With the Department of Education providing California $4.6 billion in funding for schools to deliver summer enrichment and after-school programs, hiring staff for the upcoming summer is going to be both competitive and quick.

But after a pandemic school year, the average interview questions aren’t sufficient for the classroom candidates are entering in the summer. Experts say schools won’t be able to combat students’ learning loss until they deal with the social and emotional needs of children who have been away from their peers and teachers for more than a year.

Meaning “summer school” isn’t going to be typical in 2021. It’s going to be focused on meeting student’s social and emotional needs.

When it comes to hiring for these summer programs, you need specific questions targeted at how candidates will help students on all levels: academic, social, and emotional.

You’ll be in search of candidates who understand summer and after-school programs require an abundance of patience, empathy, guidance, innovation and support. You’ll also want to gauge potential hires’ level of dedication and endurance to see how you can best support them, because teachers have had a draining year too.

To help expedite your hiring process, we’ve put together a list of interview questions to ask potential teachers, teaching assistants, and tutors when considering them for a summer enrichment or after-school program.We’ve also got a blog outlining how to refine your overall search for the right summer teacher.

Skill-based interview questions

1. What do you think is the best way to help a student “catch-up” if they fell behind during the pandemic school year?
2. You have been hired as the newest member of our teaching team. In fewer than five minutes, how would you introduce yourself to a group of parents, students, and teachers from our school? The only thing you want to be sure to do is to indicate how your education, training, and work experiences have qualified you for your new role.
3. How Would You Handle [Specific Subject Situation/Misconception]?
4. Tell Me About a Time When You Helped Someone Become More Successful.
5. If you were in the classroom during the pandemic, what’s the greatest takeaway you had as a teacher?
6. What is your approach to classroom management and student discipline?
7. Explain — in writing — in 100 words or fewer your philosophy of teaching.

Personal interview questions

1. Why should we hire you?
2. What days and hours are you available each week?
3. How flexible is your schedule?
4. Do you have any activities that would prevent you from working on your schedule?
5. Do you have summer vacation plans?
6. What’s the last book you read that helped you refine your craft as a teacher?
7. I’ve read your application and resume, but what are the most important things I should know about you, your life, your experiences? Who is the real [insert applicant’s name]?
8. You have been hired as the newest member of our teaching team. In fewer than five minutes, how would you introduce yourself to a group of parents, students, and teachers from our school? The only thing you want to be sure to do is to indicate how your education, training, and work experiences have qualified you for your new role.
9. What would your previous employer or college advisor say were your greatest strengths for teaching, and what areas would they suggest were areas that need growth? And do you agree with those assessments?

Endurance/ mental health interview questions

1. How did you manage your mental health during the pandemic?
2. How do you feel about teaching during the summer after the unconventional teaching year we just experienced?
3. If COVID cases were to resume lockdown, and summer school had to be held virtually or in a hybrid model, how would you react? Would that be something you could handle?

Innovation/ growth mindset interview questions

1. How do you keep students engaged when they are used to having the summer off? Can you give me an example of how you’d bring “summer” into the classroom so they don’t feel like they are “losing” or “wasting” their summer?
2. What personal strengths do you find especially helpful in your teaching?
3. How do you organize your classroom?
4. How do you structure your time to manage all of the duties associated with teaching?
5. What would you tell your incoming class in a “welcome to summer school” letter?

Once you’ve found suitable candidates for your summer enrichment or after-school program, extend them an offer quickly because demand for teachers is high and that candidate is likely receiving competing offers.

If you need help sourcing or finding candidates, we’re always here to help.

Get in touch

Credit for questions: https://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin352.shtml

The government recognized this urgency and passed the American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund which provided nearly $122 billion of federal funding to states and school districts. It requires that every state reserve at least $1.2 billion for summer programs that improve both academic and emotional outcomes.

The demand for summer enrichment programs has soared but many of your current teachers are burnt out and desperately need a break.

You need to find new summer teachers and tutors ASAP.

