The Struth

We just finished watching a potential teacher-hire teach his class of Grade 5 students at an international school in the Middle East from our office in Bangkok on Skype. This is INTERVIEWING 2.0!!!

Even cooler- after he finished his lesson, he set two of his kids up on Skype and we talked to them about their learning. Whoa!!! Cool!! Now we know what they learned and how they connected it to real life in real time.

Is this the future of hiring? First we tapped into talent through blogs and the blogosphere…. now we are watching potential hires in action, in their classroom, in real time, on Skype.

Are we now telling candidates…. don’t tell me how you teach…. SHOW me how you teach? Even cooler- let me look for learning by talking to your kids immediately following the lesson.

Some of the questions that Interviewing 2.0 allows you to immediately ask are: Do you use technology effectively? Do you use appropriate pause time? Do you use visible thinking routines? Do you collaborate effectively with other adults in the classroom? Do you engage all learners? Do you differentiate? And of course, for all these questions…. HOW do you do this?

Now- SHOW me!

But I think before we even get to what you see, how do you start Interviewing 2.0?

You start with a candidate that is open to collaborating and participating in an interview like this. Just having someone who is not afraid to try this is a start to hiring them. Right?

Second is establishing with them a relationship of respect and reflection. Tonight we will re-Skype this teacher to reflect on the lesson and find out from him what he thought went well today and what he would change about the lesson. Showing a teacher that you welcome open, honest reflection as an administrator establishes what you value at your school.

If we can interview in real time through Skype (and whatever else would support it), will we need to continue to go recruiting? What if you could watch a carpenter work and see the finished house? The make a decision if he is good enough to build your dream home? Does this whole concept relate to sports and the idea of a “try-out” for a team? What other implications does this have for hiring?

Bottom line- that teacher took a huge gamble this afternoon and needless to say…. we were impressed! Anyone else want to sign up for an “interview”??

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 31st, 2007 at 3:41 pm and is filed under Wonders. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.