Resource Centre

Welcome to the resource centre of the Recruitment, Selection and Matriculation (RSM) Unit. Here, you will find useful resources that will guide you in your application process and give you an edge over other applicants.

Delivering an effective lesson in 5 minutes

Perhaps you're wondering whether you accurately read the article's headline or if there was a mix-up somewhere. If this is you, I want to inform you that there was no error and that you understood the title.

It is possible to deliver a lesson that is both engaging and successful in just five minutes because, as the saying goes, "it is not how far but how well."

You will have only 5 minutes to deliver your lesson. You might be wondering how feasible this is in 5 minutes, but it is when you carefully plan your lesson. To deliver an impactful lesson, you might want to consider doing the following:

Know your learners: The first step to delivering an effective lesson is knowing who your learners are. Knowing them includes but is not limited to their class, age group, and learning styles (i.e auditory, kinesthetic and visual). This will help you to plan your lesson carefully in terms of choosing your instructional aids, method of teaching and vocabulary to use when delivering the lesson.
Have a SMART objective: Remember you have only 5 minutes and you want to make every minute count. Ensure you set objectives that fulfil the SMART characteristics, i.e, it is
1. Specific: Not ambiguous
2. Measurable: There is an indicator to tell if it has been achieved
3. Attainable: It can be met within the duration of the lesson
4. Realistic: It is within the given time
5. Time-bound: A time frame is given for its attainment.

Example: By the end of the lesson, learners will be able to

Define a Noun
Give at least 3 examples of a noun
Identify the nouns in a given sentence

Note: This is just a sample and having more than 2 objectives is not recommended.

Be Time Conscious: You have limited time that you want to maximize. Go straight to your lesson once your assessor prompts you.
Be learner-centred: Be conscious of your learners. The lesson is not about you but about the learners. You stand the risk of leaving them behind because you are being conscious of the time.
Engage your learners: To avoid the risk mentioned above, ensure you engage your imaginary learners by checking for understanding in the course of the lesson.
Practice before the presentation: While delivering an effective lesson in 5 minutes is possible, you can't rule out the place of effective planning. You should practice your lesson delivery before coming to present to the assessors. While you practice, time your presentation and get someone to watch you and give you constructive feedback based on your presentation.

You can also read the "How to Prepare for Micro-Teaching" section in the article here for more tips.

How to effectively use the Zoom Platform

Zoom is an online meeting platform that gained traction during the global Covid-19 pandemic and since then organizations and individuals have leveraged it for business meetings and teachers have used it for educational purposes. Since its wide acceptance, the Recruitment Team at Teach For Nigeria has over the years leveraged it as a platform for the micro-teaching assessment of Prospective Fellows.

Download the Zoom App

The first step in using zoom is to download the app (mobile or desktop).
Sign up and complete the registration process.
Upload a professional picture (headshot)

Renaming yourself on zoom

Scroll to the participants' section.
Click on your name to reveal the menu.
Click on rename.
Click 'Ok' when done to complete the process.

Sharing your screen on zoom

Screen sharing is a sensitive thing especially if you have some information that is private to you. When you want to share your screen in a public meeting, you should ensure you close or minimize screens containing the information you do not want to share. You can share your screen using either a mobile device or your PC.

Sharing your screen using a mobile device

Due to the limited screen-sharing options available on a mobile device, it is advised that you have opened the file you want to share before clicking on the screen-share option. When this is done, click on the share screen option and navigate your phone to the file you have opened already.

Sharing your screen using a PC

Screen sharing on a PC comes with a variety of options such as sharing the entire screen or a particular screen. When doing the former, meeting participants can see everything you are doing on your PC screen so you have to be careful not to open a tab/document that is confidential. Doing the latter would only give meeting participants access to the particular screen you have shared. To use either of both screen sharing options, click on the share screen option and choose the option of your choice. As advised above, always have the file/screen you want to share readily opened before going ahead to use the screen share option.

Basic online meeting etiquette

Join a meeting 5 minutes before it starts. This would give you some minutes to check for some technical issues like the mic not connecting or audio output issues.
Ensure your mic is muted when not speaking and leave your video off unless instructed otherwise.
Use the hand raise feature when you want to speak or ask questions and remember to lower your hand when done speaking.
Avoid populating the chat with messages while a meeting is ongoing except when you are told to ask your questions via the chat. Message pop-ups in the chat can be distracting.
It is recommended to do a test run with a colleague or a friend to practice the use of zoom before your presentation.

