⇦ FOLLOW? ⇨

I decided to document this since it could be useful to for any of my readers (and for me to remember the experience as well). The answers documented in this post aren't the exact words; they're more of a summary since some of them can be quite long.

Q: Why do you want to go into teaching?
A: Started with the first incident that sparked my interest in teaching - studying in Taipei American School (TAS) and witnessing how different the interaction between the teachers and students really was compared to that in Singapore. In Singapore, we've been taught to stand up and greet the teacher when he/she comes in or any teacher that crosses our path in the school compound. In TAS, the faculty greets YOU, even the principal is walking along the corridor talking to students. One even welcomed me to the school on my first day because she had not seen my face before. It inspired me to be that kind of teacher, the kind that is there for her students.

Q: What was one highlight of your teaching stint?
A: I described an incident during math lesson when I was supposed to take over for the entire lesson. Based on feedback from students who felt there was a lack of practice during lessons, I made it the main component of the lesson. I began the class by telling them that what I was about to teach them was the easiest topic they will ever encounter (I wasn't kidding, it was rounding numbers of to 3sf etc.). The first round of practice was okay, only a few hands were raised to try answering the question.By the end of the lesson, my students were shouting the answers to me. It was the highlight because I had engaged them - by building their confidence slowly but surely and encouraging them to give their answers. My mentor, after seeing my lesson, gave me the opportunity to teach his sec3 and 4 O level classes, which was a very big deal to me since as an intern I was only allowed to teach lower secondary students.

Q: Conversely, what was one of the low points during your teaching experience?
A: Recounted the day when my mentor cried during a lesson (refer to Teachers Don't Cry Part 2 under this blog's Feb 2014 archive for full story). Thereafter, they wanted to know something that had happened to me, and I told them about how difficult it was to separate your feelings from work. I told them an experience about some students crossing the line such that it became a bit too intrusive into my personal life, and how I addressed the situation.

Q: Why the diversity in university choices?
A: This question took the most time (relatively) because I had given my answer and they asked related questions from there. In a nutshell, I told them I was interested in a few courses (hence I applied to various courses). I then took the TIP and a temporary job at IRAS to get a feel of the different working environments and to help me come to a decision as to which course I want to pursue in University. I then changed my mind along the way when I was more aware of what each course entailed and ensured them that I applied the different courses out of interest, and I filtered these courses over the months.

They proceeded to ask me on the differences between the classroom and office environment and which one I preferred, etc.

Q: Why didn't you consider studying Music? (they mentioned my CCA records)
A: I told them that a sense of fulfillment was very important to me. If I were to become a music teacher, my goal was to impart the knowledge I had gained while studying in uni. If I studied music, I would have majored in performance. I understood that while you had a choice/preference, you could not really predict which school you would be posted to, let alone a school that offered MEP. In the event that I was posted to a school that only offered general music, the skills that I have acquired as a performer would not be relevant to my lessons, which was a waste imo. Whereas for Mathematics (the course I had to study if I took the scholarship), what I learnt would be relevant regardless of which school I was posted to. There would be a greater amount of flexibility and since I found a greater sense of fulfillment teaching Math during my teaching stint, it was a good match.

Q: What leadership positions have you taken on since secondary school?
A: Student conductor and librarian in SNSO, followed by secretary in HCSE. Briefly described what I did under those positions and some initiatives I took.

Q: From the teaching experience, you taught at St. Theresa's Convent which was different compared to St. Nicholas' Girls' school (my alma mater), yes? (I said yes). Would you be ok if you were posted to a similar school, ie. normal stream?
A: Yes, because I felt I made an impact on my students. (Could you give any other answer? LOL but tbh, I enjoyed myself alot during the internship, wouldn't trade it for anything else).
Q: That's good!

Q: Any questions for us?
A: Over the phone I was asked if I was able to teach in a primary school. Although I indicated my interest in teaching in a secondary school, I wanted to know how the training would be different if I were to teach in a primary school.

I also asked how long it would take for them to get back to successful applicants. They said about 3 weeks to finalise everything.

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I don't really know how the interview went..I treated it like a conversation with old friends I had not talked to for ages and I did my best :) At the bottom of my heart I knew Accountancy was what I wanted to do, but I had to switch on my teacher mode during the interview because it was important to take the interview seriously.

This interview took place on 26 May.

Today, MOE called me to tell me I was shortlisted for the next round of interviews. Alamak.