Korean Job Discussion Forums

[AwesomeA]

I know you can teach at community colleges with a Master's. Wondering if I can teach at public schools with an MA is TESOL.

[malandlu]

True most of America could do with some decent ESL teaching

(sorry I just could not resist)

[sarbonn]

There are a lot of specific rules for teaching at public schools in the US. You can have a Ph.D., and you still can't teach at a middle school without the appropriate credential. My advice is to inquire where you want to teach and find out what you need. There are programs in some districts that are designed to broach that gap of people with degrees but no credentials, like the Oakland teaching program (it's sometimes advertised on the International Job Forums here). A couple of others do something similar as they find it hard to fill teaching positions, so they sponsor the credential and work a teacher into their program.

[refikaM]

You must have a public school teaching certificate for each state in which you teach in the US in addition to a minimum BA/BS... There is reciprocity between some states that border each other. The public school teaching certificate requires one year of study full-time.

[Snowkr]

Check into the "Teaching Fellows" programs. Several states and cities have them. I think they're similar to alternative certification.

I'm in the same boat. I have the grad degree in TESOL but no state teaching credential.

I know that certain parts of Florida are so desperate for qualified ESL teachers that they are accepting a Masters in the field in place of a state teaching license. I'm pretty sure there is still some kind of test involved though...

[Tobias]

[jellobean]

[Heifer]

It depends on the state and the school district's needs. In Tennessee, you can teach a subject in which you have a major if the district has a high need. TESOL qualifies as a high need subject in many districts such as Memphis although their need leveled out this year. You can get alternative certification which requires taking at least 6 hours of Education classes between September and May. You go through 3 observations and evaluation in November. Many schools also require writing a unit plan. The Tennessee Board of Regents has made some online courses so that you can take many of the required courses online.

[Heifer]

I forgot to mention that you also must be mentored 100 hours in your first year and 50 hours the second year in Tennessee.

[Tobias]

Get real guys. What kinds of jobs are you talking about here?

My old stand-by creed to follow when looking for any job:
Replace a quitter today, BE a quitter tomorrow.

In places like Memphis, you will be able to get a job without the education degree. They may even elect to help you pay off your student loan as an incentive. But will you be replacing a quitter? That is the real question. Sure, people quit jobs because they feel like it. But how many quit their jobs because the jobs simply SUCK? You'd be wise to find out, especially in a place like Memphis.

Perhaps those jobs in Memphis are available to us because the former teachers got tired of passing through metal detectors and being frisked every day.

[Tiger Beer]

[Khenan]

The information here is generally correct. It is possible to get a teaching cert through alternative methods, although you will inevitably end up in supposedly undesirable places. Being an ESL teacher, you might be used to that. The real certification takes a year, and the requirements vary from state to state (since the states are theoretically autonomous in the department of education), but you can get it early depending on where you teach.

As to Tobias' comment re: teaching jobs in the states being awful, I would ignore him. You'll work more hours, sure - it's a real job - but you also get nice long vacations, benefits, and things like that (plus you don't have to worry about the exchange rate).

[Khenan]

[jellobean]

[jellobean]