Teacher Interview Questions/Answers

On November 4th, 2015 I observed Mrs. Warners 5th grade classroom at Touchet School. I also
interviewed Mrs. Warner about her career in teaching.

1. What is my philosophy of education?

I believe that each child is unique. It is important to create a positive learning
environment that is warm, inviting, and safe for students to enter each day.
It is important to recognize students and their different learning styles. I believe
that instruction must be differentiated to meet each childs needs and their level of
development. Students learn best in a hands-on classroom where they are fully
engaged.
Effective learning requires collaboration between teacher, students, and parents
that are grounded in mutual respect and trust. It is my duty to build positive
relationships that foster independence, good decision making, mutual respect, and
problem-solving strategies.
It is my goal and desire to instill a passion for learning and provide an education
environment that is encouraging and positive.
2. What part of your philosophy would you want passed on to the next teacher?
I would like to pass on to the next teacher that they remember each child is unique
and valued. They need encouragement and motivation. It is important to teach to
their individual needs/styles and foster a solid community partnership between
teacher, student, and parents.
3. What do you believe are the most effective methods of teaching?
I just began my 24th year of teaching. I began teaching in Special Education. I was
most comfortable with the Direct Instruction Method. It is the more traditional styleteacher centered. I was teaching basic fundamental skills to my students. I say.you
say approach. Having a classroom, I have learned to use more student centered
models like Inquiry based and Cooperative learning. With inquiry based, the focus is
on student investigations and hands on learning. This year, I am teaching 5th grade.
We use the Cooperative Learning model. It is a student centered approach. This
models emphasis is on group work and a strong sense of community. My physical
setting/layout in the classroom lends to this model. Throughout the day, the students
work in small groups/teams of different ability levels. (We use GLAD strategies to
manage our work areas and classroom behaviors). I like this model, as each member
of the classroom feels important and operates in a risk-free environment.

4. What is your favorite thing about teaching?

While teaching has its ups and downs, I cant imagine being anywhere else. My
favorite thing about teaching, especially in a small district is developing personal
relationships with my students and families. I have been able to teach the student,
their siblings, and a few of their parents as well. It is personally rewarding to see
students work hard and succeed. Ive had them in first grade and watched them
graduate from high school. Many come back to visit from college. Ive been able to
write letters of recommendations for many for scholarships and job interviews.
Teaching fills the void of having my own kids grow up and move on.
5. What do you find most challenging with this job?
Teaching is a demanding job. Its tough both physically and mentally. A good
teacher works hard to maintain high standards in classroom management and
academics. However, the most challenging is TIME MANAGEMENT and
PREPARATION. It is time consuming and the paperwork/correcting is never ending.
Getting myself organized is a lifelong task for me! You also have to be flexible.
Sometimes, there are those teachable moments that werent in your plans.
6.

What are your learning goals?

Learning goals include examine and identify my at-risk students through their fall
MAPS scores and last springs Smarter Balance test. I will progress monitor those
students in the winter and adjust my instruction to meet their needs. We will test in
the spring and celebrate their growth. I set personal goals as well for myself. They
include preparation and organizational goals.

7. How do you feel about common core?

Common Core has gotten a bad rap. Everyone seems to associate it with the national
tests. Common Core is what it says. It establishes clear and consistent guidelines for
what every student should know and be able to do from grades K-12. These
standards do not dictate what teachers should teach. They are simply a guideline to
help improve learning and achievement.

Teacher Interview

Kathie Warner is a fifth grade teacher. This is her second year teaching fifth grade. She
taught kindergarten and first grade for many years before teaching fifth grade. But because the
prior fifth grade teacher retiring a couple years ago, Kathie moved to teaching fifth grade. I
began attending Touchet School my fifth grade year, but at the time, Kathie was still teaching
first grade. I have always heard great things about Kathies teaching and her connection with her
students. She seemed like a good choice for an interview.
While I was interviewing Kathie, I noticed she never lost her smile and I could tell she
really loved what she was doing. Through her answers, I could tell that she took this job very
seriously. She answered all my questions honestly, and she took the time to answer them
thoroughly. She had many stories to tell about her journey in becoming a teacher. She also had
lots of advice to give, like things I should do, and things I should definitely never do as a teacher.
One thing she stressed to me was time management and preparation. She said that these are two
of the most important things in maintaining a classroom.
When asking Mrs. Warner about her philosophy of teaching, she emphasized that it is
important to create a positive and inviting environment for the students. She shared that she
believes each child is unique in their own way. She believes that each child has their own
learning style and that a teacher should try to meet each of the students needs and their level of
development. Mrs. Warner also believes that students learn best with hands-on activities because
it gets them fully engaged. When observing her classroom I definitely saw her philosophy
evident there. She was very engaged with the students, knew what each students learning style
was, and catered to them individually. She kept an even playing field between every student.
Even though she knew each student well, and knew which kids were the ones to look out for, she
was fair with her rewards and her discipline. During reading time, even though they were seated

at their desks, she had them engaged and acting out the motions in the book. She knew the
students needed to be active and hands-on in order to keep them interested in the reading.
At the end of the interview, I asked Mrs. Warner what her favorite part of teaching was.
Her response was that she enjoyed the relationships she develops with her students and their
parents. Not only on a school level, but also on a personal level. She loves seeing kids work hard
and succeed. I can only hope that one day when I become a teacher, I can also gain great
relationships with my students and their parents.

