Here are a few interview questions you may want to add to your interview structure:
- Can you provide an example of a time when you advocated for equity and inclusivity in the classroom or in your previous workplace?
- How do you approach difficult conversations with students or colleagues regarding issues of race, identity, and privilege?
- Can you discuss your experience with culturally responsive teaching and how you integrate it into your classroom practices?
You can also listen to specific cues to responses to questions such as "Tell me what a typical lesson plan looks like" or "Describe a great lesson that you taught in the past.” General conversations around assessments and standards are pleasant, but what we do as interviewers who sit on the other side of the table must be to find the connection between equity, diversity, and any of the isms because, in the above questions, it is essential to see how a "great lesson" is tied to the students lived realities.
What if, and I'm spitballing here, you got even more specific such as "Students who are English learners, who are in poverty, underperform and are performing at lower levels in my school. Has that been your experience? Why do you think that might be?" Because if the candidate's responses are centered around blaming the students or their families, that should be an automatic red flag.
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