full blown Algebra at that level would be very unusual, except perhaps in gifted programming, for which you were not applying (unless your school district is exceptional). And your volunteer work, as nice as it is, is really irrelevant unless you can connect the dots to how it will help your students. You need to spin your experiences into a benefit. Also, they want to know if you will be bringing fresh perspectives and ideas or work with students AT their school in after school activites, etc. Perhaps the one who gets the job says, "I have noticed that one of the difficulties students face is having an adult at home who can help with homework, so I would like to create a homework club where kids can come after school for extra help and monitored work time." Elementary teachers are abundant. The numbers are against you. And your answers may not compete well with those given by younger candidates. Teacher prep programs have changed dramatically, and unless you were getting staff development to keep you abreast on the latest standards, teaching techniques, and buzzwords, you may be at a disadvantage. What worked for you to get a job years ago may not work now. All of those positive interview traits are great, but I agree that is minimum expectations for any interview. You need to be able to show you are current. You also cannot trust positive vibes and feedback during an interview. These are people who automatically emphasize the positive with students. The winning candidate will likely have that feedback and more. And, to answer the original question, I doubt they would give feedback due to liability/lawsuit issues.
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Post by ktdoesntscrap on Jul 22, 2015 12:19:24 GMT
I'll give you an example of going the extra mile. The school asked what I was able to do beyond teaching that grade. I told them : religious ed, forensics, track, scouts. All of which I have done. I have that experience. I interviewed for a K5 job. In the middle of the interview they asked if I'd teach Algebra because I did teach it...20 years ago. I said yes. What more can I do? Sometimes there is nothing more you can do. When I am hiring I am looking for that spark, something the candidate gets really excited about...and it can be as simple as one person got way more excited than you did about a certain aspect of the job. You can't do anything about that. Its tough but keep your spirits up.. teachers get hired all year long!
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Deleted
Posts: 0
May 21, 2024 2:14:05 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 22, 2015 15:19:18 GMT
I'm confused at those saying algebra is not taught in K-5.. my kids both started learning algebra in grade 4. If the OP hasn't taught in a while, maybe they were asking to make sure she was current and still willing to teach this subject since it's apparently NOT reserved for upper elementary grades.
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Post by epeanymous on Jul 22, 2015 15:25:12 GMT
I don't give feedback. Usually when I get those emails, they come across as a little hostile -- like, I am awesome, why didn't I get the job? -- and I find that off-putting. I think that sending a note in response to a rejection to the effect that you enjoyed meeting the staff and would still be interested in being considered for future openings is fine.
Honestly, there are often people who are just terrible from their resume,but I don't interview them. If I interview a person, it is because they are good enough that I am considering hiring them. I do occasionally have someone put a foot in their mouth during the interview, but, usually, if an interview goes well, I know it and the candidate knows it, and the ultimate hiring decision comes down to a lot of things the person can't control, like the overall makeup of the group of people I am hiring. For example, when I hire teaching assistants, I usually like to balance them and have some really outgoing people, some quieter people, some women, some men, some people who do well because they are real grinds, some people who do well in school because they are naturally good at legal reasoning, etc. My thought is that the more varied the TAs are, the more likely students are to click with someone, and that the diversity of teaching approaches also makes it more likely that more students will be reached. The school's hiring decision might be based on something like that, and knowing that this time they were hoping to find (as an example) a more reserved teacher because their current staff in that department is really rah-rah, wouldn't help you in future interviews.
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gsquaredmom
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,078
Jun 26, 2014 17:43:22 GMT
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Post by gsquaredmom on Jul 22, 2015 15:40:25 GMT
I'm confused at those saying algebra is not taught in K-5.. my kids both started learning algebra in grade 4. If the OP hasn't taught in a while, maybe they were asking to make sure she was current and still willing to teach this subject since it's apparently NOT reserved for upper elementary grades. Are your kids doing 7th/8th/9th (depending on district) grade level algebra skills? That is what I am thinking of- quadratic equation, graphing calculator, slope-intercept and more. If your kids are doing that in grade 4, they are in a very unusual district or are very advanced. I teach in one of the top districts in the state and our grade 4 regular kids are not doing that kind of Algebra. Early pre-Algebra skills start in kindergarten here and advance, but none are at middle/ high school level as a matter of regular Ed curriculum by grade 4. At best we might have truly exceptionally gifted kids doing full regular algebra in grade 4, and we have had some come to the high school for part of the day to get calculus while in middle school, so they did Algebra, geometry and trig much earlier. Those are Stephen Hawking level math kids and are rare, however.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
May 21, 2024 2:14:05 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 22, 2015 15:56:41 GMT
I'm confused at those saying algebra is not taught in K-5.. my kids both started learning algebra in grade 4. If the OP hasn't taught in a while, maybe they were asking to make sure she was current and still willing to teach this subject since it's apparently NOT reserved for upper elementary grades. Are your kids doing 7th/8th/9th (depending on district) grade level algebra skills? That is what I am thinking of- quadratic equation, graphing calculator, slope-intercept and more. If your kids are doing that in grade 4, they are in a very unusual district or are very advanced. I teach in one of the top districts in the state and our grade 4 regular kids are not doing that kind of Algebra. Early pre-Algebra skills start in kindergarten here and advance, but none are at middle/ high school level as a matter of regular Ed curriculum by grade 4. At best we might have truly exceptionally gifted kids doing full regular algebra in grade 4, and we have had some come to the high school for part of the day to get calculus while in middle school, so they did Algebra, geometry and trig much earlier. Those are Stephen Hawking level math kids and are rare, however. No one here is discerning between "algebra" and "genius algebra"; grade 4 is basic 4x + 5 = 9 type stuff. Still algebra.
