Essential Elements of the Job

Search for Teachers

Know Yourself
Identifying your Skills
Winning Resumes
Cover Letters for Teachers
Interview skills
Additional Resources
Know Yourself
What are your greatest strengths?
What are your talents?
What do others indicate you are good at?
What achievements are you most proud of?
What makes you a good teacher?
What are you looking for in a teaching position?

What skills do you have that are important in the

teaching profession?
Relevant Teaching Skills
Evaluation, problem solving, analysis
Adaptability, flexibility
Creativity
Communication (written/verbal)
Interpersonal, teamwork
Organization, planning
Goal setting, decision making
Classroom management
 Relevant Teaching Skills
Identify skills related to teaching field as well as those
obtained through various experiences (travel, volunteer,
other employment, training):
Assertiveness, supervision
Technical
Self-management
Public relations, marketing, promotion
Networking
Counselling, mediation

.
 Relevant Teaching Skills
Activity:

Working in pairs, choose 1 teaching related skill

that you possess and describe to your partner a
time you demonstrated that skill.
Winning Resumes

First and foremost a resume is a marketing

tool
Know your audience – the resume should
be targeted to the position for which you are
applying
What are they looking for?
Winning Resumes
A great resume can land you an interview
A bad resume will not make the paper cut
and will kill your chances

How resumes are reviewed: the 30 second

scan
 What to include?
Mandatory Not Recommended
• Contact information
• Education
• Sex Marital status
• Work experience • Number of children
• Reference section
• Height
Optional
• Career objective • Age
• Interests • Weight
• Volunteer
• Salary Expectation
• Memberships
• Awards/accomplishments
Winning Resumes

Class resume critique

 Winning Resumes
Appearance:
Error free (spelling and grammar)
Has enough white space
Effective use of bold type and underlining
Consistency (i.e. all dates on right)
Adequate margin space
12 point font
Maximum 2 pages
 Winning Resumes
Writing Style:
Point form
Use headings that relate your experiences to the position
(i.e. Teaching Related Experience, Other Experience
Working with Children)
Use of action verbs: developed, supervised, analyzed,
coached, implemented, etc.
Brief accomplishment statements:
Action verb + object + result
“Organized a fundraiser which met objectives and allowed
for the purchase of 5 new computers.”
 Winning Resumes
Format
Choose the format that most effectively markets
you!
 Chronological – lists past employment in reverse
chronological order
 Skills based (functional)- focus on your skills versus
jobs you’ve held
 Combination – combine elements of both
 Winning Resumes
Chronological Skills Based Combination

Pros -most familiar -great for people -offers best of both

-easy to read with little career -allows you to be
-widely accepted related experience creative in how it’s
- minimizes gaps put together
in employment -works well for
teachers
Cons -not the best choice -difficult to -more time
if your experience is organize consuming to
not career related or -employers may organize
if you’ve switched think you are - can be difficult to
jobs often hiding something read if not
organized carefully
 Cover Letters for Teachers
Guidelines:
Addressed to appropriate individual (never
use Dear Sir or Madam)
Error-free
Perfect grammar
Use of confident language (avoid “I think”
or “I feel”)
 Cover Letters for Teachers
Include:
What you can teach
What else you can offer a school
Special interest in the school
Desire to teach
Personal strengths
Cover Letters for Teachers

Format - sample
 Interview Skills
Goals of an Interview:
Employers – to gather information about
you, assess your qualifications, and impress
you

You – present relevant information

positively, assess whether the job is a good
fit for you
First Impressions
Arrive early
Be courteous to all you meet
Dress appropriately - wear what is industry
standard, but go up a notch
Be confident, but not arrogant
Take your time and think before speaking
 Types of Interviews
Screening Interview – often conducted by larger
companies as a first interview; interviewer is often from
HR department
One to One Interview – often conducted by direct
supervisor who may not be trained in interview techniques
Panel Interview – more than one interviewer; meant to
reduce individual bias in the selection process
Sequential Interview – more than one interview with a
company
 Trait vs. Behavioural
Interviews can be conducted using a trait
approach or a behavioural approach
Trait – looks only at your stated
qualifications without looking for evidence
Behavioural – looks for evidence of skills
you have demonstrated in the past in order
to predict your future job performance
Focus on Behavioural Interviews
Interviewer will ask for specific examples from
your past experience in order to determine if you
can provide evidence of certain skills
Past behaviour is a powerful predictor of future
performance
The more recent the behaviour the better its
predictive power
Research probable skill areas that the employer
will be interested in
 Trait vs. Behavioural
Trait Behavioural
I am reliable I have only missed one
day of work in 10
years
I am good with people Last week I settled a
dispute between two
I am a good leader co-workers
I was elected president
of the student’s union
 Answering Behavioural
Questions
Structure your response by telling a story
based on the following acronym:
STARS:
S - situation
T - task
A - action
R - result
S - summary
 Example Using STARS
What did you do in your last job to contribute to a team
environment?
S – In my last job I was on a team where one member did not do his part
and this was causing us to fall behind schedule.
T/A – I decided to take this member aside to talk about the situation and
how important his contribution to the project was.
R – The result of this talk was evident by our next meeting. He had done
his share and we were able to complete the project on time.
S – I am certain that the way I approached this member had a positive
effect on his efforts. This example demonstrated my excellent
interpersonal skills and proves that I would be a valuable member to
any team.
 Tell Stories Based On….
Work experiences
Volunteer experiences
Participation in school or community
activities
study, work, travel
Internships
School projects
 Interview Practice

Choose one question from handout that you

would like to practice.
Working with a partner, each take a turn
being the inteviewer/interviewee to practice
responding using STARS acronym.
Questions to Ask the Interviewer

Working with a partner, come up with 2

questions you could ask an interviewer at
the end of a job interview.
 After the Interview
Evaluate your performance – take notes on
questions you answered well and those you had
difficulty with
Always send a thank-you letter to each person
who interviewed you
If you do not hear anything within a week (or the
timeframe they give you), phone them to follow-
up and restate your interest in the position
 Additional Resources
Career Planning Services – Ev 218:
Have your resume critiqued
See a career counsellor
View job postings at:
www.msvu.ca/careerplanning
Participate in a mock interview
Mark your Calendar: B.Ed. National
International Job Search – Jan 29 2011
 Additional Resources
Books available:
Inside Secrets of Finding a Teaching Job
(2nd ed.), 2003
Numerous books on resumes, cover letters
and interviews