AWES PRT (Primary Teacher) Interview

AWES runs a centralised Online Screening Test (OST), usually in November, and issues a score card that is valid for three years (lifetime for very high scorers). Score-card holders then apply to individual Army Public Schools, which advertise their own vacancies, usually between December and March. Each school constitutes a Board of Officers chaired by the Principal, with a subject expert and a senior teacher, and often a representative of the station Chairman or the School Management Committee. The board runs a 10 to 20 minute interview with a short demo lesson and checks computer proficiency; the OST score has no further weightage, so the interview and demo decide the appointment. Candidates are probed on subject depth at the level to be taught, lesson planning and activity-based methods, classroom discipline, values and the ethos of an Army school community, and the practical realities of contractual terms, the Army station routine and the frequent arrival and departure of children of transferable soldiers. Hindi and English are both used. The ExamPilot mock compresses this into an 18-minute four-member panel: introduction, subject, pedagogy with a demo micro-segment, school situations and a brief closing.

1. 1

   Demo lesson

   Teach Class 2 children the idea of more and less using objects from a lunchbox. You have five minutes.

   What a strong answer covers

   Concrete objects such as biscuits or grapes, comparing two groups, children counting aloud, using words more, less and equal, then a quick picture task. Warm tone, short sentences and every child involved. Avoid jumping to symbols like greater-than signs before children have handled objects.

2. 2

   Mixed-language classroom

   A Class 1 child who arrived mid-year from a school in another state speaks mainly Telugu and is silent in class. How would you help the child settle?

   What a strong answer covers

   Buddy system, gestures and pictures, learning a few words of the child's language, inviting the child to share in the home language, informing parents and building English and Hindi gradually through songs and routines. Avoid forcing speech in English or treating silence as a learning problem.

3. 3

   Foundational learning

   What does foundational literacy and numeracy mean for a Class 3 classroom, and how would you check whether each child has reached it?

   What a strong answer covers

   Reading with understanding, writing simple sentences and working with numbers and basic operations by the end of Class 3, as emphasised in NEP 2020 and NIPUN Bharat. Checking through oral reading, simple tasks and observation records. Avoid relying only on written tests or giving a definition without classroom practice.

4. 4

   Child safety

   During lunch, a Class 1 child complains that an older student pushed her near the stairs. What steps would you take?

   What a strong answer covers

   Checks the child for injury, comforts her, informs the class teacher and duty teacher, finds out what happened calmly, records it, informs parents and reviews supervision near the stairs. Treats safety as the priority. Avoid dismissing it as normal play or punishing the older child without hearing them.

5. 5

   Activity-based learning

   How would you teach Environmental Studies in Class 4 so that children learn about plants by observing rather than memorising?

   What a strong answer covers

   Nature walk around the school campus, observing leaves and roots, a seed-germination activity, drawing and labelling, and simple questions that make children predict and check. Avoid copying textbook answers on the board for children to learn by heart.

6. 6

   Primary pedagogy

   Tell us a rhyme or short story you would use with Class 1 and show how you would turn it into a reading and speaking activity.

   What a strong answer covers

   Performs a rhyme or story with expression and actions, then shows follow-up: picking out rhyming words, matching words to pictures, children retelling or acting it. Demonstrates the energy and voice expected with small children. Avoid only reciting without showing how it builds reading or vocabulary.

7. 7

   Parent communication

   A parent is upset because her Class 2 son's handwriting is poor and wants daily extra homework. How would you respond?

   What a strong answer covers

   Listens, shows the child's work and progress, explains fine-motor development, suggests short enjoyable activities like clay, tracing and drawing rather than heavy homework, and agrees on how progress will be reviewed. Avoid agreeing to excessive homework or brushing off the concern.

8. 8

   Co-curricular

   Primary teachers in an Army Public School also manage assemblies, sports days and celebrations. Which of these strengths do you bring, and how would you involve every child?

   What a strong answer covers

   A real skill such as music, craft, storytelling or games, with a concrete idea, for example a class assembly where every child has a role, and attention to shy or differently abled children. Avoid a general claim to be good at everything or plans that showcase only the most talented children.

9. 9

   Classroom management

   In a primary class of 40, how do you keep young children engaged during the last period of the day?

   What a strong answer covers

   Short varied activities, movement breaks, songs, storytelling, clear routines and signals for attention, and planning lighter tasks for the last period. Mentions noticing tired or hungry children. Avoid answers based on threats, punishment or simply raising one's voice.

• English
• हिंदीHindi
• Hinglish (Hindi + English)Hinglish