IB Interview Questions

Tell us a bit about yourself and why you decided to become a teacher.
As you know, we are a small private school. What are the advantages
that you see working in a setting of this type?
An important aspect of effective teaching is creating a high level of
student engagement. From your practicum experience, describe for us
a particularly successful lesson where students were clearly engaged.
Collaboration is an important aspect of our teaching culture. Describe
for us a professional experience that demonstrates your collaborative
skills.
Effective classroom management is important, particularly in your first
assignment. Describe for us one particularly challenging situation that
you had to deal with regarding student behaviour and how you handled
it. What worked well? What would you do differently, if anything?
Tell us about a teacher who was particularly influential in your decision
to become a teacher and what professional traits and skills most
impressed you about this person.
In closing, is there anything that you would like to add that we have
not covered in the interview to this point?
There are many qualified teachers applying for this particular position.
In addition to subject expertise, what else would you bring to our job
opening that differentiates your application from the others?

In addition to the various strengths that you mention and which are
reinforced by your references, what is one area of improvement that
your would like to make to your practice in your first year of full-time
employment?

Describe for us, please, an instance where you modified your

instructional approach based on formative assessment feedback.

The late Grant Wiggins describes effective evaluation as being

backward by design. What does this term mean to you and how have
you incorporated it into your instructional practice?

Tell us about a particularly effective lesson where you differentiated

instructional approaches to accommodate different learning needs of
your students.
Approaches to Teaching is a term that is commonly used. What do you
consider to be three or four teaching approaches that are
foundational to good pedagogy?

One of the challenges in teaching IB at our school is that you must also
cover the provincial curriculum. What experiences have you had that
have prepared you for this challenge?

A key component of the IB is the Learner Profile. If you were to add an

eleventh attribute, what would it be and why?

As an entry-level teacher you will receive mentorship support. If you

were being totally honest with your mentor, what area or areas of your
practice are most in need of refinement?
As you know, you are being considered for inclusion on our Teacher-onCall list. What do you anticipate will be the greatest challenges you
will face in being a TOC in our system?
For our entry-level teachers, we have a well-established coaching and
mentoring program. Describe for us what skills and personal traits
make you coachable.

The job, as posted, stresses that we are an IB World School. In brief,

what does this mean to you and why are you attracted to it?
Our school has 85 minute blocks. What do you consider to be the
advantages of such a system? The disadvantages? And what special
considerations, if any, do you need to make in our teaching based on
this organizational structure?
If successful, you will be part of a small, highly collaborative
department. Provide for us one example of a successful team that you
have been a member of, the purpose of the team, your role on it and
your contributions to it.
One of the central tenets of IB is fostering international mindedness.
What does this term mean to you and how have you addressed it
during your practicum?
Being a reflective practitioner is at the core of successful professional
growth. In reflecting on your own skills and attributes as a professional
educator, what is your main priority in improving your own professional
practice?
A key priority within IB is building access to its programs. What you
have done in your classroom to make the IB curriculum more
accessible to students with special needs?
What do you consider to be three characteristics of an IB education
that separate if from a traditional, comprehensive education?
If you were the Director General of IB and could improve it with one
change, what would that change consist of? Why?