<p>Actually, Qwertykey, I was replying to bigtrees’ comment. I should have used the quote function to make that clearer.</p>
<p>Yes, I see the primary purpose of going to college is to land the right job. Actually, that’s about the only point to going to college in my view, becuase if you don’t work, you aren’t applying what you learned in a professional setting.</p>
<p>I know others have different views:
- Some women go to college to find a future husband and get married. They would want to pick a school that has men that they are interested in getting married to. Private school (like BYU) might make a lot of sense over public school.
- Some people go to school because they want to do what they love for a few years before starting work, knowing what they love isn’t something they can do professionally. I don’t see private school as being beneficial for them
- Others have different views.</p>
<p>Mine is that we go to college to get skilled so we can have a job. In that case, there is little benefit to paying more for a school that won’t land us a better job.</p>
<p>Another way of putting it is I don’t really understand why I should learn thermodynamic models of fisson reactors unless I plan on working as an engineer. It’s just not something that I learn for the fun of it.</p>
<p>I suggest we get back to the OP’s question about whether it’s a good idea for an ed major to go to private college.</p>
<p>I wonder if you meant private college in the same state that you live, or if you mean OOS? If it’s in-state, affordable and the best fit for your daughter, I say go for it! If it’s OOS, then I would think a little harder.</p>
<p>Why the difference for in state or out of state? At private school, tuition is the same because they’re not state funded.</p>
<p>
But following that logic you probably shouldn’t have gone to college at all because there are plenty of people who don’t have a college degree who have become very successful, including having superior jobs within companies, and have even become self-made millionaires.</p>
<p>The college degree is just one (possible) step along the path to success but there are many others including how hard an individual works, one’s personality, one’s willingness to take initiative and not be a shrinking violet, etc.</p>
<p>The other point is that success isn’t measured by a dollar value. Many, maybe even the majority, of people have purposely made decisions that they know could limit their income potential at the benefit of ‘doing what they want’ - i.e. not having to relocate to the big city, prefering teaching to industry, preferring nursing to doctoring, owning their own business rather than working for someone else or a corporation, serving in the military or other government service to defend our country rather than other careers, and th elist goes on.</p>
<p>California doesn’t recognize the education major. Those who wish to become teachers must major in an academic subject and then enroll in a 5th-year program to obtain the teaching credential. And in fact, it’s more than a fifth year: it takes two semesters and a full summer.</p>
<p>I started out as an elementary school teacher many years ago, and I’m now a college professor. My son wishes to teach at the high-school level, and so yes – I fully support his desire to study at a liberal-arts school. He has been admitted to Willamette Univesity, a wonderful school, and he’s waiting to find out about other schools to which he’s applied. You never know where you might end up, in terms of a career. And besides that, the children in our country deserve teachers who have had the very best liberal-arts education.</p>
<p>Just my two cents.</p>
<p>I value going to college but don’t equate going to an expensive private college as leading to better options working as a teacher.</p>
<p>For this particular question, regarding an education major, in state or out of state is the bigger factor then private or public. </p>
<p>Let’s please try to keep to the OP’s topic if possible. Anyone that wants to discuss what’s better public or private should start another thread.</p>
<p>Kathiep - OP’s topic: asking specifically about private schools. </p>
<p>Bigtree - “I think that paying extra for private school is a big waste of money.”</p>
<p>We are not paying “extra” because Odessagirl received a Presidential Scholarship.</p>
<p>OP:
Go for the program: if your state school has a fabulous teacher education program in the subject you want to teach, then take advantage of it. If not, look to the school that you can afford that will provide you with the best “education” education. Don’t forget to consider your other interests as well. In many states, you will need a master’s degree a permanent certification. Take advantage of that extra time and study what interests you. </p>
<p>Bigtrees:
</p>
<p>I wouldn’t take that class either. It doesn’t interest me. But I took plenty of classes that were not part of my major that awakened my interest and started me on a path to become the intellectually well-rounded person I am today. </p>
<p>Sure, go to college for the job if that’s what suits you. But don’t neglect education for education’s sake.</p>
<p>Eddieodessa,</p>
<p>If you’re not paying extra for private college, then your not wasting money. That’s fine and then you have a apples-to-apples comparison on which college to go to. </p>
<p>My comments about wasting money only apply to those who pay more for private school than for public school, or more for out of state than instate.</p>
<p>This is the OP, " Anyone sending their education major to a private school?
