I am exposing the "teaching shortage" as a fraud (career, degrees)
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I am sending the following letter to Texas Teachers tomorrow (in all fairness, there is more than one alternative certification program out there, but this is the one that I went with, hence the letter being sent to them)
October 6, 2009
...
Texas Teachers
1600 Airport Freeway
Suite 204
Bedford, TX 76022
Dear Texas Teachers:
I wanted to be a math teacher because I am good at explaining mathematical concepts to people, whether basic or advanced, and I enjoy working with young people. I was under the impression that math teachers are in high demand and that I would have no problem finding a job as a math teacher in junior high or high school.
I spent several hundred dollars on your tuition and state exam fees. I passed TExES math 4-8 and math 8-12. I applied to every school district in Tarrant County plus a few in Dallas County (e.g., Carrollton and Farmers Branch).
As part of my training, I spent a week at Trimble Tech High School in Ft Worth assisting in Algebra I and Algebra II. I greatly enjoyed my time there, and I looked forward to helping students learn, especially those from disadvantaged homes, which is the great majority of students who attend Trimble Tech. One of the students asked me if I was going to be back next week, and I was sorry to say that I wasn't.
I was very disappointed by the response I got from school districts. Crowley ISD was nice enough to send me a rejection letter while everyone else ignored me. I got one interview in Arlington ISD and no job offer or rejection letter.
I am writing you to let you know that I am very dissatisfied with your false claims. Essentially, your organization is a fraud. There were hundreds of people in your training seminar, all of whom were excited about making a positive difference in students' lives. Very few of them will actually be able to do that. The vast majority of your customers, like myself, will be disappointed and angry that they wasted time and money looking for teaching jobs that do not exist.
By making false claims that the alternative certification program and resume tips from an HR representative will result in a high likelihood of getting a job, especially in math and science, you are doing people a disservice and basically stealing their money.
I have spoken to several people on this subject, and I have informed them that the wild claims that certified teachers, especially in math and science, are difficult for schools to find, is a joke.
I am going to write my state representatives to ask them to shut down the alternative certification program on account of it being a fraud.
I would like for you to shut your doors because you are a fraud, and it makes no difference to schools since they will continue to hire people from universities with teaching certificates and student teaching experience.
As someone who did the same thing in CT this summer, there WAS a shortage until the economy and all the state budget woes. At the end of the program, they had people from last year's group talk with us about what it's like out there. While virtually all of them got jobs (also true of prior years), only about half of my group did (though I'm still getting interviews, cross my fingers).
I was actually trying to get into the NYC version of this sort of thing (as it's closer to home, though I don't mind relocating if need be, too expensive to live where I am anyway), but they saw this coming and only took in this year about 1/3 of the people they normally took in. And even then, lots of problems in terms of people getting jobs.
I think if this doesn't turn around in a year or two, you're going to see a lot of these programs scale back if not outright disappear, as I could see some out there start suing instead of just sending letters.
Re : I am exposing the "teaching shortage" as a fraud
You are right but its not depend on all teachers. And when you are sure about fraud teachers complain them to head of the school with all detail information.
Thanks,
I was very disappointed by the response I got from school districts. Crowley ISD was nice enough to send me a rejection letter while everyone else ignored me. I got one interview in Arlington ISD and no job offer or rejection letter.
Your assumption is that you got so little response because of fraud.
While it may be true, you have hardly provided what in Geometry would be called a proof.
I am sending the following letter to Texas Teachers tomorrow (in all fairness, there is more than one alternative certification program out there, but this is the one that I went with, hence the letter being sent to them)
October 6, 2009
...
Texas Teachers
1600 Airport Freeway
Suite 204
Bedford, TX 76022
Dear Texas Teachers:
I wanted to be a math teacher because I am good at explaining mathematical concepts to people, whether basic or advanced, and I enjoy working with young people. I was under the impression that math teachers are in high demand and that I would have no problem finding a job as a math teacher in junior high or high school.
I spent several hundred dollars on your tuition and state exam fees. I passed TExES math 4-8 and math 8-12. I applied to every school district in Tarrant County plus a few in Dallas County (e.g., Carrollton and Farmers Branch).
As part of my training, I spent a week at Trimble Tech High School in Ft Worth assisting in Algebra I and Algebra II. I greatly enjoyed my time there, and I looked forward to helping students learn, especially those from disadvantaged homes, which is the great majority of students who attend Trimble Tech. One of the students asked me if I was going to be back next week, and I was sorry to say that I wasn't.
