A Policy for the Selection and Hiring Teachers with Competencies Needed to Help Students in Turnaround Schools Meet Proficiency Levels of Achievement

Yvette Scarborough, National-Louis University

Abstract

The purpose of this policy advocacy document aims to assist district administrators and principals with the task of selecting highly qualified applicants for interviews. It also proposes a set of interview questions that will help identify the skills of the applicants. As leaders in a school are increasingly more responsible for the quality of instruction in classrooms it is imperative that they find the best applicants during the hiring process. This policy recommends that hiring teachers become a partially centralized process where the district pre-screens applicants and identifies their skill set as it relates to the three types of schools, turnaround, Title I, and non-Title I. Once applicants are placed into a category then school based administrators can use this database to select applicants for interviews. During the short interview process school leaders must identify if this teacher can be successful in the classroom. One reliable predictor if future success is past success. I propose that district administrators and principals use behavior based interview questions that allow them to determine prospective teachers’ level of past academic success with students of various backgrounds and needs. When principals hire such staff, then students have the best opportunity to learn.

 

Rights