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Post by tallgirl on Jul 22, 2015 16:02:41 GMT
OP, I certainly don't think it could hurt to ask for some pointers from your interview. I have been asked for those before and I have given them. No, I won't detail specifically why I chose someone else, but I don't mind giving some feedback about things that did or did not impress me about the candidate. The worst they can say is no.
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Post by myboysnme on Jul 22, 2015 16:41:06 GMT
I have some thoughts to share:
I sit in interviews all the time. One thing I noticed is that some candidates feel they do really well but they actually don't. So feeling that they are doing all the right things and saying all the right things may not be the right things to the interviewer.
Some very highly qualified people don't do well in interviews but are selected because other aspects of their application stand out and they end up selected over a candidate who successfully interviewed. Others are not selected just on their poor interview skills. They don't sell themselves.
Some people get jobs because they have that one piece of specialized experience that sets them apart.
Some people really really want the job and it is obvious, and some people want any job and are willing to do whatever it takes to get any job. Some interviewers sort out who wants that specific job and who wants any job they can get. Neither is right or wrong but I always look for the person who speaks to that specific job in the interview. People who take any job often end up unhappy or look to move around soon after getting one job.
Chances are you did everything right. Competition is tough. There may be nothing at all you could improve. But they can only pick one and this time it isn't you. Keep trying, keep being persistent. Refine your answers.
Lastly, the days are gone when you could call after an interview to emphasize your interest, or send a thank you note or whatever. Processes are locked in and they can't speak to you or tell you anything less they inadvertently give you the wrong idea. I know of one applicant who felt sure she got the job because she dissected everything positive that the interviewers said, including a smile on the way out. Then she filed an unfair hiring complaint when she wasn't selected. Everyone is afraid of doing the wrong thing in an interview process. Persistence is key.
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bethany102399
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,534
Oct 11, 2014 3:17:29 GMT
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Post by bethany102399 on Jul 22, 2015 17:39:02 GMT
Interesting thread, the only thing I can add (I'm not a teacher) is that sometimes, it's just not you it's the other guy. Are you the right fit for the school, the kids etc. At least here, I've seen it come down to a choice between 2 very qualified people, and we choose the one that we feel will best fit within our group. It's not personal, it's just who is the best fit for the job.
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Post by Heart on Jul 23, 2015 1:43:18 GMT
I just interviewed a round of applicants and hired someone for my open assistant position. I had one lady who I know thought she nailed the interview. She said all the things that she thought I wanted to hear and had the right attitude, etc. I didn't even consider her for the position and I would never tell her why.
Her shirt was dirty. Not just dusty or needed a quick wash because it'd been in the back of the closet for a while. It had oily stains on the front of the shirt, right where I imagine she probably dropped food onto her chest at some point in the past, and then it never fully washed out.
I am currently the activity director for an assisted living facility. I care for your mom, aunt, sister, grandma or other loved one and make sure they have fun in their new home. Any person working in my building has the responsibility to project the image of "peace of mind" for family, and a dirty and stained shirt is NOT going to cut it.
There's absolutely no way I am going to share this with her, even if she asked. Even if she is dead broke and doesn't have funds for new clothes, all it takes is a quick comment- oops, I spilled at lunch; or excuse the shirt; I'm living on very limited funds right now and this is what I have available. She just didn't have any sense of what was appropriate and I can't teach that. I just can't.
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Post by ptamom on Jul 23, 2015 2:02:39 GMT
Absolutely not, the liability is too high. I've worked in some companies where we had to direct all follow up communication with HR period. We couldn't even send a generic response to a thank you for interviewing me email. Exactly that, as a retail hiring manager I could have gotten in a lot of trouble for giving any feedback. But at least in the interview, there was give and take. I was able to ask clarifying questions, and follow up questions. I think that during the interviews, my applicants got a bit of a taste of what I was looking for. Fast forward many many years as a SAHM, I've been interviewing. My interviews in general have been educational, but disappointing. Nobody seems to want to hire somebody who has been out of the workforce for a while. But I've been interviewing with local schools, and they interview in a completely different way! By committee. Ask a question, I answer, and they all turn to scribble notes. No follow up questions. On to the next question. Answer, and furious scribbling. Rinse and repeat. No feedback. No follow up questions. No way to know whether I answered their questions fully. I have to say, I've never gone through interviews like these, or given interviews like these. I can see that they are trying to give each candidate an equal interview experience, but I have to say that this is not the way to hire the best candidate. Just a cover your but way of interviewing. As a hiring manager, I found that the the follow up questions were more valuable to me than the stock questions. As a candidate, I view the follow up questions as a window into what my interviewer is looking for. Even if I don't get the job, with a standard interview I usually have an insight as to why. But these school district interviews give me no insight at all into what I did/didn't say. So frustrating!
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