Interviews in schools - the worst of “we’ve always done it that way”



Anyone who has been for an interview or two for a school based post will know that the process is broken. 

Whether the role is for a member of support staff, a class teacher or one with leadership responsibilities, they almost all follow the same steps:

  • Work with children;
  • Answer some questions that have been found via a Google search the day before the interview process begins;
  • Some in-tray task and a list of the worst things that could ever go wrong, all happening on one day for you to prioritise (more prominent if you’re going for a leadership role)
  • Some other crazy task that you’ll never come across in your role. 

But what do we actually want from our successful candidate? I’d argue that the only one that’s remotely pertinent is working with children, although what can you actually get from a 20-30 minute observation of a ‘lesson’, especially now it’s widely agreed that one-off observations should not be used anywhere in school?


It’s time for us to change and design interview tasks to enable you to find the right fit for your school, rather than the candidate that interviews the best. 


Something that we’re currently trialling in school is using presentations, rather than interview questions. The candidate is given 10-15 minutes to share why they are a good fit for our school (with reference to safeguarding so we meet safer recruitment requirements) and we generate questions based on this. 


It gives the candidate the opportunity to share how they would fit within our team. We take nerves into account and assure everyone that the process is about them showing themselves in the best light, not questions designed to put them on the spot and catch them out. 


In the case of a class teacher, there are very few things that they won’t be able to plan and prepare for, so why put them in a situation where they have to answer 10 unseen questions (with a curve ball in there to catch them out)?


We ensure that support/teaching staff are part of the interview process. Apart from the obvious CPD it provides for each team member, it also shows them that their opinion is valued. If they can’t see themselves working with you, you won’t get a job in our school. 


At Whitegate End we value culture over everything else. We can support you with your teaching, we can give you ideas on how to plan a unit of work that shows progression. But what we need are people who fit the culture. Individuals who can add to the ‘WGE way’. 


We don’t have everything perfected yet. We never will. But we have big ideas and a commitment to challenge the status quo. 


Next time you find yourself asking why do we do it like that, do not accept “we’ve always done it that way.”


If you’d like to help out wonderful school, please consider buying a book from our Amazon Wishlist.

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