Does this make any sense? From a financial standpoint, it may not be the wisest decision, but there are some aspects of private education that I really like. I’d love to hear some viewpoints. "</p>
<p>I would like to hear more from the OP about their concerns. Is it because the child is an education major or is it more about the benefits of a private LAC education vs. a public? Is the private OOS? And yes, in state or out of state does make a big difference with an ed major.</p>
<p>Kathiep,</p>
<p>Can you explain the in-state/out-of-state question a bit more?</p>
<p>Are you saying that if you want to teach in Indiana, but go to school in Pennsylania, it is really hard to get an Indiana teaching license?</p>
<p>So what happens when someone starts school in North Dakota and then decides they want to teach in Nevada?</p>
<p>I’ve heard there are various repriocal license agreements among the states, so I don’t see how getting educated in one state would prevent you from teaching in a different state. Of course, you have to meet the license requirements in order to get licensed, so if you were education in a place that only required a bachelors but moved to state that requires a masters, that might be difficult.</p>
<p>As we found out with our daughter each state has it’s own certification standards. Some reciprocate easily but it’s not at all uncommon for them to want a different Praxis test or a class or two in say the state history or maybe another math education class. My daughter has spent hundreds of dollars in tests and clearances for different states. Schools usually find it easier to just take an already certified teacher and often like the ones that have student taught at their schools because they are a known quantity. I know someone that has a secondary ed certification in SC that would have to take two more math classes plus three praxis tests to be certiifed in PA. In PA, it can take 6 months to actually get certified and that’s after taking the certification tests. Some of the praxis tests are only given at certain times of the year too, like the SAT’s and at certain testing centers so it’s not like you can just take them when it suits.</p>
<p>It certainly doesn’t prevent you from teaching in a different state but it’s a real concern for ed majors which is why I wanted some clarification from the OP.</p>
<p>
I think you’re generally correct when it comes to the salary as a teacher and of course, one should consider the cost and whether they can and are willing to pay the cost. If the goal is to ‘become a teacher’ and are more interested in obtaining the credentials so they can enter the teaching business than about attending an expensive private college, then it makes sense to pay attention to the total cost whether that turns out to be a state college or a private college where they received a good deal. </p>
<p>I wonder though if having a degree from one of the more selective and/or top colleges would give some teachers an edge in getting hired or staying employed in days when in some areas there seem to be far more teachers than there are teaching positions. Also I wonder if a HS teacher with a degree from HYPS would have any better promotional opportunities or if it’s primarily driven by the union agreements and attributes like seniority, degree level, specialized training, and nothing related to the particular college attended. It also seems like the background including the college attended might make a difference if the teacher decided to go into administration and become a principal, superintendent, etc. Maybe some posters in the K-12 teaching field could comment on those.</p>
<p>Yes, as a graduate of HYPS, I believe it did give me an edge be hired over others for my teaching job. </p>
<p>But, no opportunities for promotions because of that. I would have to get an additional certification/degree. However, since I have no interest in administration, I don’t consider that a promotion. </p>
<p>Success is loving what you do, right?</p>
<p>When I taught in a public elementary school for 8 years (rural, impovershed), I thought the three best teachers in the building were the powerhouse “intellectuals” (as they called us) who’d attended NYU, Vassar and Oberlin as undergraduates. They/we also struggled to keep our mouths quiet at some mighty illogical meetings and professional development sessions we found trendy and pointless. The training in critical thinking was a blessing and a curse. But all the exciting projects and initiatives came from this threesome. There was a fearlessness that was beneficial. </p>
<p>Also there are some aspects of a teaching career that are helped by a strong undergraduate training. Sometimes we were asked to help write grants, and we had the skills to find and develop grants for the schools. In my first year, the school’s reading curriculum was undergoing huge changes. I asked to be allowed to participate in a major pilot study, as I was confident I could handle the extra readings required to keep up with the pilot. The principal thought I was overdoing it, but I came through just fine.
There was nothing in those training materials that couldn’t be figured out easily with a good background in critical thinking, analysis and implementation of new ideas.</p>
<p>None of this reflected in salaries or promotions. If anything, the good-ol-girls who grew up in the community got more perks (such as the ideal hour for preparation) or visits by
local politicians.</p>
<p>We LAC’s were to some extent the oddballs/outcasts on the school faculty. We had no frame-of-reference to share stories about faculty from the nearby teachers colleges. We were, however, cutting edge in our classrooms. We counted on each other to avoid going crazy with the dunderhead bureaucracy. Recently I looked up these colleagues to find they are still doing unusual things in their classrooms, for example, collecting “Pennies for Pakistan” to support education for girls in third-world countries. Knowing them, they are probably using the same pennies to generate sharp math lessons or use them in science experiments before they ship them off to Pakistan.</p>
<p>I personally don’t see what the choice of major has to do with whether a certain college is worth the money. I am not into picking colleges based on earnings potential anyway. I believe in picking a college that provides the kind of education that you seek. </p>
<p>I became a teacher. My undergrad major wasn’t called “education” but it involved student teaching and led to certification upon graduation. My major was called Child Study. I attended Tufts University. I also have a graduate degree in Education from Harvard. I loved my education at both schools. I am in a low paying field. My education was worth it for all I learned and experienced at college, as well as preparing me for my career field. I did become a teacher after I went to college and grad school.</p>
<p>Again, I don’t pick a college based on if it is worth it for a certain major or for certain earnings potential. For example, my kid went to a very expensive school, NYU, albeit with scholarship, and she majored in musical theater. She is in an uncertain field, and one that usually doesn’t pay so well. But she got the perfect education for herself, let alone her field, and we couldn’t be happier with all she gained there. It was WELL worth it. </p>
<p>I would never say that a more expensive school isn’t worth it for certain majors that often do not pay that great. The education itself is well worth it.</p>
<p>The Holy Grail for any education major is the certification that comes with it. Having a degree from a recognized school helps in securing your first employment. (Being from the SD helps allot more.) But thereafter, experience and demonstrated ability means everything. More than any other under grad professional degree does anyone get fewer points for a name brand school than in education.</p>