Job Discussion Forums

tttompatz · Posted: Sat Feb 11, 2012 5:33 am Post subject:

If you go with ECE and/or a K-6 license (general education) as a teacher you are in good stead internationally (certainly in Asia if not globally).

You do NOT need an ESL/EFL endorsement to teach ECE or general education in an (elementary) international school abroad - full stop.

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fladude · Joined: 02 Feb 2009 Posts: 432

Hey BeatieType...............

Lets slow down a minute. I didn't quite grasp your goals earlier.

It sounds like you just want to be an ECE teacher.

As noted, you don't need an ESL cert to do that.

You also don't need a masters degree.

You also don't need a B'ED.

You do need certification. If you want to work in the states or for a top school.

Look into alternative certification. Most states have it. Then get some experience teaching for a year or two in your home country. Or just get certified and take off... up to you. Alternative certification is generally cheap and relatively fast (unless it requires you to work in a high demand school for 2 years, which would still be fine since you would get a pay check and experience).

You can work on a Masters degree later on when its more relevant to your career. Getting a Masters now doesn't make sense. Some schools in the US won't even count a general education masters degree unless you got it AFTER you were certified (at least not for pay).

In the alternative, just go to a country like Thailand and try to get hired in country to teach ECE without certification. The schools with great pay and benefits won't even look at your resume, but I'm sure you can find something. And then come back to your home country and get certified in a couple years. Obviously I think being certified up front is a plus, but there are schools that will hire you in country without it for ECE..

Tom can probably give you some advice on that. Heck if you showed up in Thailand well dressed and presentable.... well who knows....

I mean you are trying to teach ECE which is in demand, and isn't exactly rocket science here. I suspect quite a few schools would hire you without creds. Obviously not a big name International school which is going to pay your airfare and give you a 2000 square foot apartment with a balcony, but still some schools would give you a job. Its not like you are trying to teach high school. I think CELTA would be a waste of your money. A cheap TEFL class might be ok, if you can find a cheap one. But for ECE, I don't see the need.

To me the WORST thing you could do is wrack up a ton of student loan debt which will enslave you to a life working in the states, with 1/4 of your income going to pay student loans for the rest of your life.

EFLeducator · Posted: Sat Feb 11, 2012 5:20 pm Post subject:

fladude · Joined: 02 Feb 2009 Posts: 432

EFLeducator · Posted: Sat Feb 11, 2012 6:09 pm Post subject:

fladude · Joined: 02 Feb 2009 Posts: 432

thebettypie · Joined: 07 Feb 2012 Posts: 10

fladude · Joined: 02 Feb 2009 Posts: 432

The term "highly qualified" is a legal term. It means that the you have passed the necessary requirements under the law to teach a subject. For ECE, that requires you to be a certified teacher and to pass the K-6 exam.

Without certification you can never be highly qualified even you have a dozen masters degrees. It is a legal standard and can not be waived. With certification you can be deemed to be highly qualified under NCLB. In the United States, the criteria to become highly qualified to teach ECE is to be certified and to pass a battery of tests. Having a masters degree is nice, but it does not make you highly qualified either in the USA or abroad. Being certified to teach and passing the K-6 exam makes you qualified.

With your current education path you will not be qualified to work anywhere. You need to ask yourself if your objective is to be qualified and get a job, or if your objective is to go to school. Because as you are going now, you will not be qualified and your job prospects will be virtually the same as someone without an M'ED. No high end school will hire a teacher who is not certified, and from a legal perspective you will not be highly qualified.

No amount of masters degrees will make your first job any easier. Experience can not be taught. Get certified, then get a job,, then get a masters. That is the proper order of things.

A Masters in Education will make little sense to you without experience.

And yes I do work at a top tier school and I am working on my masters, but my school is paying for part of it. And when I am in class and we discuss issues, I can actually contribute because I have taught classes and understand what is being said. If I had never taught a class, I would be lost.

I wish you luck.

thebettypie · Joined: 07 Feb 2012 Posts: 10

Thanks for the good luck wish, and thanks to all of you for your advice and patience.

After much consideration and consultation (with you fine people and several academic advisers), I think that I am going to do both: go with the M.Ed-ECE program, and pursue certification. WGU has an online, legit post-bac program leading to elementary licensure that I think I can easily fit into my schedule, since the Master's program is part-time (1 class each semester with summer intensive sessions).

I know many of you have told me that a Master's is useless at this point, but I want to say that I'm going for it because it's important to me. I've been in ECE for over 6 years now, and I love it; The choice to pursue this program may come mostly from a passion for the field, and I'm totally okay with that.

But I get that certification is what gets the good jobs. And I want to be a licensed teacher, to have those opportunities both abroad and when I return home. Maybe after 6 years I'll be driven to get another Master's.

I guess I was just struggling to find a way to have both things. Hopefully this is a winning compromise. I feel good about it.