Class Observation

My main focus (I thought) would be to teach grades K-2. Fifth grade was probably the
last grade level I would have chosen. However, I really havent had much experience with this
grade level and I figured I better at least give it a chance. I went to Touchet School and met with
the fifth grade teacher, Kathie Warner, to do my classroom observation and teacher interview.
When I first got to the classroom, they were getting ready to do their reading for the day.
Each kid had their own book to follow along with (Earthquake Terror). Before they get ready
to read another chapter in the book, the teacher reads a story plot that gets them ready for the
next chapter. The kids have a chance to ask questions and the kids who have been gone have a
chance to get caught up on what they missed by listening to the story plot. The students also have
a series of vocabulary words that might be found in the upcoming chapter. The teacher goes over
those vocabulary words, before reading, so that there are less distractions during the actual
reading. Students know that they must raise their hand in order to be called on, with no
exceptions to this rule. When the teacher calls on a student, she always addresses them by name
and with a smile. When asking the students to do something she always remembers to say please.
After the students ask a question and give input on the subject, she always ends it with a thank
you. This lets the kids know that they are appreciated for what they have to say. When the kids
lose focus, the class has a signal word. They repeat the word Census and then they say the
definition of the word. This is a way to refocus the classroom so that they can get back to doing
whatever it is that they are supposed to be doing.
After reading the story plot, the teacher begins the reading for the day. The teacher reads
as the students follow along. She does this to model good reading. The idea of this method is that
if the students hear efficient reading, they will become efficient readers. The teacher reads slowly
so the kids can follow along easily. If a kid loses the page in their book, they must ask another

student, not the teacher. One thing I found very surprising was that the students stayed engaged
and reading along the whole time. They didnt get bored or lose interest in the book. The kids
liked the fact that the book had a lot of suspense and drama. They were oohing and awing the
entire time. The teacher had the students act out some of the movements and scene in the book.
This gives the students a feel for what it must of have been like to be in the story.
The classroom as many visual aids. There are posters and charts for all sorts of things.
One poster is of their Big 3. The Big 3 are the three rules the kids must abide by. One, make
good decisions, two, show respect, and three, solve problems. The teacher makes sure the
students look at the chart when they are getting close to breaking one of the rules. She was
giving the kids a chance to correct their actions before they made the wrong choice and had to be
disciplined. The teacher also gives rewards for good behavior. The kids have a Super Student
chart where they get points for attendance. They also have a Super Reader chart where they get
points when they finish a book. As I was looking around the room, I also noticed that there were
boxes with each students name on them. I realized that these where the students homework
boxes. Also, the class is split up into four sub groups. One group has a red basket in the middle,
another has a blue basket in the middle, another has a green basket in the middle, and another
group has an orange basket in the middle. If the teacher feels that a group of students have been
paying attention really well, that group gets bonus points. Whichever group has the most bonus
points by the end of the month, they get a big prize. The groups that the teacher feels were not
paying attention well, simply just do not get any bonus points. The teacher knew which students
needed more attention with certain things, and she would simply cater to those needs. She
wouldnt make a big deal about it. It was just a normal thing at that point in the school year.

During my interview with Mrs. Warner, she mentioned that she has tried multiple ways of
teaching certain things. Some things she had success with, other things went nothing how she
planned on them going. Some exercises she thought she had planned out perfect enough so that
she would have just enough time to finish them. Some actually turned out well, others she ended
up short on time. With her 24 years of teaching, she has had enough experience to reflect on to
know what works and what doesnt work. Now she has a well-organized classroom routine. The
students know what is expected of them and the rules are well established. In this way, it was
evident that Mrs. Warner had good reflective decision-making.
After watching this teacher, I know that it is very important to be prepared and manage
your time well. This will lead to less down time and more learning time for the kids. I also saw,
first hand, how important visual aids are. It helps the kids see what is to be learned and helps
them with the learning process. I realized how important it is to have well established rules. Kids
need to know what is expected of them and it is helpful if they have a daily reminder of the rules
and expectations. So a poster of the rules is helpful. I can see how important it is to have a good
relationship with your students because not only will they respect you as a teacher, but it will
also help with the interactions you have with the kids. That is something I cannot wait for when I
become a teacher.