<p>Hi,</p>
<p>I'm relatively new here and would like some information on the steps to become a teacher or professor (eventually). I have ~2300 SATs, 4.5 GPA, with ECs and stellar recs. Which schools should I aim for and what should I do right now and in college to prepare for teaching? I've heard of Teach for America already, but is there more?</p>
<p>Btw, I'd like to teach mathematics, economics, or something else that I may become interested in during college.</p>
<p>Thanks,
ibtelling</p>
<p>Your game plan should be different depending what level you want to teach and where you want to teach. Each state has specific classes to take for ed majors and different tests to take for certification. With your good stats it would be easier to eliminate colleges that are in places you don't want to teach. </p>
<p>One thing my daughter (recent ed grad) looked for was a college that got the students in the classroom (student teaching, not just observing) early in the college career. Many colleges don't get students student teaching until their senior year and by that time it's to late to change majors. My daughter had three student teaching experiences in three different schools. By the time she graduated she knew what she liked and what she didn't like in a school.</p>
<p>For this forum, we're going to want you to be a little more specific before giving out suggestions for schools. Narrow it down a bit by location, type of school (LAC, public) urban, suburban, need financial aid, etc. The majority of schools in the US have education majors.</p>
<p>Your high SAT's indicate good intellect. Three schools that come to mind with fine college coursework and the opportunity to add on a masters degree in public school teaching in high schools: Oberlin, Brandeis, Mt. Holyoke. The programs at Oberlin and Brandeis are brand new; Mt. Holyoke has been doing this for awhile.</p>
<p>To teach in a high school, you need to major in the subject and then --sooner or later--add on a masters degree in teaching. You'll study the pedagogy ("how to teach people") coursework at the masters level and certification by the state department of education. You can decide if you want to try to teach right out of college while gaining your masters degree in teacher education in the evenings and weekends, or complete your masters in a one-year concentrated program and then apply to teach with all that behind you so you can devote your first year as a teacher to the classroom. </p>
<p>Wherever the college is located, you'll get a certification within that same state. If you don't care to work there, the certifications are often (not always) transferrable state-to-state, so you can move. It's a bureaucratic silliness to change states, but it's doable. Look up each state's department of education, click to "teacher certification" and look for "reciprocity" to find out how mobile each state's certification is. In other words, if you work with Mt. Holyoke or Brandeis, you'll end up with a Massachusetts teachers' certificate, but you can still move if you jump through the hoops in the next state.</p>
<p>A different route is to take many courses in education as an undergraduate, along with your major subject area of interest, but I don't understand that route. I did as described in the paragraph above, finishing my B.A. and then finished the Masters before even applying to teach. Younger teachers seem to try to work right out of the BA program but I think it's too hard for a first-year teacher. YMMV.</p>
<p>To become a professor, you pursue your subject matter up to the Ph.D. level, in most cases. Colleges hire you to teach because of that advanced work in the subject area and do not require any how-to-teach coursework. </p>
<p>If my info is out-of-date, I humbly and graciously accept corrections from others!</p>
<p>EDIT: If you need a campus job while in college, look for opportunities to work in area public schools. My D did this at Oberlin, for example. Sometimes it's coursework for credit, sometimes it's afterschool tutoring, but definitely try to get experience as an undergraduate this way. It will help you figure out if you like teaching, help you gain entry into a masters program. Don't even worry if it's at the elementary or middle school level. Teaching is teaching, and educators will understand if that was the available nearby experience and you took it. Any summer job where you are in a position of leading or managing children is also relevant. If you can afford the choice between working at a summer camp or folding clothes at a mall, choose the former for its work experience value. You'll be able to write about it when you apply to teachers college.</p>
<p>Teach for America is a very interesting program for post-college graduation. It exposes grads to teaching in some of the most difficult assignments (poverty urban or rural). They don't expect everyone to decide to become a teacher. Some go on to law or other careers, but with the knowledge of what education means in America. It's very tough work, but worthwhile. Some say you are thrust into difficult classrooms with no prior teacher training, making it extra hard! It's kind of the Peace Corps of education in the USA today. </p>
<p>If finances are no problem, consider a top quality graduate program in teacher education, such as Columbia Teachers College, or Bank Street School of Education both in NYC. Their coursework has more intellectual pizzazz than the average state
