Education

Level 1
- What are some of the contradictions and paradoxes of university
life?
- Describe the educational system in Italy.
- Does the educational system in Italy tend to exclude minority
groups?
Level 2
- What aspects of the educational system do you find valuable, not
valuable?
- What do you know about the educational systems in other
countries?
- What would you want your children to understand before they
enter an educational system?
Level 3
- If you were to define an experimental scholastic program, on what
would you base it?
- What should the role of private schools be in Italy? Why?

- Is the educational system in Italy a good reflection of your values?

If not, why not?
- Are you in favor of required schooling or should parents be able to
choose to educate
their children at home?

National Customs
How do national customs relate to national identity?
What are your favorite national customs? least favorite?
Which national customs contribute most to the creation of Italian
identity?
Which national customs of other countries do you find most
interesting?
Discuss the origin, history, and current meaning of a national
custom.

Society and social life

Society:
- How would you describe Italian society?

- How do you think Italian society will change in the next forty
years?
- What is it that holds a society together? drives it apart?
- Discuss the problems of a multi-racial, multi-ethnic society.
- What are some of the icons of today's society?

Social life:
- Are you satisfied with your social life? Why or why not?
- Where is it easiest for you to meet new people?
- Compare your social life to that of your parents twenty or thirty
years ago.
- How would your social life change if you had more money? less
money?

Living standards:
- How would you compare your living standards to those of your
grandparents?
- How does society decide what acceptable living standards are?

 Village and city life

How do you divide your time between village and city life? How do
you feel about this lifestyle?
How has literature, music, and movies traditionally portrayed village
and city life?
How does village or city life influence a person's choices?
Where is the quality of life better, in a village or in a city? Why do
some people sustain the opposite?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of anonymity?

Living standards
Society:
- How would you describe Italian society?
- How do you think Italian society will change in the next forty
years?
- What is it that holds a society together? drives it apart?
- Discuss the problems of a multi-racial, multi-ethnic society.
- What are some of the icons of today's society?

Social life:
- Are you satisfied with your social life? Why or why not?
- Where is it easiest for you to meet new people?
- Compare your social life to that of your parents twenty or thirty
years ago.
- How would your social life change if you had more money? less
money?

Living standards:
- How would you compare your living standards to those of your
grandparents?
- How does society decide what acceptable living standards are?

The world of work

What is work? How is work viewed in different cultures?
If there is constant progress, why don't we work less than in the
past?
Discuss some laws which regulate the world of work.

 Youth culture
What does "youth culture" mean?
Which art forms most influence young people today?
How much do young people influence society as a whole?
Who are some of young Italians' heroes, the icons of Italian youth
culture?

Local history
Level 1
- What does "local history" mean?
- What are the main events in Italian history?
- How have these events been influenced by immigration? scandals
and corruption? the general political situation?
- What different social reactions to historical events have people
had?
- How much does local history influence a person? How much does it
influence you?
- Which other town's or nation's history do you find interesting?

Level 2

- Your own identity is a mixture of history and tradition. Discuss how

this is evident.
- What are the most important traditions in your own town? Why
are they important today?
- Did the different dominations influence Sicilian history and culture?
Where can we see this influence?
- Who are the Sicilian heroes/heroines?

Childhood experiences
evel 1
- Which positive childhood experiences do you remember most
vividly?
- How would you describe your first impact with school?
- Define your current personality with anecdotes from your
childhood.

Level 2
- Do early childhood experiences really count as much as some
people think? Why?
- When is a person's sexuality determined - at a a very young age
or later?
- How did your childhood experiences determine whether or not you
now smoke cigarettes?
- How has your perception of your parents changed since you were
a child?

 Diet
Are you satisfied with your weight? Why or why not?
Do you love to eat? What foods or drinks can't you resist?
What foods which are not typically Italian do you like most?
Describe your favorite restaurant.
Do you agree that food can be an aphrodisiac? If so, which food?
Do you "watch what you eat", are you "on a diet", or do you "eat
whatever you want"?
Getting to Know You Tell us about yourself. What would you like us to know about
you? If you had a co-teaching experience while student teaching, tell us about it
and how it sets you apart from other candidates. Tell us about the Teacher
Performance Assessment (TPA) and your experience engaging with it as part of
your preparation to teach. What is your educational and professional preparation?
What strengths do you have that would enhance our teaching staff? What would
your worst critic say about you? What three words would others use to describe
you? What is a unique quality specific to you? What research have you done
about our school? What are your interests outside of teaching? Teacher
Relationships with Students Describe a successful experience working with a
diverse population of students. Discuss your experience or interest working with
struggling learners. What kind of students do you like to work with? What type of
students could you teach most effectively? How do you help students experience
success? How would you individualize instruction for students? How would you
challenge a slow learner and an advanced learner in the same class? What is your
experience working with special education students? English Language Learners?
How do you keep students motivated? What do you think is the best approach for
empowering students, rather than enabling them? How will you establish and
foster relationships with students, especially those with challenging behaviors?
Teacher Relationships with Colleagues Describe experiences working in Professional

