The call was from the head himself. He was sounding stressed.
“We held interviews in November, and she sounded perfect for the role. We checked the qualifications and the references and gave her the job at the end of the interview. But from the first day she turned up for work this term she was a disaster. Her values don’t fit with our school, she can’t manage her classes, didn’t conform to our staff code, and when we tried to address the problems she became defensive, told us we were endangering her mental health and took three days off. Fortunately, she is on probation, so we have terminated her services from the beginning of next week, but I cant understand how we made such a dreadful mistake. Her interview was brilliant.”
Probably every employer has experienced something similar at some point. And at the end of the year, when everyone is under pressure to do everything in half the time it ought to take, it’s easy to skip a few steps in the recruitment process and end up with a mis-step. Unfortunately, this story is a perfect illustration of why you should have two interviews before you make an offer of employment. The first and the second interview are very different.
The first interview can be quite quick, thirty to forty-five minutes should be completely adequate. The interviewer checks qualifications and registrations (candidates must bring original certificates with them, if they don’t, no interview) Oh – and don’t accept the certificates unless you have checked that the ID matches the name on the Certificates. Ladies may need their marriage certificates (yes, the plural is deliberate) if they have changed their name since graduation. Then check the competencies with some STAR questioning:
“You have a child in your class who is often slow to understand, and other learners are laughing at him. What would you do to address this situation and what do you believe the result of your intervention should be?”
Look at the career history,
“You left your previous school in October. Why did you not complete the academic year?” Don’t believe “it was the end of my contract” unless you have spoken to the previous head!
Personality and language are important. Big flamboyant non-conformist personalities are not appropriate in some schools, but withdrawn mice are probably going to be eaten up by a lot of classes before first break. Will this person fit in your school?
“Have you looked at our school website? What did you think of the values of our school?” If they didn’t look at the website, and didn’t consider the values … well, it’s your decision.
That’s the end of the first interview. If the person fits the bill so far, offer them a second interview, don’t offer them the job!
We have a client who preferred to hold the first interview in a coffee shop, together with the HOD of the department he was hiring for. He expected applicants to bring all their certificates, but obviously didn’t take any copies. He was concerned about their ability to interact socially as well as the answers to questions, even how they addressed the waiter was relevant. Plenty of schools now hold the first interview virtually. Personally, I think it’s easier to misjudge people in a virtual interview, but it does make for flexible timing. Choose a strategy that suits your school.
The second interview is going to be longer. Allow an hour per candidate, and fifteen minutes at the end for interviewers to discuss each candidate. The second interview should be at the school and in person.
The second interview is a bit more formal than the first. The decision makers need to be present. We already know that the person has the qualifications necessary, and that their basic classroom strategy is acceptable, now we need to examine
- whether they have the skills for the specific job we need to fill
- how they would cope with the unique challenges this schools faces
- how they respond to pressure
- whether they will fit with your team
- the quality of their prep (which will undoubtedly spill over into the classroom) – a useful question is “on the basis of your research about our school, what do you think we could do better?” A combination of prep, tact, insight and experience ought to be on display in this answer! If it isn’t … well, it’s your decision.
There is one employer who regularly sets up a “good cop / bad cop” routine in the second interview, using one friendly and one rather hostile interviewer. Another has a very diverse panel of five, who are instructed not to smile and to take copious notes. If you hire this person, for sure they will experience pressure in the school – how do they handle pressure? Start spouting nonsense? Aim to find out. These days, the second interview will often include a demo lesson or a presentation to the interview panel, and I have had grumbles that the candidate was informed about the presentation or lesson a bit late – give them enough time to do a good job, but expect a really stunning presentation, they are teachers after all!
Once the second interview is over, the panel will most likely have some questions about the candidate. In my opinion, this is the time to do a final reference check with a very recent employer. If – and only if – the referee quells your doubts, it’s time to make an offer. But if you are still unsure I recommend you phone Placements in Education for some alternative candidates.
Don’t take chances when you hire. Have two thorough interviews. Make sure everyone who interviews knows what the purpose of the interview is – and what skills you are looking for. If you do, it’s unlikely that you will be phoning Placements in Education in a panic at the beginning of February.