teachers education program. It won't alter your salary, but could enable you to get placed in a private school, or at least approach your task with great thoughts in mind! If not, the state teachers college will provide the masters degree. I found those courses dull after a great LAC, but it's only a year.</p>
<p>^^timed out: other grad schools in education at top universities include Harvard, Brown...you can research all of that for when you graduate. THey cost $40K, compared to the state universities that offer a masters degree for $5-10K,
which is why it's only for those without financial limitations. If not, muddle through the state education courses and don't feel badly if they're not as intellectually stimulating as were your undergrad college courses. It's just a professional licensing system, that's all. </p>
<p>For this reason, I encourage bright students to take great undergrad courses and just save the education courses for later. I hate to see someone go off to a fine LAC and miss out on philosophy, or econ, or somethng great with a professor to take "Intro to Education" or "Principles of Classroom Management" which is rather dull intellectually. Be sure to get your money's worth out of the LAC or uni you attend by taking fabulous courses. Become a learned person with fine powers of critical thinking...and that will help you become a wonderful teacher or professor someday. Do it on your own terms.</p>
<p>Thanks. I wasn't even aware that I had to take courses in Education (now it's obvious to me... duh :D). I think I'll take your advice by learning as much as possible, and then take those education courses. I want to be as efficient as possible, so I think I will reserve those "classes" for certificate programs or grad. school after my undergraduate years. </p>
<p>And as to which school, I can pretty much fit in anywhere. I've moved many times in my childhood and experienced a lot of diversity. </p>
<p>Wow thanks for everything. It looks like a lot, but I'm excited.</p>
<p>Also, once you get to college, trek over to their Career Center and map out your plan. State your goals just as you did here, and get their current, on-site advice for how to proceed.</p>
<p>You have a great head-start. Keep updating your info by stopping into the Career Center regularly. Enjoy your education all along the way. When you study in your major, notice how you learn and where are your obstacles, as this will help you someday perceive the many learning styles of your students!
A brief study of the topic "Learning Styles" on the web or at a bookstore will heighten your awareness. Are you a visual, audial, sensory, kinesthetic learner...there are all kinds! While you are one, your profs may be another. Eventually your classrooms will have all kinds. </p>
<p>Good luck. Yes, it's exciting!</p>
<p>I agree with everything that paying3tuitions has said if you plan to teach in secondary education. Content knowledge is extremely important. However, if you plan to be an elementary ed major, it's a different ball game. In order to graduate in four years you usually have to start out as an elementary education major and take specific classes each year for four years. Many colleges require double majors for education major students. My daughter was required to double major and wanted to do a study abroad. The only way she could graduate in four years was to take a couple of classes during one summer at a local college and on-line through another college.</p>
<p>The reciprocity is another thing. It's often not as straightforward as it looks. For instance, my daughter's certification is for k-9 in Illinois (location of her college) and she is certified to teach there. However, she does not want to teach in IL. She may want to teach in PA, where we live, and we confirmed that PA and IL did have reciprocity before she decided to attend her college. In her senior year there however, we looked a little more closely and found out that while PA will accept her out of state degree, they still require her to take 3 praxis exams if she is to teach elementary school. Furthermore, PA has a different set-up with different certifications for elementary ed, middle school and high school. I understand the middle school one is about to change and instead of grades K-6, 6-8, 9-12 there will be a 4-6 one. There's also an early education which I think is pre-school to 1st or second. For anything after 5th grade (right now) you need to be certified in your subject, which means an additional test. None of this was told to her by her college advisor. I doubt if most college advisor's are fully aware of what other state's policies are for teacher certification. Oh, and different states require different praxis tests AND have different scores that they will accept. </p>
<p>These are the hoops that p3t is referring to. It could be that my daughters college was very unique but she could not have gotten her ed degree from her college following p3t's plan. At her college, ed major had blocks of classes and student teaching experiences starting in sophmore year that were required and followed one another.</p>
<p>Buried in my post above:
[quote]
