Job Discussion Forums

[artemisia]

OP wrote:

Does anyone have good/bad examples of telephone interviews they don't mind sharing?

Here are mine.

Recently, I was an interviewee for two phone interviews for 2 jobs at high schools in the ME. I'm thinking about taking the plunge in that direction but am in no hurry, fortunately.

Before the interviews, I did some research on the schools - Dave's (although they weren't ESL jobs), the curriculum relevant to that school and the schools' websites. During the interviews, I had two check lists beside me: a list of possible questions I'd be asked and questions I wanted to ask (plus my CV). During the first, there was a bit of a time delay and although it felt quite stilted at times, I felt I made a connection with the interviewer. He asked me about how I would go about teaching a particular topic and I gave examples of how I had done so in the past. When I asked my questions, he made a real attempt to answer them and that was when we were able to make more of a 'personal' connection.

The second interview was entirely different. The interviewer asked me a series of questions that had no relationship to one another and no matter what I said or how I answered the question it was ON TO THE NEXT QUESTION. Just like talking to a robot really. To call this interview 'stilted' would be an understatement. Then, when I finally got my chance, he seemed pretty nonplussed by my questions (about specific classroom facilities and the curriculum - after long pauses - he just gave 'yes/no' answers). I knew it wouldn't work out all round.

Remember, as with any interview, you're interviewing them, too and you can still get a feel for the �culture� of a school, even on a phone and whether or not it�s likely to be a good �fit� for you .

[Nkengaola]

Hello all, I decided to bump this topic instead of opening a new one, in case anyone has any more advice for a newbie interviewing for a teaching position in China. I will be taking a TEFL class before the job starts, which the school is aware of. I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, with some old experience in health education with various age groups.