Learning Communities (PLCs) in your common content courses and the benefits of
collaborating with colleagues in other content areas. Can you give a specific
example of a project where you worked collaboratively? What were the goals,
challenges and outcomes? Give an example of something valuable you learned
from a colleague. What kind of assistance would you most like from other staff
members? Sample Teacher Interview Questions Discuss your feelings about
working in a team environment in which some items (i.e. curriculum) are agreed
upon as a team, department, school, etc. What kind of teachers would you prefer to
work with? Why? Teacher Relationships with Parents What do you feel is the most
effective way to communicate with parents? Describe how you have used these
technique(s)? Describe the reasons you would contact a parent. What would you
include in your Open House presentations to parents? Teaching Techniques and
Pedagogy Briefly describe your philosophy of teaching. What is academic
language and how will you incorporate it into your teaching? Describe how you
would make your content culturally relevant for your students. Provide a specific
example of how you used technology in an interactive way. List and describe three
teaching strategies you feel most competent using. What are you prepared to do
to address the racial achievement gap? How will you make your classroom a safe
learning environment? How will you address Response to Intervention in your
classroom? What are the most significant challenges in teaching and learning in
current classrooms? Describe a lesson that would be very motivating to teach.
What are the students doing? How will you implement accommodations for
students with special needs? What is the most unique lesson you have taught in a
classroom? Teaching strategy and/or pedagogy? Tell us about two lessons you
have taught that went really well and two that did not go so well. Describe any
innovative projects you have been involved in developing. What teaching methods
do you use most frequently (i.e. lecturing, demonstrating, worksheets, projects,
research, daily puzzles)? How do you decide which electives to teach, if given the
option? Do you feel it is important to teach values and morals in school, and how
would you accomplish this task? How would you integrate technology into the
curriculum you would teach? How familiar are you with the state academic
standards and Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) testing? Do you have
experience with group teaching and/or subject integration, and do you think it is
valuable? Give an example of how you have used cooperative learning in your
classroom. What rules do you have for your classroom? Who should be
responsible for discipline in a school? Why? Teaching Techniques and Pedagogy
Continued Describe your teaching style and how you accommodate the different
learning styles within your classes. What do you consider to be your strengths and
how will you use them in your teaching? What methodologies do you use in your
teaching? How would you develop an overall teaching plan for the year? Would

you rather try new teaching strategies or try to perfect the approaches which work
best for you? Explain. An experienced teacher offers you the following advice:
When you are teaching, be sure to command the respect of your students
immediately and all will go well. How do you feel about this? How do you decide
what should be taught in your class? Tell me about a lesson you use that
integrates one or more standards. What is your philosophy of classroom
management? Tell me about a lesson you use that utilizes reading, writing,
speaking, and listening. What would we see if we were to observe you at work in
your classroom? What are some ways youve thought of to reduce plagiarism?
What intervention strategies do you use as a teacher at the classroom level for
students who are not having success? Discuss your general philosophies related to
grading, assignments, types of assessments, extra credit, etc. What are your
experiences working with Curriculum Cycles, designing curriculum and leadership
roles related to designing and implementing a new/revised curriculum? How do we
overcome obstacles or barriers to learning? What do you believe is the best
strategy or tool for coaching students? Tell me how you enforce a productive class
environment. Describe some reading strategies youve implemented to work with
functional readers with very low comprehension, written, and work skills. What
procedures do you use to evaluate student progress besides using tests? How do
you assess what a student with behavioral issues needs to be successful? Describe
methods, strategies, or interventions you have implemented with a student with
serious behavioral issues. Are you comfortable with online grading software?
What kind of student data do you use to inform your planning and instruction?
Content Knowledge Why did you choose to study your subject area? Describe the
three most important concepts in your subject matter that students must
understand to become successful. What are the current trends in curriculum in
your teaching area? Describe your preparation and study in your subject matter.
What is the most exciting thing happening in your field of study? What is your
favorite concept in your subject area to teach? What was your favorite course in
college? What was your most difficult course in college? What areas of your
subject are you uncomfortable teaching? Professionalism and Motivation Why did
you choose to become a teacher? What do you hope to accomplish? What does it
mean to be a professional educator? Describe characteristics of the best/worst
teacher you have known. What is the correct professional dress and demeanor for
a classroom teacher? What are your three most important reasons for wanting to
be a teacher? What are your professional aspirations in the next five years/ten
years? What are your thoughts on being a role model and its importance in the
classroom? What has been your most positive teaching experience? Negative?
What do you think will provide you the greatest pleasure in teaching? Tell us about
the three people who have most influenced your own education and educational

