The past two evenings we have had the absolute pleasure of meeting educators who are currently in the process of transferring schools and are considering Sir Arthur Currie as their next step along their teaching/learning journey. I am continually amazed and impressed with their preparation and their passion as they take all of 20 minutes to try to condense as much as possible into the body of their responses. I never underestimate the courage that it takes to put yourself out there.
When creating our interview experience, we want to ensure that candidates feel a sense of ownership for both the beginning and the end of the interview. Once we complete the questions, there is always an opportunity for candidates to share something that we did not capture within the body of the questions or specific questions that they may have for us ~ about the assignment or the school.
One of the most frequently asked questions seems to always centers around the SAC school culture. When we first opened, we committed to making our practice public and to that end, there is not a day that goes by that something is not posted on social media. There is a sense of pride in the day-to-day learning activities and there is a sense of collaboration that is easy to highlight.
However… inquisitive, prospective candidates all want to know the same thing, “Is what we see on social media and hear ‘throughout the valley’, genuine?”
The easy answer could always be, “Of course”. However, we find that those asking the question are looking for something more substantial ~ a concrete example of what makes our SAC crew so incredible.
In addition, as always seems to happen, those examples are never hard to find as they occur regularly. The example that we shared last night was one that had just happened that day.
One of our Intermediate teachers posted a message on our Outlook Group site ~ “We are in the process of figuring out numbers for Graduation, please let me know if you are planning on attending”. One would expect to see a thread of, “I’ll be there” or “Sorry I can’t make it”
However, our thread read like this…
“I’ll be joining! Let me know what you’d like help with”
“I’ll be there! Please let me know if there’s anything I can help with”
“Count me in! Willing to help out wherever needed”
“I’ll be there! Let me know if you need help with anything as well J”
“I’ll be there and would love to help out again this year”
“I can help too”
“I will be there and am happy to help any way needed”
That is only one-half of the responses that were shared within that thread. It is important to keep in mind that as a brand new school ~ none of those educators, who so willingly stepped up to lend a hand, have taught any of our Graduates.
This is just one example of what happens each day at SAC. There are no pockets of excellence. Instead, there is an entire community of excellence where everyone demonstrates kindness, exceptional practice and a desire to learn as much as possible from each other.
To those candidates who have interviewed with us ~ Thanks for asking the question.
When determining if you want to join a school community, what is the one question that you ask?
Come write with me….
I spoke with some of those people about our school culture and upon reflection what I feel our school offers is opportunity. Such an amazing place to grow. I find an openness to try new ideas, have collaboration around it, and reflect on whether it was successful or not. It’s not perfect each day but it is very liberating. You can spread your wings and soar in this place.
Love it! So wish I was a few more years along in my journey with a number low enough to garner a chance to be a part of your amazing team! I have loved being a supporting role at SAC this year and know that whoever joins your team will be amazing!
When given the chance to ask a question mine focused on what the admin/school does to foster a culture of collaboration between teachers. What do timetables look like? Are their common prep times? What resources are available to make this collaboration possible. For me it is all about the team. I need to be on a team who is passionate about improving teaching practice for the betterment of student learning. If there is anything that the last two years in my role has taught me, it is that a great team is essential to building student success.
All the best as you make those tough decisions about who will be joining the SAC team. I know you will make great choices!
And that didn’t just happen. It took focussed clarity of vision, unwavering commitment to shared values and expectation of collaboration. How you do business.
I suppose I might ask: how might I uniquely contribute to your team that would amplify its potential?