Build your Teacher Interview Toolkit: Common Question Areas and Response Strategies

It is easy to get lost in preparation for upcoming interviews. There can both seem like too much information and not enough at the same time. A simple online search or AI inquiry can leave you swimming in potential questions but not help you understand how to organize your thoughts and prepare for the interview(s) yet to come.

Common Question Prompt Areas

The following breaks question types into thematic areas that are common for teacher interview questions. There are a number of ways to organize questions and response strategies, but these seem to cover many that you might encounter. If you can prepare for questions in the following areas, you should be ready for most interviews. Be sure to develop responses consistent with your authentic voice. The “right” answers are those that portray you as an educator in comprehensive, concise, and compelling terms.

District/school fit 

Almost every interview starts with a softball question intended to let you speak at a high level on your interest and qualifications. In most cases, this is an opportunity to provide highlights from your cover letter and resume, while demonstrating that you have done your homework and are really interested in joining that team – not just looking for a job anywhere.

For these questions, first be sure you listen to how the question is asked. There can be nuances to the type(s) of information they want to hear. Though you can probably give a version of your elevator pitch (for more on that, see here), be sure you address the question as it is asked. Reference information you know about the student population and school community.

Questions to ask yourself in preparation:

• Why would I want to teach for this specific school or district more than any other?
• Based on the homework I have completed, what is likely to be important to the panelists?
• How might I tweak responses to questions based on the composition of the panel?
• How can I quickly address any nervousness or anxiety I am feeling as the interview begins?
• How are my unique skills, talents, and experiences an asset for this specific school or district?

Standards and instructional design

This area focuses on your grade-level understanding of learning outcomes for the students you might someday teach. At its core, these are exactly the types of questions you might hope would make up the entire interview because you have spent years grappling with this, first through your credential program, and possibly during your career in teaching if you are trying to change schools or districts.

For these questions, structure and competence are the name of the game. Your responses should demonstrate that you that you plan for specific student outcomes, whether talking about a full year or drilling down into a warm-up/do now.

Questions to ask yourself in preparation:

• What do I know about the district’s or school’s approach to standards-based learning, growth, and achievement?
• Are there specific lessons and units I have taught, either as a teacher of record or student teacher, that represents my understanding of how to break up learning into meaningful and goal-directed chunks for students?
• Do I have areas of particular strength and weakness when it comes to my level of subject matter knowledge? How can I best address one or both of these if asked?

High-quality instructional strategies 

This area focuses on your knowledge of and facility with effective instructional strategies. In some cases, the district or school may prioritize a few core strategies that can be used across content areas, while in others, panelists are interested in how well you select strategies that are domain- or content-specific.

Be sure you focus on how the strategies engage students in meaningful learning opportunities. Do not spend time listing every step in the strategy. Odds are that the panelists are already familiar with them.

Questions to ask yourself in preparation:

• How do I know that the instructional strategies I use are effective in student progress and achievement?
• What core strategies have I adopted that can be generalized across domains or standards? Which strategies are specific to one or few domains in my content area?
• When was a time that a strategy did not work? How did I know? What did I do to address that?

Classroom management 

In practice, districts and schools have different understandings for what is considered classroom management. This could include topics ranging from student engagement, discipline, classroom procedures, behavior management, and anything in between.

Be confident in what you believe DOES WORK for students, but do not be too strident in your beliefs for what DOES NOT WORK. You never know what each individual panelist believes and you do not want to unintentionally offend anyone. 

Questions to ask yourself in preparation:

• What do students need to meaningfully participate in classroom instruction based on their age group and developmental level? How do I employ this knowledge to the benefit of student learning? The response should be geared toward the grade level(s) of students at your target school or district. 
• How do I create norms and structures early in the year to establish a positive learning environment?
• How do I address disruptive behavior and disciplinary issues without detracting from instruction?

Data and reflective practice

Whether used as a means of building your effective practice through critical reflection or just more educational jargon, you are likely to be rated on your ability to use data and information in support of continued learning and growth. 