A different route is to take many courses in education as an undergraduate, along with your major subject area of interest, but I don't understand that route.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Thanks for filling in the big gap in my long posting! I had assumed she wasn't going for elementary because of her subject area interests. Many people read these posts, however, so it's important to have a full picture, K-12, that you provide above. </p>
<p>It is a continuing frustration that advisors to teachers in individual states know little about interstate reciprocity, and tell students to look it up on the 'net or call the state board of education. They have not caught up to the mobility of the younger generation, that's for sure.</p>
<p>Good luck, KathieP, to your D in a vital career!</p>
<p>Of the top 3 US News Education schools in the country, only one has an undergraduate division: Peabody College at Vanderbilt University. And Vandy stresses lots of early on hands teaching experience. The programs there, coupled with the required major in an academic area can probably begin to prepare you for teaching at any level.</p>
<p>Note that you DON'T need to take education courses to participate in the Teach for America program, or in many school systems in the US where licensing requirements have been waived, or at many private and independent schools. Nor do you need education courses for college or university teaching. Unless your goal is elementary teaching, it might be better to choose a college for reasons other than the availability of education programs (which most LACs don't offer, for instance)--it will always be possible to take education courses later if you find you need them.</p>
<p>Go to a program where you get out in the schools early and often. Being in a real classroom is the only thing that will let you know what the profession is like.</p>
<p>Many people opt out of teaching after a student teaching experience or the first year or two of teaching as it was not what they expected. If you don't spend significant time in a classroom until your senior year or until having completed an undergrad degree, well you see the problem.</p>
<p>I think the safest way to find out if public school teaching is for you is to go to your home area principal (even if you attended private school in that area), on a college vacation when the public school is in session. This can include January (if you have off then), your Spring break, or late May. Or, reach out to the district nearest your college or university. Take the initiative. Aside from very un-representative days (such as the days immediately before Christmas, or the last days of the school year), you can see first-hand how hard a teacher works and see the rewards as well.</p>
<p>Explain to the principal you have career curiosity and ask if you can shadow the best, most open teacher. The principal will know whom to ask, who would not mind this presence. It's possible you'll even be asked to participate hands-on that day, as most elementary teachers know how to get all hands helping. Perhaps a h.s. teacher would just let you watch for a spell, then maybe take aside a few students for tutoring.</p>
<p>In general, good educators are eager for new people to enter the profession and understand "shadowing" as mutually helpful. You must, however, join the ethic of not repeating any last names from your experience around your home community. You cannot, for example, say, "I was helping Johnny Appleseed who has a special program..." because the Appleseed family has the right to privacy. </p>
<p>I also took on 3 college students during January term as classroom volunteers, so they could experience inner-city teaching before they decided whether or not to apply to teachers college after their B.A. One graduated and entered Teach for America. Another discovered he had better options (a high calibre musician) and went to grad school in another area that applied his musicianship in a more sophisticated way than schools ever could. </p>
<p>You can also approach a teacher you know, informally, to ask if this can be arranged within the school during some vacation days. </p>
<p>Another young lady I know, as a senior at an LAC job-shadowed a teacher one autumn day, in a congregated classroom for autistic kids. She says she knew after one hour she "was in love" with the task and found a lifetime career. She applied to a fine graduate school that specializes in this kind of teaching, took a two-year program and is the lead teacher in her classroom (with a team of other professionals) at age 24. She had never heard of this kind of work until she was a senior in college! </p>
<p>Go for several days or a week, and be sure to stay from start-to-finish in the teacher's day (not just drop in for an hour to read a story to the kids..that's way too easy!). This will tell you a great deal about whether or not this career is suitable for your temperament and personality, to indicate whether or not you should apply. I don't think student teaching tells you all that much more, truly. </p>
<p>If I had to sum it up, I'd say: "strong and patient, with a dash a humor; Work ethic and organizational skills" is my idea of one great personality for teaching.</p>
<p>I found that my LAC (where I majored in Art History) gave me the inner core to withstand some bureaucratic shenanigans and stay focused on the kids and their parents. I didn't take any education courses as an undergraduate but came to this profession after I had my own children! </p>
<p>There are many paths, no single right answer.</p>