Can someone tell me what to expect at a follow up teaching interview?

Question

I had a phone interview for a teaching position (6th and 7th grade social studies) and they scheduled me a time to stop by and see the school and bring my teaching portfoilo along with me. What things should I expect and be prepared for at this interview? The previous phone interview lasted about an hour and they covered lots of questions.

Answer 1

There should be more questions, but don't be shocked if some are the same. Make sure you use your portfolio while you answer them in case there isn't time for them to look at it (some times there is some times there's not) You may get a tour of the school or at least the type of classes you'd be teaching.

What they are doing is getting a better feel for you as a person not just over the phone.

Congratulations on making the first cut!

Answer 2

I believe that "serendip" offers sage advice.

In my view, the second interview can accomplish several things -from both the school's as well as your perspective.

(1) Physical presence: as much as some want to believe that impressions are relevant, it goes counter to human behavior to subscribe to that point-of-view.  As such, be aware of your selection of clothes (appropriate for a teacher of middle school students).

(2) Along with your portfolio -which should be used at every turn where a question or concern can be responded to by something in your portfolio- be sure to have a note pad in order for you to jot down things that you may want to address later.  

This can happen when you are given a tour of the school and you're moving from place to place and, sometimes, more than one person is vying for your attention.  Be comfortable in saying, "Excuse me for a moment, I 'd  like to write down something for me to discuss with you at a later time."

These notes can be centered around anything ... from the condition of a classroom to the use of facilities and access for disabled students.

(3) Be comfortable with asking them questions ... not so much that you dominate the dialogue or that it seems you are nitpicking.  Remember, this second interview is as much as YOU interviewing them as it is THEM interviewing you.  At a minimum, you want to walk away from this interview with a clear sense of whether you'd accept the job if offered to you ... and not every job is a "fit" for us.

(4) And a final suggestion -depending on your personality and level-of-comfort with the people interviewing you ... if you get to actually see the classroom you'll be teaching in, be sure to take notice of the physical environment of the room and make some specific -and positive- comment about the space that links to your expertise.  

For example, let's say there's a lot of open wall space ... you can point out how much you enjoy having a classroom with that open space as you believe that your students must exercise all their senses -visual, auditory, kinestetic- and you like to encourage that by bringing in maps, pictures, etc. that reinforce the lesson plan.

At a minimum, if you are located near an historic site -like Gettysburg, or Valley Forge, or Bunker Hill and the like, be sure to say something like "I enjoy that we live in an area that played such an important part of this country's early history.  When we cover that lesson, I typically bring in X, Y, and Z, to further help the students connect-the-dots about living where such-and-such an event took place."

Relax, be confident, and good luck!