Job Discussion Forums

BinneySK · Joined: 27 Aug 2010 Posts: 10

Hi all
I am South African and am currently working in Korea as a entry level, you have a degree and speak English, teacher. My degree is in Marketing and I would like to study to be able to teach (at international schools) as a subject teacher. First choice is English, but I'm open to teaching Art, History or Drama.

I would like to teach either in Asia or South America, but am not opposed to teaching in the States/Canada/Australia.
It seems as though the US and Oz offer the best (internationally recognised) programs (correct me if I'm wrong).

I have a few queries if anyone can help me out it would be much appreciated:

*Firstly and most importantly do you need a teaching certification to work at international schools or would a MATESOL or MA Applied Ling suffice, I've heard it's a no for the latter?

* With a non educational Bachelors degree, how can I get certified? Online courses would be prefered as I would like to stay and work in Korea for as long as possible.

*Is it true that with all teaching cert courses you have to complete student teaching? Is there any chance to do that abroad (Asia preferably)

* If I got a teaching cert from the US is it easy to 'convert' to work in Australia (and visa versa) ie which is the better certification to get in terms of costs, ease of employment and ease of conversion.

I have been researching past posts so hope I'm not too repetitive.
Any help would be most appreciated.

Thanks...... confused.com

scintillatestar · Joined: 19 Oct 2009 Posts: 74 Location: New York, NY

TeresaLopez · Joined: 18 Apr 2010 Posts: 601 Location: Mexico City

I can't anwer all of your questions, but I can answer some of them. In the US, you must do student teaching in order to be certified. The length differs from state to state, but the most common length is one semester. Some states have reciprocal agreements with other states, making it easier to become certified in state #2 once you have fulfilled the requirements in state #1. In addition, in most states you have to take a certification exam. Some states have their own exam, and others have you take a standardized test like the Praxis test. There are various different tests depending on the grades and subjects you want to teach. Most International schools require a degree in education as well as certification, I have seen a lot of schools that even specify that an ESL qualification is not enough. There are alternate routes to certification for people who have a degree. In these programs you teach in a high needs school and after a certain period of time teaching and doing additional coursework you obtain a certification to teach in that state. The schools are usually in areas where they can't get teachers for one reason or another, and are no picnic, but it is a possibility. Hope this helps.

BinneySK · Joined: 27 Aug 2010 Posts: 10

[quote="TeresaLopez"] There are alternate routes to certification for people who have a degree. [/quote]

By degree do you mean a non educational degree such as my marketing degree?

Thanks

tttompatz · Posted: Mon Aug 30, 2010 5:17 am Post subject:

Another alternative could also be getting either a PGCE or a BEd. tacked onto your current BA..

Many universities offer post grad certifications in Education that lead to a BEd in as little as 3 trimesters (including your practicum).

Vancouver Island University offers such a program (as an example) and it does lead to teacher certification on completion.

Bachelor of Education�Post Baccalaureate Degree (full-time):
http://www.viu.ca/calendar/Education/postbaccalaureatefulltime.asp

There are many others as well.

.

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

Yes, you'll need a teaching cert, plus two years experience in a school setting.

You will eventually have to go home to get your license as you will have to do a practicum. All the courses I know involve student teaching.

YOu don't have to convert your license. It'll carry over to other countries.

Chancellor · Posted: Mon Aug 30, 2010 12:20 pm Post subject:

PelemPelem · Joined: 16 Aug 2009 Posts: 18

In Australia, the qualification system varies between the states; and some have reciprocal recognition of qualifications.

My qualifications were gained in Victoria which has a reciprocal relationship with the ACT (Canberra) and the Northern Territory - there may be others but I have never applied to teach in any other states/territories.

In Victoria, to teach secondary level, you need an undergraduate degree i.e B.A, B.Sci etc. after which you need to also obtain a Graduate Diploma in Education(Grad.Dip.Ed) (which takes one year full time to complete with about 2 X 4 week practicums). You will be qualified to teach only in the major and minor subjects of your undergraduate degree.

To teach in primary schools you need a four year B.Ed Primary or similar. If you already have an undergraduate degree and a Grad.Dip.Ed, you may be able to take a shorter course e.g. Deakin University offered a B.Ed Primary conversion course lasting 18 months fulltime; the University of Canberra also offers a shorter course.

Check out Deakin University website, they do offer many off-campus courses.

http://www.deakin.edu.au/arts-ed/education/courses/new.php#mteach

I quote below from the website above:

New courses
Master of Teaching
This program is designed to enable Bachelor degree graduates from various disciplines to gain teaching qualifications in on