Areas to assess                    

Examples of questions

Things to look for

Experience and preparation for position

·         Please describe your preparation for this position.

·         Formal preparation experiences

·         Field experiences

·         Other

Educational qualifications

·         What course of special education teaching you have done?

·         What was the duration of the course?

·         What specialization you hold in special education teaching?

·         From which institute you have completed your course?

·         Certification(s) in area(s) in which they teach and/or

·         Is currently enrolled in program/courses to obtain certification

·         Was the institute recognized by the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI), (or through other agencies in case of other countries)

Training

·         What kind of training have you received?

·         Have you received any in-service training?

·         Which workshops you have attended for strengthening your professional skills?

·         Institute from which training is received and

·         Duration of training received

·         Knowledge on training for handling technological equipments

Teacher Dispositions

·         How would your students describe you?

·         Tell us about yourself and what you bring to this position?

·         What was your biggest challenge in your last job (or internship) and how did you address this challenge?

·         Caring, respect, dedication, commitment to students

·         Interest in continued learning, motivation, thoughtful practices

Teacher Roles

·         Describe your ideal teaching position

·         What do you view as the role of the special educator?

·         What concerns do you have about filling this role

·         Applicant is a good fit in terms of experience, preparation, and view of their roles

View of special education

·         What are characteristics of effective programs for students with disabilities?

·         Considers where student is in general curriculum and involves collaboration with others

·         Looks for the student’s suitability

·         Provides training on the basis of students’ needs on individual basis

·         Involves adapted teaching procedures and materials

·         Includes ongoing assessment of student performance

Understanding students with disabilities

·         Describe the needs of a student with disabilities that you have worked with over a period of time

·         Shows specific understanding of student needs, such as language and communication, academic, behavioral, medical needs, social needs and emotional needs

Understanding diversity and working with family

·         How you address the needs of students from diverse backgrounds

·         How do you provide counseling and practical support to the families of students with disabilities

·         How you collaborate with families?

·         Shows an understanding that how an individual and family may differ (e.g. values, perspectives, way of behaving)

·         Discusses suggestions for adapting instruction for students from different backgrounds

Assessment and evaluation of students’ learning

·         Describe specific strategies you have used in the assessment of student learning

·         Knowledge about ongoing assessment

·         Use of frequent assessment to inform how well instruction is working and what changes might be needed

Collaboration or co teaching

·         Tell me about your experiences of collaboration with general educators

·         Please give an example of a 1) situation that worked well, and 2) any challenges that you encountered.

·         What are various ways that you might collaborate and/or co teach with general educators?

·         Willingness to collaborate

·         Knowledge about collaboration

·         Specific ideas for working with general educators

·         Specific skills of collaboration

·         Flexibility

Instructional strategies

·         What type of teaching strategies have you used in your teaching?

·         How do you decide which teaching strategies to use?

·         Is familiar with a range of teaching strategies

·         Selects teaching procedure based on research

Individualized Education Programmes (IEP)/ Transition planning

·         What components are included in an IEP?

·         Describe how you would facilitate an IEP meeting.

·         How would you incorporate transition planning in the IEP?

·         Awareness of IEP requirements

·         Importance of being prepared

·         Evidence that they value parent input

·         Awareness for transition plans for students age 14 and above

Students behaviour

·         How would you approach working with a student who regularly disrupted a class and refused to cooperate?

·         Importance of assessing environmental factors

·         Systematic approach

·         Importance of relationships

Paraprofessionals

·         Describe how would you establish a positive working relationship with paraprofessionals.

·         Importance of communication

·         Specific ideas for working with paraprofessionals

Assistive technology

·         Describe any experiences or training that you have had with using assistive technology.

·         Is aware of and understands how assistive technology can be used

Interviewee’s questions

·         We have spent a lot of time asking you questions; what questions do you have?