There are a few different avenues you can consider when wanting to be a teacher. The two most popular teaching careers are either elementary school teaching or middle school and above teaching. Obviously, becoming a university professor is a lot different than teaching a few six-year-olds running around the classroom. We’re only going to cover the first two teaching career routes, as university teaching is an entirely different game. Before we move on to how to become a teacher, you’re going to have to figure out if you actually like being around children. Consider all the interactions you’ve ever had with small children, or maybe even teenagers if you’re considering a high school or middle school teaching path. Decide if you’re willing to sacrifice a few hours every day to make a connection and bond with the students you are going to be teaching. Teaching isn’t just about passing on knowledge, it’s also about forming a pact and a bond with the students whose minds you are molding.
Elementary school teaching
To become an elementary school teacher you don’t need a special degree in the subject you are teaching. For instance, you don’t have to have a degree in mathematics or English to teach an elementary school class about all of the different subjects they’ll be learning. What you do need however, is a degree in elementary school education. While it is possible to teach elementary school children without a degree in the field, it is much more difficult to land a proper job. Investigate at your local community colleges or universities about how to obtain an elementary school teaching degree.
If you already have a career and are looking to switch over to teaching elementary school children, there are also programs that will allow you to obtain a certification to move on from your current degree to a new one. Courses are offered at local community colleges and full-time universities to people looking to switch their careers. In this case, you’d be looking to get an elementary school teaching certification. Classes can run anywhere between 2 to 6 months in length. By the end of it, you’ll be granted certification to teach at public elementary schools in your state. Whenever you move, you will have to renew your teaching license to teach in that new state.
Middle school and high school teaching
If teaching children isn’t your game and you’d rather pass on valuable information to young minds, maybe becoming a middle school or high school teacher is better suited to you. Becoming a middle school or high school teacher is a lot different than teaching elementary school aged children. Not only do you have to have the discipline to be stern with adolescents that are going through puberty and are probably going to be hyperactive through most of the day, you also have to be able to be a mentor for them if they need it. That is why in order to teach at a public high school or middle school, you have to have a degree in the field and classes that you are teaching. For instance, you can’t be a biology teacher at a public high school unless you have a degree in biology as well as your teaching certification.
Getting your teaching certification for a high school or middle school setting is a lot like the process necessary for elementary school teaching. It could take a few weeks or a few months to complete the courses necessary at a local college. Then, once you have your certification in hand and a degree in the field that you’re looking to teach, you can apply for jobs at public higher education facilities. Remember that people skills are a must, and it may be a good idea to get a degree in public speaking while you’re at university. The reason for getting a public speaking degree is because students in high school classrooms are a lot more mature than elementary school classrooms. They’re very capable of thinking on the same intellectual level that you are, and may challenge the views or topics you’re discussing. By having a degree in public speaking, you’ll be able to debate formally analogically with your students. Remember, it is your responsibility to prepare them for the real world. By losing your temper or not knowing what to say, you may mold them in the wrong way.
What next
Once you have your teaching certification, it’s time to move onto a teaching job. You can’t expect to get a full teaching job right away, so you’ll most likely be assigned as a teachers aide to get your feet. Being a teachers aide will probably last anywhere between six and nine months(the equivalent of one school year). Once you have you have completed your time as a teaching aid, you will be evaluated by the school board in the state to judge your teaching ability. Once you have enough classroom time under your belt, you’ll be promoted to a full-time teacher!