These questions can focus more on your use of data and how it helps you adjust instruction, though it may also be used to gauge how you help students become critical thinkers. It might also be a way to understand whether you are more of a growth or fixed mindset type of person, vis-à-vis Dr. Carol Dweck’s body of work. 

Questions to ask yourself in preparation:

• How do I use formative, progress monitoring, and summative assessments for different purposes throughout a lesson, unit, grading period, and year?
• Are there standard assessments or approaches used at the target school or district? If so, how can I get more familiar with them before the interview?
• What should I do when student assessment data indicates students did not learn what I taught?
• What are examples of experiences where I was unsuccessful and how did I address any shortcomings?

Parent/guardian engagement 

Regular and ongoing communication can shape the entire perspective some parents and guardians have on why their student is successful or not, or matter little to some.

For these questions, stay focused on the partnership between you and students’ parents or guardians. Remember that the goal is always student success. Be sure that you can demonstrate grace under fire without blaming parents.

If you are a Special Education teacher, consider the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) process for these questions.

Questions to ask yourself in preparation:

• Which anecdotes from my experience interacting with parents/guardians went well and which were problematic? If I am a student teacher, how can I get experience in this under guidance of my mentor teacher in the coming weeks and months, if possible?
• Do I set up parent partnerships and communication early in the year in order to minimize issues later on?
• Is there a time when I needed an administrator’s support in dealing with a parent?

Technology Use

The role of instructional technology has increased greatly over the last several years. For some educators, it has created an opportunity to further extend their suite of strategies, while for others, it fundamentally changed their methods of instruction. Either way, most districts and schools continued to embrace it even as more and more students returned to in-person instruction.

Research your target districts’ orientation toward instructional technology and any core products and programs that are used. If you are not familiar with them, compare them against ones that are familiar. Additionally, find out if students in your target districts have more or less access to devices than in your experience. Be ready to answer questions explicitly focused on your familiarity with instructional strategies enhanced by technology or incorporate references in responses about your instruction more generally.

Questions to ask yourself in preparation:

• What are the pros and cons of instructional technology for the age and grade level of students in your experience?
• Am I familiar with the Student Information System (SIS) and instructional technology tools available to the District, to the extent I know what they use?
• How do I use instructional technology to increase the value of my lessons and units?

One important thing to note is that the areas noted above are not mutually exclusive. You are likely to be asked questions in which the preferred response is a combination of the areas above. Use your best judgment in how to respond. 

Question Types & Response Strategies

You may still want guidance for turning the areas above into actual responses. Similar to the common prompt areas, the following question types seem to be fairly commonplace and are intended to aid you with preparation.

Be ready to answer behavioral questions that focus on past behavior and situational questions that put you into a hypothetical future scenario. To do this, use simple yet effective mnemonic strategies like STAR and ARC, as noted below. You can use these strategies as-is or modify to suit your style. There are other sources that go into more depth on these items and I encourage you to seek them out if you need more context. 

Pulling it all together

• Review the common prompt areas and identify at least one specific experience from each that can serve as a foundation for purposeful and compelling storytelling opportunities.
• Reflect on how that experience might surface in an interview by practicing responses using behavioral (past) and situational (future) response strategies.
• Develop responses focused on favorable or positive experiences, and others based on questions that will test you by exploring unfavorable or negative experiences and how you persevered or developed solutions leading to success.
• When faced with actual questions during an interview, be sure to always answer the question that has been asked. Do not just regurgitate canned responses you have practiced over and over. 
• If you are provided a copy of the questions, feel free to review the question to ensure you have answered all parts of it as asked. If not, you can always ask that the panel repeat the question for you as needed. 
• Be your authentic self and remember that you are also deciding on whether you want to join them, just as they are for you.

Finally, if you would like to learn more about the overall process and practice responses using representative questions with feedback, RSVP for a free virtual Teacher Interview and Selection workshop.