Teacher looking into relocating to Texas (San Antonio, Austin: houses, public schools, salary)

[sz89128]

To be honest we would rather not be in a large city. That is the problem with where we live. I would love a more relaxed lifestyle. It's true that the city teachers get more money, but being assaulted and receiving death threat isn't worth the money - to me at least. As long as it is an area where my daughter can find friends that are warm and inviting. I know retirement is long away but eventually we would look into a ranch with some property.

[cinnamon_toast]

Check out the Hill Country... Kerrville, Fredericksburg, Comfort, Llano, Burnet, Marble Falls. All small towns with a slower pace of life, ruggedly beautiful, really safe. We have been pleasantly surprised with the schools here. Our Hispanic population is exploding, I would think that Spanish would be a huge plus. I'm not sure if our district is hiring but I know they are NOT laying off any teachers for the coming year. DM me if you want more info.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by cinnamon_toast

Check out the Hill Country... Kerrville, Fredericksburg, Comfort, Llano, Burnet, Marble Falls. All small towns with a slower pace of life, ruggedly beautiful, really safe. We have been pleasantly surprised with the schools here. Our Hispanic population is exploding, I would think that Spanish would be a huge plus. I'm not sure if our district is hiring but I know they are NOT laying off any teachers for the coming year. DM me if you want more info.

Do Hispanic kids take Spanish in school? I would think not since they already know the language. Seems silly for them to learn the whole "Hola. Como esta? Bien, gracias, y tu? Bien. Como se llama? Me llama Bonita....." spiel if they are already fluent. Spanish as a foreign language is targeted to us gringos, so I'm not sure you'd see any different demand for Spanish teachers in heavily Hispanic areas.

[cinnamon_toast]

That is not what I meant... My line of thought was that Spanish language skills would be an asset for a teacher looking for a job in a heavily Hispanic school no matter what grade or subject they are teaching. Their resume would probably be more attractive to potential employers because they could relate and communicate better with Spanish speakers (kids AND parents).

But to answer your question -- yes, Spanish-speaking students can and do take Spanish in middle school and high school. They are just on an accelerated track. Many can speak it fluently or somewhat fluently, but don't have the grammar and spelling down yet. Some haven't been exposed much to Spanish in print, either, so need work on reading skills as well.

[sz89128]

Yes, Hispanic children take Spanish. In Las Vegas I taught a course called Spanish for Spanish Speakers. They already know how to speak the language but the majority never had formal writing skills. They could not spell and needed help with grammar. We worked on formal Spanish and how to use it in the business world without relying on slang.

Even though a lot of folks say I don't have a chance at a job I am applying for my Texas teaching license. I don't want to look back and say I didn't even try.

[VonHuffenHausen]

There are not any jobs here. Look at the article today. There are thousands upon thousands of teachers and recent grads waiting tables and they have been waiting to land that job for 3 years. Now it is even more dismal with the Education Budget crisis.

Education funding crisis chills job market for new Texas teachers | Dallas-Fort Worth Education News - News for Dallas, Texas - The Dallas Morning News

But you are right, it never hurts to try. There are already a large number of Spanish teachers and Spanish speakers here, tons of native speakers who are your competition. In Texas, knowing Spanish is not as marketable as some states because plenty of people do it.

If you simply heard that there were jobs in Texas and you want to move here for that, forget it. But if you really just want to move to Texas, keep applying and maybe you will get a response within a few years. Then again when locals with connections cannot even get jobs......

You might be able to get something in the border towns. It is really tough and your family would have a difficult time, but they have high turnover.

Good luck, education has taken a beating.

[L210]

The majority of students in my Spanish classes were Hispanic. The ones who already knew Spanish usually had the lowest grades because the dialects they learned were different from the formal Spanish taught in the classroom.

[mimimomx3]

Originally Posted by sz89128

I am certified to teach Spanish K-12, not ESL or bilingual. I am looking into getting either of those endorsements but that would take 6 months minimum for either. Right now I'm sticking with my Spanish endorsement.

I am also looking at AZ and NM but AZ seems to have the toughest license to obtain.

Right now FL is the only state that seems to be actively recruiting teachers.

My wife, daughter and myself were really hoping for Texas.

Are you a native Spanish speaker? You would be competing with a big pool of native speakers here in Texas.

[Nomadic9460678748]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

Do Hispanic kids take Spanish in school? I would think not since they already know the language. Seems silly for them to learn the whole "Hola. Como esta? Bien, gracias, y tu? Bien. Como se llama? Me llama Bonita....." spiel if they are already fluent. Spanish as a foreign language is targeted to us gringos, so I'm not sure you'd see any different demand for Spanish teachers in heavily Hispanic areas.

English speakers take English and many of them remain very poor speakers of the language.

[loves2read]

most districts require that their teachers be certified to teach speakers of other languages--no matter what their subject field--
there are Anglo Spanish teachers and some that have Hispanic surnames--
but I know several Hispanics whose parents did not speak Spanish in the house and they never learned

Teachers whether they have spanish language skills or not are going to have almost an impossible time getting a teaching job in TX for next year