But you can’t just hire anyone if you want your students to have a fulfilling summer after an extremely difficult year.

Find the right teachers or tutors for summer school with these 5 ways to refine your search from reassessing your teacher job descriptions to utilizing staffing companies to save time.

1) Define clear goals for your summer program

Have a clear understanding of what you want your summer enrichment program to achieve.

What do you want your students to gain?

Many students will be behind in their learning, but they also missed out on significant socialization and experienced other trauma.

Thus, more and more school districts are offering a diverse selection of fun summer programming for students to reconnect with peers in structured learning environments.

Define how much learning you want your summer programs to cover and how you’ll measure for successful outcomes. Then determine much of your programs will focus on enrichment classes.

If you’re unsure of your summer school’s goals, then you’ll have more difficulty in finding the right teachers and tutors.

2) Reassess the summer teacher job description

The job ad that you’ve been using for years won’t be effective anymore.

You shouldn’t look for a teacher or tutor that’s going to treat your summer enrichment program like every other summer.

Your listed qualifications need to include more than the usual organized and flexible traits. Teachers need to be capable of leading accelerated learning to close any gaps as much as possible.

And make sure to target your job ad at strong teachers who are ready to handle the social and emotional component of summer school, not solely the academic part.

3) Know where to share your teacher job ads

We all know the most popular job boards like Indeed and LinkedIn, but are they really the best places to post your job?

Save time and money by narrowing your audience to only people interested in teacher jobs.

Promote your summer teaching position on niche, education-specific job boards like SchoolSpring and TeachingJobs.

You can also connect with college career offices and alumni organizations to reach enthusiastic undergrads who just started their teaching career.

Asking your current teachers for referrals is always a good idea, because they’re familiar with your school’s procedures and values. They’re most likely to recommend fellow teachers who will fit well in your culture.

Finally, attend virtual teacher job fairs. Fairs are effective candidate attraction tools, because you can answer any question on the spot.

4) Ask the right questions during teacher interviews

Just as you needed to revamp your teacher job posting, you need to revamp your interview questions too.

Ask specific questions targeted at how your potential summer teachers and tutors will enrich students on all levels of development.

Here are a few examples:

1. How do you feel about teaching during the summer after the unconventional teaching year we just experienced?
2. What do you think is the most important thing students should learn in this year’s summer enrichment program?
3. How did you manage your mental health during the pandemic?

There are plenty of other interview questions you can ask to uncover the kind of teacher an interviewee might be.

5) Use a staffing company

Teacher recruiting companies are great options to outsource your hiring squad when your team is too swamped with other school priorities.

These agencies have the time, resources, and expertise to find suitable staff for your continuous flow of job openings.

Scoot Education is a staffing company that acts as an extension of your hiring team. We not only have a large pool of qualified candidates, we personally know each one and what they value in their teaching career. For us, staffing schools has always been more than just matching credentials.

Scoot doesn’t charge anything to help you search for stellar candidates. You only pay when you hire someone! Pay a percentage of a teacher’s salary or for a day-to-day Scoot sub.

The demand for summer teachers this year is high. Many schools will be competing for the best teachers.

Work smarter, not harder by teaming up with Scoot to find the right teachers and tutors for your summer enrichment programs.

Types of Schools:

Independent schools are independent in philosophy. Each school is driven by a unique mission. You can expect smaller class sizes and a wide array of offerings within the academic, arts, and athletics departments. With smaller class sizes there is more individualized attention on the students and their needs.

Charter schools are funded by the government but operated independently of the state school system it is located within. Charter schools offer families a choice other than their local district public schools. Each charter school is different and has its own mission and demographic they intend to appeal to, however, they typically exist to cater to underserved communities. It’s important for educators teaching in charter schools to have strong cultural awareness and an understanding that statistics indicate that many of the students they will be working with may have experienced trauma in their lives – to be successful empathy is a key trait. Classroom sizes are generally 20-25 in lower elementary grades, increasing to 30 and on occasion up to 35 in middle and high school.

