ESL WAVE · Teacher Toolkit
Interview Questions
Prepare a short, concrete story for each answer. Interviewers remember specifics, not general statements.
About you & motivation
- Why do you want to teach in Asia?
- What made you become a teacher?
- What is your teaching philosophy in one sentence?
- What do you know about our school?
Classroom & students
- How do you manage a noisy or unmotivated class?
- How do you support a student who is far behind?
- How do you get quiet students to speak up?
- What would you do with 40 minutes and no materials?
- How would you teach a class with mixed levels?
Culture & logistics
- How will you adapt to a new culture and school system?
- Are you comfortable teaching large classes?
- How do you work with co-teachers and parents?
- When can you start, and how long can you commit?
Answer recipe
- Answer in 60–90 seconds
- Give one real example
- End with the result
- Relate it back to their school
Questions to ask the school
- What are the exact teaching hours, and is prep time paid?
- How many students are in a class, and what ages?
- Is housing provided, or is there a monthly allowance?
- When is payday, and how is overtime paid?
- Could I speak with a current foreign teacher?
From the ESL WAVE Teacher Toolkit — free resources for English teachers across Asia. Adapt freely for your own use.