Curriculum developer interview questions and how to answer them
Curriculum interviews are usually short conversations followed by a writing task: a lesson plan, a set of questions or a unit outline against a named standard, with a deadline of a few days. The conversation is mostly about how you plan and how you take feedback.
Here are the questions you're most likely to face, answered the way a Nigerian teacher moving into curriculum work might answer them.
Updated October 2026 by the WorkRemote careers team
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About the role and your experience
Openers that check you understand the job and have done the work.
Walk me through how you would plan a new unit from scratch.
Why they ask
Shows whether you plan from outcomes or from activities.
How to answer
Start with the standards and end-of-unit outcomes, then the assessment, then the lesson sequence and activities. Mention checking prior knowledge and timing.
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I'd start from the standards for the unit, say KS3 forces, and write what students should be able to do by the end. Then I'd write the end-of-unit assessment, so I know exactly what we're aiming at. Only then do I sequence six or seven lessons, each building one piece, with a quick check at the end of each.
How do you write a teacher guide for someone less experienced than you?
Why they ask
Many projects serve teachers with little training.
How to answer
Clear timings, exact questions to ask, expected answers, common misconceptions and what to do about them, and simple materials. Avoid assuming resources the teacher won't have.
How many lessons can you write in a week?
Why they ask
Clients plan schedules around writer output.
How to answer
Give an honest number for complete, reviewed lessons in your subject, and say what affects it (length, research, number of resources).
What's your experience with the curriculum we use?
Why they ask
They want to know how much training you'll need.
How to answer
Be honest. If you've taught it, give years and level. If not, say what you've already read and how you'd close the gap quickly.
Technical questions
What you know and how you'd do the work, often with a live task or test.
How do you align a lesson to a specific standard?
Why they ask
Clients pay for alignment and check it.
How to answer
Read the standard closely, unpack the verbs and content, write an objective that matches it exactly, and make sure the assessment measures that, not something nearby. Give an example code.
Write three questions at different difficulty levels for this objective.
Why they ask
A common live or take-home task.
How to answer
One recall or direct application, one multi-step application, one reasoning or explanation question. Add the answer and a short mark scheme.
How do you differentiate within a lesson plan?
Why they ask
Expected in most teacher guides.
How to answer
Give concrete supports (sentence frames, worked examples, vocabulary lists) and stretch tasks, built into the plan, not as an afterthought.
How do you make sure assessments are fair and valid?
Why they ask
Assessment quality is a big part of curriculum work.
How to answer
Match questions to objectives, avoid cultural or language bias that tests something else, trial questions where possible, and use clear mark schemes.
How do you handle copyright for images and texts in your materials?
Why they ask
Publishers can't risk infringement.
How to answer
Use licensed or openly licensed sources (with attribution where required), the client's image library, or brief an illustrator. Never copy past papers or textbook pages without permission.
Behavioural questions
Past situations. Answer with a real example: what happened, what you did, what changed.
Tell me about a curriculum or scheme of work you changed because it wasn't working.
Why they ask
Evidence you've done this in real life.
How to answer
One specific example: what was wrong, how you knew, what you changed, and the effect on pupils' results or engagement.
How do you keep 30 lessons consistent across a course?
Why they ask
Consistency is a common problem with multiple writers.
How to answer
Use templates, a checklist against the style guide, a vocabulary list, and a quick self-review pass on each lesson before submitting.
Why move from teaching into curriculum development?
Why they ask
They want people who will stay and understand the work is mostly writing.
How to answer
Talk about reaching more learners through better materials and what you enjoy about planning. Be honest that you'll miss the classroom if you will.
Situational questions
Hypotheticals about problems you'd meet in the job.
How would you adapt a lesson written for a US classroom for schools in northern Nigeria?
Why they ask
Tests contextual judgement.
How to answer
Change examples and names to familiar contexts, check language level (many pupils learn in a second language), plan for large classes and few resources, and keep the learning objective the same.
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I'd keep the objective but change almost everything around it. Large classes mean pair work instead of individual devices, examples from markets and farming instead of baseball, and a chalkboard plan instead of slides. I'd also simplify the English, since many pupils are still building it alongside Hausa.
An editor's feedback contradicts the style guide. What do you do?
Why they ask
Shows how you handle conflicting instructions.
How to answer
Ask politely, quoting the style guide line, and follow whatever the project lead decides. Keep a note so later units stay consistent.
Remote work questions
How you'll work from Nigeria with a team elsewhere: hours, power, internet, communication.
We work in UK hours with weekly calls. How will that work from Nigeria?
Why they ask
They need to know you'll be reachable.
How to answer
Confirm UK hours are one hour behind Lagos in winter and the same in summer, and describe your backup power and internet.
Remote interview tips
Treat the writing task as the real interview. Follow their template exactly, name the standards you aligned to, and include a short note explaining your choices.
If the test seems very long, ask whether it's paid or whether you can do one lesson instead of a whole unit. Reasonable clients agree.
Bring one finished sample you can screen-share and talk through in under five minutes.
Questions people ask
Will I have to write a sample lesson for the interview?
Nearly always. Expect a lesson plan, unit outline or set of assessment items against a named standard, usually as a take-home task.
What do curriculum interviewers look for most?
Clear alignment to standards, realistic lessons, good assessment items and how well you respond to feedback.
Should I mention my Nigerian teaching experience?
Yes. Large classes, mixed-ability groups and limited resources are exactly the conditions many programmes design for, and IGCSE or British-curriculum experience is directly relevant to international clients.
How long are curriculum writing tests?
Usually a few hours of work. If a test asks for a full unit, it's fair to ask whether it's paid.
Updated October 2026 by the WorkRemote careers team
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