I was very disappointed by the response I got from school districts. Crowley ISD was nice enough to send me a rejection letter while everyone else ignored me. I got one interview in Arlington ISD and no job offer or rejection letter.
I am writing you to let you know that I am very dissatisfied with your false claims. Essentially, your organization is a fraud. There were hundreds of people in your training seminar, all of whom were excited about making a positive difference in students' lives. Very few of them will actually be able to do that. The vast majority of your customers, like myself, will be disappointed and angry that they wasted time and money looking for teaching jobs that do not exist.
By making false claims that the alternative certification program and resume tips from an HR representative will result in a high likelihood of getting a job, especially in math and science, you are doing people a disservice and basically stealing their money.
I have spoken to several people on this subject, and I have informed them that the wild claims that certified teachers, especially in math and science, are difficult for schools to find, is a joke.
I am going to write my state representatives to ask them to shut down the alternative certification program on account of it being a fraud.
I would like for you to shut your doors because you are a fraud, and it makes no difference to schools since they will continue to hire people from universities with teaching certificates and student teaching experience.
Sincerely,
...
You and me both. I'm certified, in Michigan, to teach math, chemistry and physics. No shortage of any of them in spite of the headlines.
For me, it makes the job undesirable knowing there are 16 people lined up for my job when I leave. I chose this career, in part, because I wanted to do a job no one else was available to do. I wanted what I do to be important. It's not very important when I can be replaced in a heartbeat.
I'll second the rejection letters. At least you know someone thought enough of you to send one. I've gotten one. Every other school has left me guessing as to whether or not they even read my file. Very unprofessional.
Good luck with you job search no matter what direction it takes you. I'm giving it one more shot trying to find a math position (just recently upgraded my math minor to a major) and if that doesn't work, I'm out of the profession.
BTW, I've already contacted the state board of education. They are aware that no one is hiring the very people they encouraged to go into teaching. Apparently, they have no idea what to do about that. Here, there really is a shortage of chemistry teachers BUT schools don't want to hire people with chemistry certs. They want teachers with general science certs because they can put them anywhere. The state wants people with my kind of cert in the classroom but it doesn't do any good to get the degree if you can't get a job with it. I'm hoping I'll have better luck in math. If not, I have two engineering degrees to fall back on. After being in a profession where no one wants you, engineering is starting to sound really good again. It may grow old after a while but it's a respected position and I really would be filling a shortage if I go chemical engineering. I'll be leaving the state but I'd be doing a job there isn't someone else standing in line to do. What I do would matter. That's important to me.
There is a serious teaching shortage- however school districts don't have the money to hire more teachers. Instead, they force far too many students into a classroom and (in the case of my old high school) have cut back advanced classes where there might only be 5-10 people in any given class. I took AP Spanish Lit (Spanish 7) 3 years ago in high school and from Spanish 5 (AP Spanish lang) onwards, there was only tops 10 students in class. Now those 3 levels are combined. The material is COMPLETELY different between the two AP exams and Spanish 6 is conversational Spanish. They in no way should be combined.
The economy has changed drastically since you probably started your certificate. You can't blame the awarding body for that.
You and me both. I'm certified, in Michigan, to teach math, chemistry and physics.
Wow. I had always heard math and science teachers at the high school and middle school level were in demand.
I guess not. hm.
The same thing has happened to a lot of new nursing graduates and new RTs(x-ray tech) - cries of shortage drew many to the programs, only for them to find this spring that for new graduates, there was no shortage. In the case of nurses, its because new graduate orientations cost the hospitals a lot of money. I suppose with teachers its the budget cuts and how they have been applied.
For me, it makes the job undesirable knowing there are 16 people lined up for my job when I leave. I chose this career, in part, because I wanted to do a job no one else was available to do. I wanted what I do to be important. It's not very important when I can be replaced in a heartbeat.
There's a difference between doing an important job and being important. The brakes on my car are damned important, even though they can be replaced for a couple hundred bucks. It's the job they do that's important, not the particular bits of metal and padding.
Likewise, teaching is an important job. But if it's your own personal specialness you're hunting for, there are probably better ways of defining it than by your profession.
Your assumption is that you got so little response because of fraud.
While it may be true, you have hardly provided what in Geometry would be called a proof.
We've advanced a bit beyond geometry. Nothing wrong with it but it's one of the building blocks.
Try basic probability -- if I apply to 100 schools and the probability of being invited to an interview is a meager non-fraudulent 1/10, what is the probability that I get exactly 1 interview?
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Re : I am exposing the "teaching shortage" as a fraud
