<p>My daughter wants to be an education major. We live in NJ. What will happen if she goes to to school out of state. I have heard if she goes to school out of state she will have trouble getting NJ certification. I heard that NJ certification is very hard to get.</p>
<p>Can anyone give advice about this.
Thanks,
Mbe</p>
<p>If she is interested in teaching in NJ then she would be probably best taking coursework in NJ ( I won't get into an education BA as opposed to getting an alternative major and then going for certification-).
<a href="http://www.teacherscount.org/wannateach/how.shtml%5B/url%5D">http://www.teacherscount.org/wannateach/how.shtml</a></p>
<p>Well I know someone that did not major in education. He has a degree from a NY school in economics. He changed careers by going the alternate route. He since took 30 credit hours of science classes in NJ and a public school in NJ hired him full time as an earth space science teacher. He is licensed now to teach history, earth space science, early education, and one other thing (slipped my mind). He wants to get a masters so that he can teach college level science classes. He claims he will be able to do this w just a masters. </p>
<p>It is a great Q though, and I have wondered about it myself. </p>
<p>I do not know whether this is correct or not, but a teacher told me that you are better off majoring in something else for ug, then get the masters in education bcs you will be higher on the pay scale than if you did your ug in education, but got a masters in something else (which is what she did, and eventually went into teaching).</p>
<p>I personally would agree with this.
My daughter attended a private school which did not require state certification or indeed even any teaching courses to teach. ONe of her best teachers didn't have an educational coursework and also was acknowldeged by the local paper as one of the best teachers in the area. Some good schools of education are still out there I am sure, but some will sap any creatitvity or joy out of guiding young learners.
My daughter was thinking of going into teaching- she is getting a degree in bio- ( however spending the summer running a science program- even in a private school with lots of resources killed that idea) then she was going to get a one year certificate.
I feel that is the best way in our state- you are certified to teach- but don't cost the district as much initially as someone with an advanced degree.
Incidentally- I think it depends on the college- what sort of requirements are needed to teach. My brother who has a BA in electrical engineering was hired to teach at his alma mater in the engineering program- I don't know what they were thinking- I wouldn't hire him to teach my dog to heel, but whatever.</p>
<p>If your daughter attends school out of state, then she should get certified in that state. If they have a reciprocity agreement in NJ, then she will come to teach in NJ and be fine. She would just have to complete what ever courses the state requires for permanent certification in NJ.</p>
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He wants to get a masters so that he can teach college level science classes. He claims he will be able to do this w just a masters.
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<p>Only is he is going to be an adjunct teaching intro courses on the community college level, other wise he should be working toward a PhD</p>
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I do not know whether this is correct or not, but a teacher told me that you are better off majoring in something else for ug, then get the masters in education bcs you will be higher on the pay scale than if you did your ug in education, but got a masters in something else (which is what she did, and eventually went into teaching).
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<p>If depends on where you end up teaching. NYS has recently overhauled its requirements for teachers. You must now be a graduate of a certified teachers prep course in order to teach. In NYC the alternate route would be going through the NYC fellows program for career changers. Through the fellows program you are teaching while completing your masters.</p>
<p>If you are teaching middle school or h.s. as a subject teacher, history, science etc. then you can get your undergrad in that subject. You could then get a masters in secondary education or if yo u already have a masters, you must complete I think 21 credits in education at the graduate level.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.nycboe.net/teachnyc/default.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.nycboe.net/teachnyc/default.htm</a></p>
<p>mbe-
If your D is interested in teaching in NJ, I bet it will be less complicated for her to get her ug in NJ. I don't know what your D is looking for in a school, but there are many NJ schools that are good choices for education. Maybe there is one that would be a good fit for her and would avoid any complications later with certication?</p>
<p>Monmouth (especially special education, I believe)
St. Elizabeth's - small school in convent station, NJ
William Patterson
The College of New Jersey (TCNJ)</p>
<p>I am biased toward TCNJ as my son is a sophomore there and we think it's a terrific school. I don't recommend TCNJ for all majors but it is particularly strong in education; about 30% of students major in education of some sort. 99% of its graduates pass the state certification exam. It It originated as Trenton State Teacher's College but has evolved into a destination for many bright, motivated NJ kids.</p>
<p>This is a good question for the colleges she is applying to, how will they help prepare her to become certified in New Jersey. There may be some classes she can take during the summer of on line to make the transition easier. I have taught in Three states, I have a MS in Elementary Education but teach middle school math...each state has its own rules and frequently they are a pain for teachers transferring in. Each state I taught in had its own test that it used for certification...I have taken the NTE, PRAXUS, CBEST, CLAD and have added about 35 course hours to accommodate the various requirements. </p>
<p>My suggestion, avoid teacher mills...colleges that don't encourage and challenge students to develop their own educational philosophy. Another thought is to get a BS in another major, with education as a minor. She might be able to get her Masters in NJ and get certification that way. If she has a preference for where she wants to teach....she might ask administrators, what schools they look for on a resume. </p>
<p>Teaching is more challenging every year, and I discourage most people from considering it as a career. More and more districts employ textbooks that have scripted lesson plans which work to kill creativity and joy. It is like cooking every meal with a frozen microwave dinner. That is one reason I moved from elementary to middle school math..that and the fact that I love this age group...If you can turn them into serious students...high school will lead to success.</p>
<p>Montclair State and Rowan are very good NJ schools for teaching. I believe William Paterson is too. I would prefer TCNJ too, and Rowan second, and Montclair third.</p>
<p>All you need to do is make sure the program she is in is ACCREDITED by NCATE - most of the big programs are - near you, I know the University of Delaware's program is accredited - and has a highly selective Elementary Teacher Ed. program.</p>
<p>Mr. B's got it right. Make sure that whatever college your daughter is interested in has a reciprocal agreement for certification with NJ. My daughter is an ed major in IL and we live in PA. We made sure that her degree would be valid in PA before she enrolled. I think going for an ed degree is important. My daughter will have done three stints of student teaching by the time she's done as well as have had numerous classes on how to teach. It's not just a matter of knowing the material. I believe that one has to have a passion to teach to be a good teacher because of the scripted lesson plans and state requirements, and if one gets an undergrad degree in a subjects but tacks on the certification afterward, one won't have as much knowledge about teaching as someone that's had more student teaching experience and teaching metholdogy classes. Also, there's got to be nothing like student teaching to find out if you actually want to work in a classroom. Many colleges offer that pretty early on and I'm sure it's a real wake up call to find out if you're not cut out for it.</p>
<p>In regards to getting a masters degree, while it's true that the pay rate is higher for a candidate that holds a masters, I've heard that it's common for districts to prefer experience over degrees for new teachers AND since they pay (and require) teachers to go back to school, it would make more sense to go for the Bachelors degree and then get the Masters while working.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, not all districts reimburse for courses any longer.</p>