How to scan and upload multiple files as a single document

Scanning of documents has been made easy with mobile applications such as Adobe Reader, WPS, Office, etc. that can perform this function. However, some users sometimes struggle with scanning multiple documents and saving them as a single file. This article will guide you on how to scan and save multiple documents as a single file.

For the sake of this tutorial, we will be using the "Office" mobile app (download here) and WPS (download here). Carefully follow the steps highlighted below.

Office Mobile App

Launch the mobile app on your device.
Locate the +/create button to reveal the available options
From the options, click/select scan
By default, it should scan as a document but if it is on other options aside from 'document', scroll through the options and choose the document option.
Carefully scan the document and crop it to suit your taste and click ok to proceed.
On the next interface, you will see some options (add, filter, crop, rotate, more and done) below the document, click on add to add more documents.
Click on 'done' when you are through scanning all the documents. This would save the document as a single file.

WPS

Launch the mobile app on your device.
Locate the + button to reveal the available options. (There is also a camera icon beside the + which is a faster way to use the scan option)
From the revealed option, click on 'scanner'.
By default, it should scan as a document but if it is on other options aside from 'document', scroll through the options and choose the document option.
Carefully scan the document and crop it to suit your taste and click ok to proceed.
by default, it allows you to scan multiple documents.
Click on 'done' when you are through scanning all the documents. This would save the document as a single file.
Remember to rename your file for easy identification by clicking on the 3 dots at the top right corner of the app
Hold down the images (scanned documents) for like 3 seconds to select. After selecting them, click on the export option from the menu below and export to PDF and click save.

Getting your certificates ready

You will be required at the application point to upload the original copies of your certificates. The required certificates include:

O'level (WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, GCE)
First degree
Birth certificate/Declaration of Age
NYSC certificate/Discharge certificate
Marriage certificate (For married women only)

However, if you do not have your original certificates as of when you are submitting your application, we strongly recommend that you immediately initiate the certificate collection process and send an email to the recruitment team when you have them ready within the communicated timeline.

The images here are samples of the original O'level certificates.

Writing an excellent application essay

One of the sections in the Teach For Nigeria Fellowship application form is dedicated to essay writing. Here, applicants would be required to provide thoughtful answers to 3 essay questions on their leadership experiences, motivation, and 5-year career plan.

Writing an outstanding application essay can be a brain-teasing task. You will need to invest your time to write, review, and fine-tune it. Below are some tips that will help you write an outstanding essay.

Read the questions and instructions carefully and ensure you understand them before proceeding.
Start with a compelling introduction. Great writing can be hard to achieve, but it is possible if you can get the attention of your reader early. Having a good and catchy introduction would make this seamless.
Use your inner voice. Your reader or assessor wants to see authenticity and quality of thinking in your essay. Do not shape your essay around generic phrases but around genuine beliefs and thoughts.
Avoid cliches.
Give good and appropriate examples where necessary, and ensure you stick to a good essay plan.
Get someone to proofread your essay.

Olalekan Abiola, a 2022 alumnus of the Teach For Nigeria fellowship, has some information to share with you on how you can ace your application. Click here to read it.

Preparing For the In-Person Final Evaluation

Interview Preparation Tips

While being ready for an interview may seem daunting, you can take various actions to get yourself in the best possible shape.

Preparing for an interview generally entails giving careful attention to how your objectives and credentials compare to those of the position and organization. To do this, carefully study the job description and research the organization to see why you would be a good fit. Below are some tips that will give you an edge in an interview.

Carefully examine the job description.
Examine why you are applying and your qualifications.
Research the role and the organization.
Consider your answers to common interview questions.
Answer questions using the STAR (situation, task, action, and result) method. Tie your answers back to your skills and accomplishments.
Prepare thoughtful questions for the interviewer.
Get a friend to practice answering questions (a mock interview session).
Prepare your travel arrangements.

Documents to bring to Final Evaluation

While coming for the In-person Final Evaluation, applicants are expected to bring the original copies of the following documents:

SSCE Certificate (WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, GCE)
University Degree Certificate
NYSC Certificate
Birth Certificate
Proof of change of name (for married women)
Two copies of your CV
A government-issued valid means of identification such as a Permanent Voters Card, National Identity Card (NIN), International Passport or Drivers License

Your physical appearance matters

Ensure you come looking smart and professional. By this, we mean you should come dressed in corporate wear with shoes. Sandals, slippers, polos, and T-shirts are not regarded as corporate wear, nor do they give off a professional look.

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