Job Discussion Forums

Looking for my place · Joined: 09 Sep 2005 Posts: 49 Location: Portland

Investigating an oportunity to teach in Miami Dade area. Any insights to what it is like there. Far from the action and excitement of Miami beach? Safe? Thanks

avignon81 · Joined: 30 Jun 2008 Posts: 5 Location: Avignon, France

Hopin to give this thread a little reboost. I'm hoping to teach ESL in a k-12 school or community college in south Florida.

I'm currently applying to some MA TESOL programs, but am also considering alternative certification.

Does anybody have any advice? I've been digging around the forums for a few months now and it's as dry as a desert. Should I talk this as a sign?

jillford64 · Joined: 15 Feb 2006 Posts: 397 Location: Sin City

This forum doesn't get a lot of traffic overall, so I don't think you can take it as a sign.

avignon81 · Joined: 30 Jun 2008 Posts: 5 Location: Avignon, France

Thanks, Do you know of any other forums or anywhere else I might be able to find more info about the real employment prospects for teashing ESOL K-12 or in Community Colleges. I haven't found the Florida DOE site incredibly helpful.

Thanks again.

jillford64 · Joined: 15 Feb 2006 Posts: 397 Location: Sin City

No, I do not. Sorry.

Vanica · Joined: 31 Aug 2006 Posts: 368 Location: North Carolina

Dear Avignon,

This is a site that a lot of the southern public schools seem to post on.

www.teachers-teachers.com

fraup · Posted: Fri Feb 27, 2009 7:42 pm Post subject:

You could also check www.craigslist.com under "education".

fraup · Posted: Fri Feb 27, 2009 7:44 pm Post subject:

and just thought of something else--many community colleges post jobs on their own web sites but not on www.chronicle.com or the like. So, find out what cc's are in the Miami/Dade area, and check those directly.

Chancellor · Posted: Fri Feb 27, 2009 10:48 pm Post subject:

chinita250 · Joined: 15 Jul 2008 Posts: 3

I just came from there. The job market and pay is horrible. Plus it's very expensive to live there. I had high hopes, but was gravely disappointed.

Like the other posters suggested, I checked all the websites and applied to various schools like crazy. There's very little available right now. I would have been better off going abroad + would have gotten paid more.

Tiger Beer · Joined: 08 Feb 2003 Posts: 778 Location: Hong Kong

BocaNY · Joined: 24 Mar 2009 Posts: 131

I used to live in Miami dade up until a few months ago. I can tell you that the public school system is one, if not the, worest in the state. Miami dade as a lot of "F" schools...meaning that the students can't pass the basic exams. Some schools have gone up to "D" schools and people are happy about that.Its easy to get state license to teach you don't even need to get a MA over time.

If you go the college way it might be better.

All I can say is that the majority of the population don't care to learn english. What can be said when you walk into a McD's and they dont understand what you say.

The children of the immgrants complain that its not fair that the state exams are given in english, when their parents cant speak the language and help them. This is funny to me cuz the children are usually born and raised in the US.

I would say to try the northen counties in Fl. Broward, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton just not Miami Dade its really not what its cracked up tp be.

BocaNY · Joined: 24 Mar 2009 Posts: 131

[quote="chinita250"]I just came from there. The job market and pay is horrible. Plus it's very expensive to live there. I had high hopes, but was gravely disappointed.
quote]

I agree the job market overall is horrible after the crisis started. But I disagree thats expensive. If you make $30,000 a year you can have a good life. I made less then that, was living on South Beach and I was able to enjoy stuff and save money.
Compare to other cities Miami is cheap IMHO.

jgmodlin · Joined: 01 Mar 2006 Posts: 120 Location: USA

Check www.altcertflorida.org and they have all the details about alternative certification in Florida for K-12. I did the same thing in Virginia and it was quick and resulted in my getting an ESL high school position immediately following. Broward and Palm Beach counties would both be fun places to live and would still give you the "South Florida" experience minus many of the negatives that have been mentioned here. A lot of people who have never lived in Florida have a romanticized view of what Miami would be like to live in. Some of the places like Coconut Creek, Pompano Beach and so forth in the north end of Broward next to Boca Raton are beautiful and not that expensive. For what it's worth condo prices have come way down as have rents (to a lesser extent) recently. Starting salaries for new public school teachers in South Florida are not too bad, close to $40,000 and that's for ten months of work!

jeffdog · Joined: 03 Jul 2009 Posts: 12

i live about 4 hours from miami...i go down there to race my bike and then get out as quickly as possible...crowded, sprawling, relatively cultureless---good cuban food though!.....south beach is fun for a couple of days then gets really old...the employment situation in Florida is pretty bad overall--budget cuts, etc...cost of living is high,pay very low...if you want to teach in the Public School System go directly to the site for that county...there is always some value to visiting a place you have never visited--even a place like miami--i'd keep my visit there really short though if i were you!