Careers Paper
Taking the Career Path to Elementary Education
According to the American Heritage Dictionary, a career is defined as “a chosen pursuit; lifework” and a job is defined as “an activity performed for payment, esp. one performed regularly as one’s occupation” (Davies, ed, 1976, 111 & 384). These definitions clearly show how a career can be more than just a job. As stated in my autobiography, I would like to teach at the elementary school level with a career focus. One’s lifework, however compensated, should have focus and direction. Individuals should thoroughly study and understand their personal perspective and career choice. “Let us define a career teacher as one who plans to, and actually does, make a life occupation of teaching; one who is philosophically, emotionally, and spiritually committed, who is never satisfied with what he does and how well he’s doing it, and who fully intends to keep on growing for the rest of his life” (Ryan and Cooper, 2000:510). I plan to take the pathway to the responsibilities and challenges of elementary school teaching and believe I will find an ever-evolving, challenging yet rewarding career.
It is important to understand the profession of teaching before entering this field, because the profession of teaching can be complex and involve contradictions. Teachers work with people all day, yet may feel isolated. Teachers are important to the development of our nation, yet are not compensated highly. The elementary school presents itself as a safe and low-change environment, yet schools face issues of violence and an ever-changing society. An elementary school teacher is a unique and challenging position that can be a vocation for some that offers built-in rewards.
The job description of an elementary school teacher is centered on teaching young children from the approximate ages of six to twelve years old. Teachers work on instructing children in curriculum, character education and citizenship. Understanding the curriculum in depth and reaching state standards drive the daily lesson plans. Character development, citizenship and interpersonal relationships also influence lesson planning. Teachers use technology, record keeping and communication to facilitate learning and document student progress. A teacher must be able to observe and assess individual students, the classroom and their own selves as teachers. In addition to these job duties, a teacher has the responsibility to act in loco parentis. This means in the absence of the parent, a teacher becomes responsible for a child’s individual safety.
A wide variety of skills will be used in the teaching profession. Focus, a career and educational planning system, lists skills of importance for an elementary school teacher as “artistic, counseling, training, self-management, visual inspection, and writing” (Focus, 2004: 1). A third grade teacher listed important skills as “patience, the ability to criticize yourself, searching and sharing ways to improve and being calm” (Meiers, 2004:1-2). In addition, teachers need to keep up-to-date with technology. “Teachers may use films, slides, overhead projectors and the latest technology in teaching, including computers, telecommunication systems, and video discs” (USDL, 2004:2). As computers, technology and the internet evolve so must a teacher’s technological ability. A teacher is called upon to use a wide assortment of interpersonal, planning, technical, management and organizational skills.
The physical setting in which an elementary school teacher works varies with each school. An elementary school may be either public or private. A school district can be located in a rural, urban or suburban setting. The classroom may have a low, average or high student teacher ratio. Different settings will have different socio-economic ranges. This wide variety of settings means a teacher should be prepared to work with a diverse student body and be able to adjust their classroom and instruction to accommodate a variety of students’ needs. My degree in sociology will help me to alter my classroom to my environment. As an education administrator said, “I’m in the position I’m in because of my ability to organize and be proactive in my environment. My discipline (sociology) provides me with the framework and skills necessary to do this” (Stephens, 2004: 47). While location will affect the student body and a school’s resources, there are still many similarities with elementary schools and their classrooms. Most classrooms are self-contained and the teacher has direct control over the room. The classroom is a busy place and is filled with the energy and the noise that young children bring. A love of children is necessary to work in this environment. A department chair stated that when interviewing, “we look for energy and enthusiasm” (Warner and Bryan, 1997: 149). Teachers will find their environment will necessitate patience, energy, multi-tasking and dealing with diverse individuals.
A teacher works directly with his/her students. There may be a teacher’s aide, volunteer or special education teacher also working within the classroom. The teacher’s chain of command is as follows: Principal, District Superintendent, School Board, State Education Department. Many teachers find it important to have a supportive principal and co-workers who are willing to share ideas and information.
States have license and certification requirements and there are stringent requirements for teaching in New York State. New York State requires a Bachelors degree and an initial certification for a person to start teaching. Initial certification requires passing the Liberal Arts and Sciences Test, Content Specialty Test, Assessment of teaching Skills-Written Test, Tesol Language Proficiency Assessment exam, completing an New York State Education Department fingerprint packet, taking the Child Abuse/Substance Abuse Workshop and Schools against Violence Workshop, and 100 hours of documented practicum time. Permanent certification follows an initial certification. “An application for a permanent certificate must have: satisfied the requirements for the provisional certificate, two years of teaching experience in a public or nonpublic school, completed a master’s degree, achieved a qualifying score on applicable NYSTCE tests”(NYSED, 2004:1). New York State certification requirements were altered and made more difficult in February of 2004. Teachers becoming certificated after that date will need to be dual certified in both regular education and special education. Colleges and universities have adjusted their courses to allow for dual certification. Dual certification requires teachers to pass the exams listed above for both regular and special education. Master’s degrees must be completed within four years of starting the initial certification.
