Job Discussion Forums

saint57 · Posted: Sat May 13, 2006 10:00 pm Post subject: Are you stuck?

I'm not a promoter or a recruiter of any kind. I just know a lot of people want to step up to better paying jobs at international schools. A woman I know did this course. She was working in Kyrzigstan/Mexico while she did this through distance/on-site in the summers. I thought it was an interesting alternative to going home for a year. Research it for yourself. As I've commented before, I'm not sure how likely you are to get a job at a public school in America with this certification. The woman I knew got a B.Ed and M.Ed through this school.

http://www.tcnj.edu/%7Egraduate/global/

VanKen · Joined: 29 Oct 2003 Posts: 139 Location: Calgary, AB Canada

paulmanser · Joined: 28 Nov 2005 Posts: 403

Its a one off offer from saint07, give him a break.

Ask dave?

hell will freeze over before I asked a yank permission. Twisted Evil

saint57 · Posted: Sat May 13, 2006 11:16 pm Post subject:

I am known for cluttering many a forum with written diarrhea. However, I posted this because I've seen a few people ask about such a program. Also, a woman at my current internship was hired an an emergecy teacher because of her French language skills. She can't get into the Ontario College of Teachers without a B.Ed. She can't afford to go back to school for a year so I went back to find this site. I figured I'd post it for others check it for themselves. If the MODS think it's spam they can delete it for all I care.

khmerhit · Posted: Sat May 13, 2006 11:22 pm Post subject:

thanks fer posting--cld b useful

ls650 · Joined: 10 May 2003 Posts: 3484 Location: British Columbia

Doesn't read like spam to me: it reads like a poster putting up information that may be useful to others.

Henry_Cowell · Joined: 27 May 2005 Posts: 3352 Location: Berkeley

The College of New Jersey is actually a very reputable university. It was most recently known as "Trenton State College" and began its life as a "normal" college. It has specialized in teacher training for over 150 years.

That's info that I got from its Web site. Here's something else:

"The College of New Jersey has been recognized nationally for its excellence in Money magazine, U.S. News and World Report, The Fiske Guide to Colleges, Barron's Profiles of American Colleges and Peterson's Competitive Colleges."

If the school's distance "global" education is on par with the rest of the college, I bet it's pretty good -- and definitely reputable and recognized.

The_Hanged_Man · Joined: 10 Oct 2004 Posts: 224 Location: Tbilisi, Georgia

While the degree itself may be from a reputable univeristy, obtaining the degree alone without some sort of k-12 student teaching or internship will not qualify you for a teaching certification in pretty much any state. In addition, most states require a certain number of college credits in a teaching major. So again, a B.Ed. would be useless if you majored in the Philosophy of Bellybutton Lint.

Most international schools pretty much only care whether or not you are certified, and having an actual B.Ed. or M.Ed. is secondary. So, the value of earning a degree in education without earning a state teaching certification is rather dubious.

Personally, I've never taken a single education course at a university (although I did complete an alternative cert program and have 2 years of experience), and I recently landed a high school math position at a reputable international school.

naturegirl321 · Joined: 04 May 2003 Posts: 9041 Location: home sweet home

If you want qualified teacher status, the department of New Jersey has a good deal going for it. ONce you get all your docs in, it takes about 3 months to get the cert.

http://www.state.nj.us/njded/educators/license/3steps.htm

saint57 · Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 2:37 am Post subject:

You do your practicums during the on-site summer months. Most of the course work is distance. I just sat in classrooms all year and I don't believe people will be missing much by doing that part by distance.

The_Hanged_Man · Joined: 10 Oct 2004 Posts: 224 Location: Tbilisi, Georgia

Ah ok, it seems it might work then. I agree that people won't miss much by doing the coursework by distance too, but most decent international schools still want two years of experience in a K-12 setting. Also, At $470 per credit hour that program will cost around $12,000 to earn the 25 credits you need for their certification program which is pretty darn expensive.

I guess if were you dead set against returning home it could be an option. But from a practical standpoint, in my opinion the best thing to do would be to go back home for 2-3 years to get your certification and experience, and then head back overseas.

saint57 · Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 1:14 pm Post subject:

The_Hanged_Man · Joined: 10 Oct 2004 Posts: 224 Location: Tbilisi, Georgia

Actually with most alternative cert programs in the States you can earn as you learn too. With my program in Texas I paid around $3500 which included 3 months of training in the summer, and then I started a mentored internship at a high school for which I received a full salary (around $32k) as a first year teacher. After one year I was fully certified in the state of Texas.

You are right that some schools do overlook the 2 years experience requirement, but that is something of a crapshoot, and you have to be the right person in the right place. Personally, I like to error on the side of caution, especially when it comes to career and money, so I decided that returning to the States was best for me.

saint57 · Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 1:50 pm Post subject:

snorklequeen · Posted: Thu May 18, 2006 8:58 am Post subject: Texas alternative certification

hi, The Hanged Man,

where in Texas did you take your alternative course? city, school district

what kinds of teaching experiences did you have?

tks,

Queenie