Interviews...

I've come back from an interview at a school in Barnsley, and I shall hear the result before 5pm apparently. I was massively nervous, and people kept talking to me as though I was displaying huge signs of anxiety, though I wasn't aware myself that I was acting in any strange way. I found that pretty strange. In the final interview though, I must've come across as completely overwhelmed by nerves, and I just wasn't able to take a grip and make myself less nervous. That said, I think I came out with some okay responses, and I managed to absorb a lot of the ethics of the department during the day that I hopefully spouted back at them effectively.

I'm preparing myself for the worst though. Just so I'm not an emotional wreck by 6 o'clock. Of the two other people that were there for the English interview (there was a Maths interview
too), I don't think one was what they were looking for, but I can imagine that the other would fit in fine. He seemed to be a capable, self-assured and amiable fellow, and I always feel that older men have the advantage in this situation, because of the dominance of young women in English teaching. That's not to say that men getting English teaching jobs haven't been very good teachers--I'm sure they are!--but it all goes to make a really good package. And I don't think my nervousness would have made an attractive alternative. Oh well. (Do I sound like I've convinced myself that I haven't got it yet? That's my intention . . .)

The one very interesting aspect of this experience was that we all had an additional interview by a pupil panel of four year eights. Amongst their questions, they actually asked the most taxing question of the whole day: if you were a biscuit, which one would you be and why? I said I would be a jaffa cake, and burbled some laboured metaphor about being multi-layered and multi-faceted, or some such garbage. If anyone wants to share with me what they would have said, I'd be delighted!

Anyway, I think I'll go and occupy myself and work harder on visualising the phone call that tells me I've been unsuccessful and that I was far too nervous. Given that I've only had one such phone call I don't know why I feel like I've received a succession of bad responses, but there you go. That's my positive outlook for you.