Our staff conducted a survey at the beginning of the school year that reviewed our professional practices. We covered it all. We surveyed culture and climate, instructional practices, professional learning, collaboration and yes...hiring practices. What we discovered was that our core interview questions "as written" were not the type of questions we wanted to be asking the next generation of teachers for the students and families at Sigler Elementary. I firmly believe we should be hiring teachers that will help us reach our full potential. This means hiring teachers that are unlike the teachers we currently have. Now, there is nothing wrong with the teachers we have...in fact they are amazing. But...if we continue to hire exactly what we already have, will we evolve? Will we change? Will we improve? I appreciate the perspective new teachers or veteran teachers, who are new to a building bring to the campus. New perspective can help challenge status quo.
I have had the opportunity to sit on hiring panels when interviewing potential assistant principals, and one of the questions we ask is, "What is the most important responsibility of being an administrator?"Answers range from student safety to developing relationships to being an instructional leader. All of those answers are great. You could make an argument for each. In my opinion, the most important responsibility I have as a building leader is recruiting, hiring and retaining the very best teachers.
In order to recruit and hire the best teachers, I need our interview questions to evolve so we are asking potential teachers questions that reflect the teachers we want working with and for our students, teachers and community. Once we have have hired them, the retention piece is up to us.
Here is where you come in! I wish this idea was my own, but with many ideas in education, one person has it and the rest of us steal it, so in the spirit of transparency, I am stealing this idea. Last week, George Couros led a session at TCEA (Google Tools for Admin.) and in the midst of this session, he shared a Google Doc with those in attendance, which of course was tweeted and retweeted enough times to travel around the world twice. At least! The purpose of this Google Doc was to "collect some inspirational videos on teaching and learning". I am not sure about you, but I know I have searched You Tube an endless number of times, looking for just the right video, but come up short, more than once. I know where my search will begin now. Thanks to this Google Doc. Check it out!
Now, back to where you come in. I need your voice. I need your experience and I need my PLN. As we work to reinvent the interview questions we ask, knowing we are trying to recruit and hire the very best, what interview questions are you asking? What interview questions have you asked? Let me know! As we begin to refine our questions, we may just use yours!
Use the link below to submit interview questions you have asked or have been asked that you feel help recruit and hire the very best teachers.
Click Here to Contribute Your Interview QuestionsLabels: #TCEA16, change #txpvi, hiring, leadership, Relationships, transformation
