Have you ever asked yourself about the importance of a job interview?
Or how to prepare for your teacher interview to teach English in a foreign country? Here we’ll tell you about the most important aspects that you should consider getting ready to have a successful interview and how to use them to convince the recruiter to hire you.
A young female office worker chats to her supervisor
The job interview is a vital component of the hiring process since it helps the recruiter in identifying the best candidate in order to get the best output. Considering the importance of the interview, candidates must take the time to prepare in order to succeed. This article contains an overview about the faces that come up during the interview process for ESL teaching positions.
Even though there are different kinds of interviews, there are some standard models that allow having a general overview about the possible moments during the job interview such as knowing the company, your CV presentation, and accurately talking about yourself. Considering those details, it would give you some hints about planning the possible scenarios and how to prepare for your teacher interview.
Provide a suitable curriculum for your teacher interview:
An exceptional curriculum has the potential to open doors. Your resume describes your qualifications, achievements and what makes you unique. To be outstanding among other candidates, you need a curriculum that promotes your strengths and matches for the job. A great curriculum should:
- Grab the attention of employers and recruiters
- Sell your strongest skills and accomplishments
- Show how you’re a match for a position or project
- And most importantly, get you a job interview.
The curriculum works as a bridge between you and the future recruiter. Therefore, the importance of a CV can never be minimised. So, to make the first impression, it is essential that your CV stands out from the crowd. Since companies do not have that much time to interview each candidate, they select the best candidates with the best curriculums to interview.
Rejection happens all the time, and it goes on and on until they find something interesting in one particular CV. This is the time when a well-structured, clean, and precise curriculum plays its part.
Initial research before your teacher interview:
During the process of job interview preparation, the initial research about the company is a must. You can use the information you gathered to demonstrate your interest and eligibility throughout the hiring process. Make sure to go over the company’s basics such as their mission and vision, client experience, core customers, main services, and products.
These features will enable you to have an overview about the company, its trajectory, and their future goals. Doing it before will also enable you to realise if you are a good fit for the company and if it meets your expectations.
How to prepare for your initial teacher interview:
Talking about yourself might sound like an easy question, but it is not. Whilst you’ll need to demonstrate that you have all the skills and personality traits to be a good teacher, for example, the patience you must have, the responsibility, enthusiasm, and the communication skills. When you are answering the questions don’t forget to keep it professional and don’t get too personal.
Focusing on the job that you are applying for it’s a good way to giving yourself a frame, and approach your answers towards the professional and relevant aspects, when you think about the job you’ll notice that personal details aren’t necessary, just talking about professional experiences that show your teaching growth, willingness, performance and passion will be more than enough.
Keeping in mind the most common questions in any teacher interview might also be helpful:
- Why did you decide to become a teacher?
- What is your teaching philosophy?
- How do you keep your students engaged and motivated?
- What do you find most frustrating about teaching?
- How do you measure your students’ progress?
How to prepare for your second teacher interview: the demo class
Most of the language academies or schools will ask you to prepare a demo class. You might have had a great initial interview and had cough the recruiter’s attention, however, the real challenge comes when you have to put into practice what you advocated in your initial interview. The demo class is the ticket for you get the teacher position you apply for.
Some recruiters will ask you to come prepared for delivering a demo class, others might surprise you by asking for a micro teaching session once the initial interview is done. Take into account these tips:
- Read and follow carefully the instructions: sounds obvious but many applicants lose their chance when they deliver an opposite thing from what they were asked. Consider the time, the level and the teaching approach that the company uses normally. If the company has let you know its teaching approach is communicative, don’t come with a demo class based on grammar, for example.
- Always be ready: whether it’s a prepared or an unexpected demo class, you better have an ace under your sleeve. Recruiters are more looking for how you plan to engage your students in the classroom via authentic material usage, activities, role-plays, structured listening exercises, and possibly even games.You should consider bringing something you know you are strong in teaching, maybe even something that you regularly have taught to your students and seen success
The most important aspect of a demo lesson however, is to come exactly as you are as an educator, and show the recruiter a normal day in any of your classrooms.
Now you can move forward in your teacher interview process. Don’t forget to review the company or school you are applying for, provide a suitable curriculum, talk about yourself professionally and show your teaching abilities in a demo class.
If you are interested in teaching English in Colombia, be sure to check out The Ultimate Guide to Teaching English in Colombia. Also, remember that we’re always looking for great individuals to join our team.
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