career. School/Community/Position What is the position(s) for which you are

applying? What do you know about our school? What activities would you like to
work with at our school? What community activities would you like to be
associated with? Why? Please describe your education, training, experiences, and
accomplishments to help us better understand your qualifications for these
positions. How do you anticipate working at this school will be different from your
previous experience? Why are you the best candidate for this position? What sets
you apart from other applicants? What needs and/or expectations do you have of
the school administration? How do you deal with fast-paced, high intensity, high
expectation job settings? What experiences will help in preparing you for a
demanding situation? Discuss the ideal teaching situation for you. What type of
students are you teaching, what courses, what resources are available to you, what
level of students, etc.? What teaching situations do you do your best work? Please
identify our schools guiding principles or mission at jump off the page for you.
How would you bring those ideals to life? If you were offered this position, what
would be the first thing you would do to prepare? If you were asked to do more
than your job description required, how would you respond? What do you know
about state and national standards? Do you see any value in being involved in
your states association? If you were offered and accepted the position here, what
changes would you make immediately and what would you want to change down
the road? Describe your organizational skills. How would you stay organized with
planning, correcting, and parent/teacher communications about academic and
behavioral issues? Behavioral Based Interview (Situational) Questions If you had
given students 15-20 minutes after your lesson discussion to do their homework
and a student puts his head down on his desk, what would you do or say? You
have a special needs student with ADHD in your classroom, she is repeatedly
disruptive talking to those around her, getting up to sharpen her pencil a couple
times during the class period, and making comments such as, This is stupid. Who
needs to know this stuff anyway? What would you do? A paper was due at the end
of a two-week unit. Johnny didnt meet the deadline. He tells his parents that he
did not have enough time to finish it. His mother is a school board member. What
would you say or do? If you told a student (who was disruptive) to go to the office
and she refused, what would you do? A student is doing poorly in your class. You
talk with her, and the student tells you that she considers you the poorest teacher
she has ever met. What would you do? You give an assignment. A student ridicules
the assignment, saying it doesnt make sense. What would you do? If you see a
180-degree turn in a student, what would you do? A parent comes to you and
complains that what you are teaching his/her child is irrelevant to the childs
needs. How would you respond? How would you initiate a discussion with a student
who has not completed their work for two days in a row? Additional Topics and
Background Information What personal attributes do you possess which will enable

you to be a positive role model for students? What are your plans for continuing
your professional growth? Tell me about an interesting article you have read
recently in a professional journal. What current trends in public education please
you? Displease you? Discuss your experience in leadership positions and how you
can best add to the leadership here? The fundamental purpose of school is
learning, not teaching. Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Why? To
whom would you go if you werent sure how to handle a situation? Are you
interested in coaching? If you were coaching, how would you handle a student who
does something unsportsmanlike? Project yourself five years into the future and
place yourself into your vision of what this learning environment will look like?
Please respond briefly to the following: All children can learn; Multiple Intelligences;
Site based management; Inclusion; Cooperative Learning. Unique Questions If you
could pick a famous person to interview, who would you pick and why? If you
could be one color of the rainbow, which color would it be and why? Questions to
ask at the interview (select 2 or 3) What would staff, students, and parents say are
the strengths of the school? How does the school support professional
development? Do you have an induction program? How do teachers integrate
technology into the classroom? Describe parental involvement within the school?
What is the school policy or philosophy on inclusion? What extracurricular activity
opportunities might be available? Are there any aspects of my background or
qualifications that are unclear or need further explanation? If so, Id be happy to
clarify them for you. What is the next step in the hiring process? When do you hope
to make a decision?
Questions to ask after the job offer Tell me about your health insurance plan(s).
Tell me about your retirement package. Tell me about the salary scale.

Describe a special occasion for which you arrived late.

You should say:

what occasion you were late for

when it happened

how you felt

and explain why you were late.

Describe your first day in a new job or at college.

You should say:

what the job or course was

what you had expected before you started

what happened on the first day

and explain how you felt at the end of the day.

Describe how you behaved in a stressful situation.
You should say:

what the situation was

how you behaved

how other people might have behaved

and explain how you felt about your behavior afterwards.

Describe an important choice you had to make in your life.
You should say:

when you had to make this choice

what you had to choose between

whether you made a good choice

and explain how you felt when you were making this choice.

Describe an occasion when you couldnt pay for something you

wanted.
You should say:

what you wanted to pay for

why you werent able to pay

what you did

and explain how you felt about the situation.

Describe a party you particularly remember.1

You should say:

why the party was held

who attended

what happened

and explain what made it memorable.

Describe a difficult skill you learned successfully.
You should say:

what skill you learned and how it is difficult

when and where you learned it

why you learned it

and explain what helped you to learn it successfully.

Describe a job you have done.

You should say:

what the job involved

how you got the job

how long the job lasted

and explain how well you did the job.

Describe the most frightening thing you have ever done.
You should say:

when and where you did this

what it was you did

why you did this

and explain why it was so frightening.

Describe the most exciting thing you have ever done.

You should say:

when and where you did this

what it was you did

why you did it

and explain why it was so exciting.

Describe an idea you had for improving something at work or college.

You should say:

when and where you had your idea

what your idea was

who you told about your idea

and explain why you thought your idea would make an improvement.
Describe a competition (e.g. TV, college/work, or a sports competition)
that you took part in.
You should say:

what kind of competition it was and how you found out

about it
what you had to do

what the prizes were

and explain why you chose to take part in this competition.