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So you're certified to teach any science/math classes EXCEPT for biology/physiology, but they'd put a General Science cert to teach math?
Educational politics are a jungle....
The math cert is actually an extra cert. I only mention it because the fact I don't have a general science cert gets me eliminated up front even though I also have math. THAT's how undesirable single subject certs are here. The DI (new easier to get general science cert) or DX (old cert) is preferred any day of the week over my chemistry and physics certs. Even with math too I couldn't buy an interview 14 out of 16 times. I am very lucky to have this job. If the state hadn't bought out teachers to get them to retire, I'd still be working for charter schools IF I could find work at all. This district needed to replace a chemistry teacher with a full load so they didn't care that I don't have a DI, however, it has been suggested that that would be a good way to do my plus 30 credits. Honestly, I don't care how many biology classes you give me, you do NOT want to take biology with me teaching it. It would be dry and rote. I just don't understand it like I do chemistry and physics. Those I teach well because I can relate things.
I have a team teacher in one of my chemistry classes and she's, constantly, telling me that she's been doing this for years but this is the first time she's understood some of the concepts. I teach for understanding because I understand. I couldn't do that in a subject I don't know as well.
It kind of sucks to know you have the highest certs but no one wants to hire you because they see your certs as inflexible.
In our area, the school board is asking the county for several million more this year for pay raises for teachers.
We are already broke. They mentioned on the radio that the average pay for teachers in the Charlotte, NC area is $76,000.00 (for 9 months of work). Oh yes, by all means, we don't want them to starve or anything.
I've never professed to be the best at math, but that seems like a high average when the scale tops at less than $70k for a teacher with a Doctorate.
The math cert is actually an extra cert. I only mention it because the fact I don't have a general science cert gets me eliminated up front even though I also have math. THAT's how undesirable single subject certs are here. The DI (new easier to get general science cert) or DX (old cert) is preferred any day of the week over my chemistry and physics certs. Even with math too I couldn't buy an interview 14 out of 16 times. I am very lucky to have this job. If the state hadn't bought out teachers to get them to retire, I'd still be working for charter schools IF I could find work at all. This district needed to replace a chemistry teacher with a full load so they didn't care that I don't have a DI, however, it has been suggested that that would be a good way to do my plus 30 credits. Honestly, I don't care how many biology classes you give me, you do NOT want to take biology with me teaching it. It would be dry and rote. I just don't understand it like I do chemistry and physics. Those I teach well because I can relate things.
I have a team teacher in one of my chemistry classes and she's, constantly, telling me that she's been doing this for years but this is the first time she's understood some of the concepts. I teach for understanding because I understand. I couldn't do that in a subject I don't know as well.
It kind of sucks to know you have the highest certs but no one wants to hire you because they see your certs as inflexible.
This goes back to a discussion on here awhile ago when folks didn't understand how teachers, who are required by law to do continuing education every year of their careers, are actually making themselves unemployable if they want to leave their system and go to another. Education isn't like industry where an additional degree or training or certification makes you more valuable to the operations. In education those things make you more expensive, especially if you want to stay in the classroom and not enter the bureaucracy of building administration or the central offices.
It's happened to me as well as others on here. It even has affected me when I was looking last year for a job out of teaching that needed some of the education credentials I have. I was overqualified for the job, which was a high level position in a MD governmental department.
This goes back to a discussion on here awhile ago when folks didn't understand how teachers, who are required by law to do continuing education every year of their careers, are actually making themselves unemployable if they want to leave their system and go to another. Education isn't like industry where an additional degree or training or certification makes you more valuable to the operations. In education those things make you more expensive, especially if you want to stay in the classroom and not enter the bureaucracy of building administration or the central offices.
It's happened to me as well as others on here. It even has affected me when I was looking last year for a job out of teaching that needed some of the education credentials I have. I was overqualified for the job, which was a high level position in a MD governmental department.
If I end up back in industry, which is likely right now due to finaces, there will be a lot missing from my resume. A potential employer doesn't need to know I even have a MAT and they don't need to know about any of my contuning education. I will start working on a new engineering cert next year so I can show recent class work in engineering. I need about 9 credits for a polymer certification. I'm just omitting anything that isn't relevent. Most people think you can teach without a teaching degree anyway.
The pay scale moves up a whopping $420 during the first five years. Not very enticing to me.
It's not much more here. I will get my first raise the 4th year I teach in this district (would have happenedm y 3rd year but they froze steps this year). A whopping $720/year. If I can get them to count my engineering degree as my plus 30 (I'm thinking they're not going to do this), I could get a $5000 raise my 5th year. That would be enough that I could afford to stay in teaching.
Unfortunately, I have no leverage. Chemistry teachers are a dime a dozen in Michigan thanks to the decision to allow holders of the DI cert (general science cert, originally, intended for middle school only) to teach chemistry in order to avoid a shortage of chemistry teachers. Now we have a glut.
It's not much more here. I will get my first raise the 4th year I teach in this district (would have happenedm y 3rd year but they froze steps this year). A whopping $720/year. If I can get them to count my engineering degree as my plus 30 (I'm thinking they're not going to do this), I could get a $5000 raise my 5th year. That would be enough that I could afford to stay in teaching.
Unfortunately, I have no leverage. Chemistry teachers are a dime a dozen in Michigan thanks to the decision to allow holders of the DI cert (general science cert, originally, intended for middle school only) to teach chemistry in order to avoid a shortage of chemistry teachers. Now we have a glut.
Wow. I guess I didn't realize some scales had those flat plateaus at the beginning. Is it like that all the way through where there are years in a row with no increases, or after the early years does it move? The NC scale I linked moves extremely slow. There is a $1700 difference between our step 1 and step 4 in the BA column. There is a $10k difference between steps 1 and 10.
Wow. I guess I didn't realize some scales had those flat plateaus at the beginning. Is it like that all the way through where there are years in a row with no increases, or after the early years does it move? The NC scale I linked moves extremely slow. There is a $1700 difference between our step 1 and step 4 in the BA column. There is a $10k difference between steps 1 and 10.
There's less than $2,500 difference between Step 0 and Step 4 in my district, and a smidge more than $6,000 between Step 0 and Step 10 -- each step adds approximately $620/year.
They always exaggerate the averages in the paper. They'll do something like take the average for teachers with 15 years in service, a PhD and who coach for extram money, but forget to say that's what they did. They want it to sound like it's the overall average.
Here, scale tops at around $80K for 15 years in service and a doctorate degree. With only a masters in education, a masters in my content area, and two years in service, I make $47K. Average for Michigan is around $56K but I'm not sure if that includes extras like coaching after school. It will take me about 5 more years to break $50K since they won't count my masters in chemical engineering towards my plus 30. (They say they hired me for it but won't actually pay me for it)
If I stay in teaching, I will not take credits approved for my pllus 30 because the state only cares I take credits. I'm going to start work on my PhD in chemical engineering and then transfer to teaching college when I get the PhD. At least, at the college level, I can negotiate my salary.
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Honestly, I don't care how many biology classes you give me, you do NOT want to take biology with me teaching it. It would be dry and rote. I just don't understand it like I do chemistry and physics. Those I teach well because I can relate things. 
(They say they hired me for it but won't actually pay me for it)
