teaching on oahu? (employment, public schools, college)

[katiem8]

I got a business degree in May & am considering going back to school to get an education degree now as well. I just wanted to get some opinions, particularly from any teachers here in Hawaii.

I am considering either secondary social studies or science and possibly even elementary education although I'm definitely leaning towards secondary ed. What are my chances of employment after I finish at UH Manoa? I would like to teach here on Oahu but also don't want to put in 2 more years of school to still be a receptionist.

I don't know anything about Hawaii's education system. What types of teachers are really in need here? Any tips of advice that anyone can give me I would greatly appreciate. Please let me know if this is a good idea or if I am just crazy lol

[hotzcatz]

My DH is a teacher and he says some of the best grades to teach are fourth and fifth grade. The kids are old enough to walk, talk and not need excessive clean up after a potty break yet they haven't gone all hormonal as they start doing in sixth grade. Apparently, seventh grade is a tough one because most of the kids are going through huge hormonal shifts.

The education system in Hawaii is a statewide system and most teachers say disparaging things about the administration. That might just come with the territory, though.

I would think you'd be hired right away. The DOE churns through a lot of mainland teachers who come here not knowing anything about the islands and they get chewed up pretty quickly. If you've already lived here for several years you'll have a much higher survival rate. You could also substitute teach for a while to figure out which school you'd like.

Teaching gets great vacations, it's steady work and there is quite a bit of social esteem involved.

I'd think you'd get more kids involved with science than with social studies, but that could very well just be my own personal bias.

Oh, also, since the DOE is a statewide system, if you wanted work on a different island it's pretty easy to shift islands. That's just in case Oahu gets too full for you.

[newUHprof]

The DOE is adamant that UH is not turning out enough teachers. (I go to lots of meeting with this as a general message.) Science and elementary ed (and math, but you didn't mention that as a possibility) are always in high demand.

I haven't heard about a shortage of social science teachers... and my impression is that the social science curriculum here has large parts that are about Hawaiian culture and history of the islands. It sounds like you didn't grow up here, so you actually might not be as able to teach that as the other subjects. Just a thought.

But I think that graduates of UH college of ed are pretty readily employed...

[cloudcroft]

I don't know the situation in HI public schools presently, but if it's like most/all of the other states, the fields of math, science, ESL and Special Ed are THE certifications in demand. And it's been that way for YEARS. Be certified in one of those and you can get hired almost anywhere. Some math/science teachers even get bonuses because it's so hard to fill those slots (and also hard to KEEP such teachers).

I agree the other fields (in the humanities) are not much in demand and it'd be hard to find employment just about anywhere with those much more common certifications.

So, you face the choice most of us have to make in choosing (or changing) career fields: Get trained in something that's going to be in big demand so you'll easily get hired (but you don't like it much) or choose something that isn't really in demand (but you enjoy doing).

Of course, the BEST situation is being in a field you love to do AND get paid well for doing it. For those the find that, it doesn't get any better.

Good luck...

[katiem8]

Thanks for ur advice everyone! I've got an appointment to meet w/ an adviser at UH next week to get the ball rolling on this! I'm so excited about it!

[Kanz]

Just wanted to say thanks for being a teacher. I'm in my mid-20s now and still remember pretty much all my teachers from K-12.