Hi all, Looking for some who may have some thoughts or first hand experiences regarding getting a teaching job whether it be public, private, temple, church etc... with a Bachelor of General Studies. I did not pass one subject of the FTCE K-6 by the deadline before student teaching and without going into details, the reality is that even if I pass next month I personally cannot student teach until another 2 years. I cannot graduate until student teaching is completed, and therefore I would not qualify for any teaching job that requires a 4 year degree. Alternatively, I could take some classes in January and graduate the same semester with a Bachelor of General Studies degree. (Keep in mind I have taken and pass every elementary education teaching class requirement besides student teaching). At the time I graduate, I will pass the FTCE K-6 and have already passed the GK and FTCE professional test. So basically if I go the Bachelor of General Studies route, I will graduate with honors, have passed all elementary education classes, will have all professional tests passed and a teaching certificate, just no student teaching semester. Will I be able to get an elementary teaching job or am I going to be out of luck?
You would, in essence, be an alternate route teacher. Be assured that schools will wonder about the lack of student teaching, so make sure you are ready to explain that without becoming defensive. Most states will consider you eligible, but only if you receive more training for the classroom. In NJ, that would be through several different programs, and most states have similar steps that allow someone with the requisite number of hours to enter the profession, get a job, but it is contingent upon completion of the alternate route, graduate degree, or other program. Florida states as much on their web site, where they tell you that you will need to pass the teacher exams, get a job, and enroll in one of several alternate route programs found throughout the state to prepare you for the classroom. Good luck.
Judging from http://www.fldoe.org/teaching/certi...s/teaching-for-the-career-changer-or-col.stml, Florida schools may be a little less leery about the absence of student teaching, especially if the OP can point to other fairly current experiences in schools and/or with children.
I started college in 1982, but didn't finished. Sixteen years later, I decided to go back to college after subbing for eight years. A General Studies degree was my best option and I was encouraged to pass all my tests by HR Director. I had my test passed except for one by the time that I graduated and still ended up with a job right after graduation. This was almost 12 years ago, but it worked for me.
I never did student teaching, but I have a Master's in Education with a lot of experience in teaching pre-k (even in a daycare setting) that no one has ever questioned it.
I didn't do student teaching either. I did have 6 years of subbing under my belt. My first year I was a inclusion behavior teacher. Technically no student teaching but I learned A LOT in that year that I didn't have my own classroom from all the other teachers whose class I was in during the day.
Hi I am a junior in elementary education 1-5. I have completed all of my education classes (except for a few maths because It took me a few times to pass the first one.) I thought that I would be going into student teaching in the fall after talking to my advisor last semester and her saying I could take those maths with methods/student teaching. Last week I switched advisers and when I went to meet with her she told me that I had to finish my math courses before I could go into student teaching. I have three maths left and they are built off one another so I can’t take them all at one time. Which means, I would have to take one math in the summer, another Math in the fall by itself (because I don’t have any other classes to take) ,and then another math next spring before I could go into student teaching in the fall of 2019. I met with a general studies advisor this week and they told me that I could graduate this coming spring with my major concentration in education. I would still like to become a teacher but I don’t know what steps I must take after I get my BGS. I was thinking of being a teachers aid my first year to help learn the classroom a little more since I didn’t get that student teaching year. Is this a possibility for me? I am 23 years old and am ready to be out in the world and teaching, not stuck in school an extra year taking one math class a semester but I also want to make sure I can do something with this degree. Any feedback would be great as I have to make this career choice for myself in the next few weeks. Thank you!
Although I don't know what math classes you are missing, I might would suggest seeing if there are CLEP tests on the subject matter, and whether or not your school would give you the credit for them. If so, I would also go so far as to suggest online instruction in these classes, or you can educate yourself through many of the Khan Academy courses online. I am sure that there are other ways to earn the credit, as well. Since you are in undergrad, no reason you can't take the courses elsewhere and transfer the credit. No one will care if you get C's, in most situations. How low functioning are you in math, if I may ask? Pretty much everyone going to college has to earn a minimum of 6 math credits. If math is this hard for you, Elem. Ed may not be a good fit for you, sorry to say. The option I suggested would depend on your state's program towards having your transcript evaluated, and if accepted, then taking the alternate route programing, which can be trial by fire. Someone recently asked if AR teachers felt they were as prepared as conventional route teachers, and I would say that it depends on how much you put into truly learning the information at the same time that you are teaching full time. I had subbed almost full time for 8 years before going AR, and I feel that I was in a place where I knew what would be expected, and how hard it would be. For me, it was the right choice. I should go on to say that I have earned 2 MEd. degrees since going AR, so I don't rest on my laurels. Honestly, you aren't ready to teach at this time. My suggestion, as a teacher and a parent, is to finish what you started. You will not earn much as an aide, and that is not a path to teaching, IMHO. Explore getting a tutor or experienced help to complete the math you need to go forward in your program. My son is a teacher, and he was dreading the math classes. Fortunately, we planned the math courses for summer school, when the course load was light. He still struggled on the preliminary Praxis General Knowledge test, but took it until he passed it. Sometimes the path we take to be who or where we end up is straight, but is often curved. You can learn a lot by the curved path, and take pride in the extra knowledge you acquire along the way, or, you can try to make your future fit your reality, but don't believe that it will be the same to be an aide when you long to be a teacher. Best of luck!
