finding a job in public education workshop for university of victoria teacher education students

UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA

Finding a Job in BC’s Public Schools

British Columbia is a as diverse geographically as it is at the school district level

BC Public Education Overview

• 60 public school district employers in British Columbia

• 73,000 employees• 33,000 unionized educators• Rural & urban opportunities

The workforce is aging = retirement?WorkBC Labour Market Navigator predicts

growth in employment opportunitiesMore jobs posted on Makeafuture.ca this year

than the lastHiring peaks in May, June and September

Trends in BC Education

Growth Opportunities

Superintendent Deputy Superintendent

Assistant Superintendent

Director of Instruction

District Principal

Principal/Vice Principal

Psychologist Counsellor Librarian

Salary and Benefits• Teacher Salary Finder (

http://www.makeafuture.ca/career-resources/salary-finder/)

• Extended health and dental• Life insurance, pension, long-term disability• Professional development• Professional mentoring• Generous vacation & sick leave• Rural & remote financial allowances

Applying for Jobs

What can I teach?Depends on your qualifications• Do you have…– subject matter teaching experience (for

Secondary Teachers)?– an undergraduate education (300/400 level

courses) or a BA in the subject area?– fluency in languages?

Application Checklist Graduate and gather your documents:

Resume and cover letter Practicum evaluation reports Two letters of references & list of referees University transcripts TQS card and BC teaching certificate

Application Checklist Apply for a BC teaching certificate (TRB) Apply for a TQS card

Set-up an application on Makeafuture.ca Set-up Job alerts Follow @MakeaFuture & Like Make a Future

Search and apply for jobs on Makeafuture.ca

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zE-NQAu_qRU&feature=player_embedded

Writing Resumes

Write Targeted Cover Letters• Tailor your cover letter• Personalize it with concrete examples • Explain “why you are the best candidate?”• Use action verbs to describe your work (i.e.

Collaborated; Coordinated; Planned)• Spell Check and Proof Read!

Ask For A Good Reference• Get professional references• Ask for a reference letter • Give your references a

heads-up

Searching & Applying for Jobs on Makeafuture.ca

Discover the latest career opportunities

Search for jobs by position & employer

Stay up-to-date with email job alerts

Learn more about your future employer

Compare salaries

Interviewing for the Job

Interviews gather information used to compare a candidate’s qualifications, education, and skills with pre-determined selection criteria.

What are hiring managers looking for?1. Subject Matter Knowledge2. Planning Skills3. Instructional Skills4. Assessment Strategies5. Classroom Management Skills6. Development as a Professional Educator

Interview QuestionsOpen-ended questions• Tell me about yourself• What is your teaching

philosophy?• Why do you want to work

for our district?• What books are you reading

right now?

Behavioral Questions• Describe a unit you recently completed with

your students and explain the process you used in its planning.

• Describe strategies you have used to evaluate your students’ academic progress.

• Describe specific management strategies you have used in your classroom.

• Tell stories & describe real-life scenarios

What resources did you consult? Did you ask for help? Did you look at the composition of your class? Were you thoughtful in preparing your units? Did you consult a variety of resources and consider

your student composition?

How do you plan your units?

How do you teach in the classroom? What strategies have you used for instruction? How did you present the material? How did you engage learners? What strategies did you use to reach all learners in

the classroom

What are the different methods you used to evaluate and assess student outcomes?

Did you utilize a variety of assessment strategies? What did you do with the assessment results to

facilitate student learning?

How do you assess & evaluate students?

How do you manage your class? What was the worse scenario that you

encountered and how did you deal with it? Did you demonstrate and employ a variety tactics

when dealing with classroom issues? Were you are able to create a climate and

environment conducive to learning?

How have you demonstrated professional responsibility inside and outside of the classroom?

Are you a reflective practitioner? Were you collaborative in sharing your knowledge

and helping the educational community as a whole

How are you growing as a professional educator?

Interviewing Tips• Reflect on your best lessons/accomplishments• Show off your accomplishments with a

portfolio• Frame your answers using the STAR technique• Practice, practice, practice

Job Search Resources• Resumes & Digital

Portfolios Linkedin.com CVmkr.com VisualCV.com Pathbrite.com

• Interviews & Cover Letters Quintcareers.com

• Job Search Huntsy.com

• Pro D Teacher Mentorship BC Pita.ca

Now What?• Decide where to work• Find out who does the

hiring at the district• Sign-up for job alerts• Like/Follow MAF on SM• Clean-up your SM

footprint• Create an online portfolio

Stay in touch www.makeafuture.ca contactus@makeafuture.ca www.twitter.com/makeafuture www.facebook.com/makeafuture www.makeafuture.ca/subscribe