Private schools follow the same curriculum as decided by the government. However, the method of delivery is decided by the school board. The school administrators also decide the fees and admission. Private schools vary in size but almost all have smaller class sizes to enhance the focus on individual student needs and provide more one-to-one time with their teacher(s). Often, private schools are fortunate to be able to provide outstanding facilities and access to technology, etc.

Public schools are government-run schools regulated by federal, state, and local law. Class sizes can vary depending on the school but can be between 20-35 students depending on the grade level. Strong classroom management is a sought-after skill in order to be successful in providing all students with a positive learning experience within larger groups. Public schools are diverse and generally reflect the demographics of the neighborhood they are in. Teaching methods are quite traditional within public schools, with teaching and learning very structured.

Religiously – affiliated schools are a self–identified association of an institution with a religious denomination, church, or faith. You can expect smaller class sizes and you may be asked to follow the school’s religious curriculum as well as a particular dress code. It’s not normally a requirement to believe in the religion of the school in order to teach there as a substitute, however, it is an expectation to be respectful and supportive of the values and beliefs.

Cities that Scoot Subs currently work in: 

 Los Angeles: 

• Angeles Forest
• Antelope Valley
• Central L.A.
• Culver City / Mar Vista / Venice
• Downtown / Hollywood / West Hollywood
• Eastside
• Encino / Calabasas
• Glendale / Pasadena / La Canada
• Harbor
• Northeast L.A.
• Northwest County
• Orange County
• Pomona Valley
• San Fernando Valley
• San Gabriel Valley
• Santa Monica / Malibu
• Silver Lake / Echo Park / East L.A. / Los Feliz
• South Bay
• South L.A.
• Southeast
• The Valley – Studio City / Sherman Oaks
• Westside

Bay Area:

• East Bay / Oakland / Berkley
• Marin
• Peninsula
• San Francisco
• San Jose
• San Mateo

Apply for full-time teacher jobs

Apply for substitute teacher jobs

Scoot is still growing as a company and we are consistently partnering with new schools. We hope to provide value and opportunities to more communities in the future.

Do you ever get to the end of your day and wonder “Where did the time go”? Do you find your workload is exclusive to the supervision and leadership of others? Do you find that you’re left with little time to focus on your personal responsibilities?

Other HR personnel normally supervise 5-15 people. But the average school principal oversees the performance and development of 37 teachers. And this number does not including non-instructional staff. With so much responsibility, it’s clear why school leaders worry about hiring the right people the first time.

Hiring the right people means school leaders can share responsibilities and empower their team at the same time.

Distributing responsibilities relieves many administrative duties, while providing constant leadership development for educators.

Empowering all teachers–not just a select few– leads to strengthened leadership capacity. It also fosters a school community of support and appreciation.

1) Rotate leadership responsibilities

Make sure every person gets a chance to set agendas and take responsibility for a conversation they are leading. Taking ownership is an essential leadership skill to master. This could be facilitating a school-wide meeting or setting up budgets for departments.

2) Hire well

You are responsible for creating a team-based environment so do not shortcut the hiring process. Get everyone involved during this time to ensure that the new hire’s commitment and goals match with yours.

3) Don’t micromanage!

Teachers are entrusted with the lives of children every day by their parents. So why is it so challenging to trust them with other decision-making responsibilities? As a strong leader, you should be able to let go of some control and let others take the lead.

4) Allow opportunities for assessment

Provide teachers with hands-on, day-to-day coaching and support. This will help them focus on improving their teaching and leadership techniques. Giving feedback will help teachers develop their skills while creating a cohesive vision.  We already do this with students but often forget that adults can use feedback as well.

5) Make success—big and small—visible and irresistible

Who doesn’t want to be recognized for their work? By celebrating the little victories, you’ll keep up positive morale and make everyone feel appreciated.

Need more time to focus on creating this?

Let us help you find stellar educators who could be your next rising leaders so you can focus on making great schools.

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