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Have you done your student teaching yet? Usually you get to teach two classes for half the year by yourself (with a supervising teacher in the room). You need a reality check. But you're young and still dreaming. Advise one thing, if you have the cash flow, get your Masters before starting to work. Choose something that is related, but can be used as a fall back if teaching doesnt work out.
BTW - I started out as a Mathematics teacher. Had AP, LD and mainstream students all in the same year. The students were the easy part. The system was the hard part. And most of the parents were....just nuts. But if you must go, try for elementary. HS is nearly impossible due to the fact you have to try to undo the damage of the previous years. TMI and too many stories to tell you. Currently I'm an adult trainer in IT security and an IT security analyst.
Teaching is enjoyable. Maybe you should try for California, I hear they are a little more open to change.
Have you done your student teaching yet? Usually you get to teach two classes for half the year by yourself (with a supervising teacher in the room). You need a reality check. But you're young and still dreaming. Advise one thing, if you have the cash flow, get your Masters before starting to work. Choose something that is related, but can be used as a fall back if teaching doesnt work out.
BTW - I started out as a Mathematics teacher. Had AP, LD and mainstream students all in the same year. The students were the easy part. The system was the hard part. And most of the parents were....just nuts. But if you must go, try for elementary. HS is nearly impossible due to the fact you have to try to undo the damage of the previous years. TMI and too many stories to tell you. Currently I'm an adult trainer in IT security and an IT security analyst.
Teaching is enjoyable. Maybe you should try for California, I hear they are a little more open to change.
Caveat: Due to budget crises, many districts may want to hire people who cost less--i. e. a bachelors degree holder. Try to complete ALMOST all the requirements for your masters, but you may want to hold off until you already have a contract or else you may find yourself priced out of a job. Once you have a position and have proven yourself a valuable staff member, then finish your degree and get your AA certificate.
Also, apply in districts where there are a lot of teachers nearing retirement. They are expensive and principals are more likely to hire people who are lower on the salary schedule if their personnel budget is already overloaded with experienced teachers who have advanced degrees.
Here's how you properly learn: you honestly work hard at it. And a lot of American kids just don't.
Hard work means that you invest the time - tons of hours, if necessary - to make sure that you know that you grasp the concepts. It means you don't take the easy way out, such as just skimming through the book once, underlining two or three things, and saying to yourself "well, I did what was expected of me; therefore, it must be enough". It means you make sure you are solid on the concepts, not just the five questions at the end of the section. It means that you take detailed notes in class, then reread material, then re-write your notes from memory as best as you can - and then rewrite the key things again later when you're preparing for the exam in addition to working more problems. It means that you think critically to identify exactly where the breakdown occurs on concepts that you don't understand, and then you attack those points again and again using other resources and seeking others' help. It means you hold high standards for yourself and that you seriously test yourself to make sure that you know the key things cold, know how to interpret related data, and know how to apply the right concepts in the right places.
If you're studying in any advanced field that involves complexity, this is the way to do it. You have to be disciplined to put the time in; teachers only present you with the framework and answer questions, but the real learning is only going to be done by you.
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