As I plan to teach in New York State with a dual certification, I have examined salaries and opportunities within New York State. The average salary of a regular education teacher is $58,100. The average salary of a special education teacher is $58,400 (America’s Career InfoNet, 2004:1). A starting salary in the mid to upper $30,000 range can be expected in the Central New York area. “Salaries vary according to the ‘step’ you are on. Some people think that teachers don’t make a lot of money….. I would be surprised if starting salaries now were less than $36,000. That’s pretty good money” (Meiers, 2004:2-3). Many teachers have told me that special education opportunities are increasing and this is confirmed by my research. Either as a regular education or special education teacher, a teacher may expect a decent wage with annual increases. This career offers a high degree of security. Teachers work a traditional schedule of ten months with two months off. The two months off is not necessarily vacation, as often perceived. During the time without students, teachers may choose to broaden their own teaching skills, work on planning for their classroom or find a temporary position.
A career can offer people external and internal incentives. Teachers report more internal rewards to their position than external benefits. Intrinsic rewards, such as the personal satisfaction that comes in serving others and the gratification found in individual student growth and knowledge, can be found in the career of elementary school teaching. “One of the great intrinsic benefits of a career in teaching – and one not shared by the vast number of other occupations – is the certainty that your work with the young is profoundly important” (Ryan and Cooper, 2000: 14). Intrinsic rewards are more important to me personally and I see these internal rewards bringing me a great deal of satisfaction in my future career.
While teaching offers many positive aspects, teaching also has negative aspects. As the old saying goes, nothing worthwhile comes easy. While teachers may feel a great sense of accomplishment, they often feel isolated from others and risk becoming burned out. The first years of teaching can be a demanding time as starting pay is lower while the teacher begins applying and fine-tuning their craft. Although teachers are providing a benefit to society, they may be seen as scapegoats for individual and large scale problems. As Dr. Diane Fini of LeMoyne once stated in her Principles and Methods of Multicultural Literacy Learning class, “teachers can be easy targets. It is just that way” (Fini, 2003). Teachers may also face stress in dealing with state standards, unruly behavior, unmotivated students, lack of amenities and disrespectful students (USDL, 2004:3). Teachers must find a way to deal with the contradictions and challenges that come with their occupation. Research shows that overall, despite the negative aspects; most elementary school teachers report their jobs to be satisfying. “Ultimately, however, your choice of teaching as a career rests not upon statistics, or job security, or salary, but solely upon the satisfaction you derive from the work itself. If you are excited by the possibility of helping children grow and mature into independent, literate adults, you may want to think seriously about entering this challenging – but highly rewarding – profession” (Levin, 1995:2). When I weigh the positive and negative aspects, I still find teaching to be the right choice for me.
The study of sociology can lead to a sociological perspective that can be a benefit to the teaching profession. Teaching is a humanitarian and service occupation. The study of sociology gives a teacher an understanding of our society and how people react and fit into society.
“Sociology is the study of human social behavior. Sociologists
investigate how individuals are shaped by their social groups,
from families to nations, and how groups are created and
maintained by the individuals who compose them.
Sociology’s basic insight is that who a person is, what she
or he thinks and does, is affected by the groups of which
that person is a member. To begin thinking sociologically,
look around and consider how the world may be experienced
differently depending on weather a person is male or female,
rich or poor or, of one race/ethnicity or another” (Sociology Writing
Group, 2001: 4). “A sociological perspective involves seeing
Individuals interacting as members of social groups” (Sociology
Writing Group, 2001:4).
By achieving a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology and an Associate’s Degree in Humanities, I understand sociology and the sociological perspective. Sociology will benefit my teaching career by giving me a unique perspective of individuals. Individual students come into the group situation of a classroom. There are social expectations, both inside and outside of the classroom, that are imposed upon these young people from their individual families, cultures and American society. Educating with a sociological background will help me understand the larger society and the perspective an individual may have due to social order. This understanding will help me to tailor individual instruction, provide an equitable environment, and give all of my students an opportunity to achieve excellence. I cannot imagine instructing today’s students without all that my sociology courses have taught me.
Teaching can be considered a vocation or a position that people are called to. I understand this. It has taken me many years and personal sacrifice to obtain an initial teaching certification and my hard work will only continue as I start teaching and work to obtain permanent certification. It is hard to put into words how I feel naturally suited to teaching and always knew this is what I should be doing. One of my practicum teachers introduced me to a sixth grade classroom as a LeMoyne student who is making a career change. That statement really made me ponder, because that was not how I had viewed my personal situation. Indeed, I am making a career change, but it is much more than that to me. It is what I was meant to do and was not living my life as it should have been by trying to ignore this. I feel drawn to make this a life work, not simply a job for a wage. “Perhaps the most important message we have to share is that if your belief in something is strong enough, if it’s really right for you, or you feel you were meant to do it, then you will find the inner resources to make it happen” (Tieger and Barron-Tieger, 1995:330). As I research and investigate elementary school teaching, I feel affirmed that this will be the right career for me and look forward to continuing my journey down this path.
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