Interview Questions/Timeline

Interview questions for a special education teacher...

1.  Please tell us about your educational background.

2.  Why did you choose a career in special education?

3.  Please tell us what experiences you have with working with special education students.

4.  Describe for us your philosophy on inclusion in the classroom.

5.  How will you respond to a teacher who does not follow a student’s IEP goals, accommodations, and modifications?

6. How do you define success in special education?

7.  How do you insure that your teaching skills and special education knowledge are both kept up to date?

8.  How would you handle making a difficult phone call to a parent?

9.  What do you see as major challenges in special education today?

10.  How would you manage the paperwork and documentation demands while teaching, including recording the information necessary for each student’s IEP?

11.  Describe a situation in which you had to deal with a challenging student.  How did you handle it?

12.  Is there anything else that you would like to share about your experiences that we have not covered?


Timeline for hiring process...

March 4 - Job description developed by Director of Special Education/Pupil Services; Interview Committee is selected
March 6 - Interview Committee meets to discuss pre-determined candidate criteria
March 11 through March 25 - Position is posted on WECAN, DPI, and district websites
March 26 through March 29 - Director and principal screen candidates; top five candidates are selected to interview
April 1 - Interview Committee meets to discuss interview process; interview questions, interview protocol-who will ask questions, appropriate queries, room arrangement
April 2/April 3 - Candidates are interviewed
April 4 - Committee meets to discuss applicants; sharing their top two candidates
April 5 - Director and principal review committee’s input regarding applicants; reference checks are made.
April 8-Director offers position to top candidate.  If candidate accepts, recommendation to Board for final approval at April Board meeting.  If candidate does not accept, offer to second candidate.  If necessary, repeat the process.
Once a candidate accepts, contact other candidates to let them know the position has been filled and thank them for their interest in the district and position.