Tomorrow I am going for my sixth interview (7th if you count one follow-up interview I had). I am highly qualified (HQ) in both Composite Science 8-12 and Health Science Technology 8-12, and I have interviewed for both positions multiple times.

I still haven't received any offers at this point in time. I went ahead and applied with Judson ISD a couple weeks back, and I haven't heard back from them yet (this kind of surprises me).

It seems that most schools I have applied to--and failed to get an interview with--are filling their positions very quickly right now. Usually the positions are being filled so quickly, they haven't even taken them off their website before sending the "position has been filled" email.

[This message has been edited by aggie_2001_2005 (edited 6/15/2010 11:57p).]

Just had my interview... Afterwards, I asked them some direct questions about the teaching job market as it applies to their district. I was told that they don't expect to hire more than 4 or so first-year-teachers this summer, and that most, if not all will be college graduates from university programs. (this school is a large 5A school)

So basically, alternative certs are having an exceptionally hard time breaking through this year. Not anything we didn't already know, just thought I'd pass it along.

it's bad even in the valley, one of the least desirable locations in the state...

You can go to New Orleans and show up with proof of a diploma and teach.

The latest:

Couldn't even land a part-time Health Science Technology position. Hope for this year is starting to look bleak, with July knocking on the door already.

One of the things I've been interested in is teaching high school chemistry (even Advanced Placement). I have a Ph.D. in chemical engineering so I am MORE THAN qualified. However, if I'm understanding things correctly, I would still have to go through some sort of alternative certification program? I know I would have to pass a teaching exam and I'm okay with this. But, the notion that I'm currently qualified to teach the teachers chemistry but not teach high school because I haven't gone through an ACP is ridiculous to me. Am I missing something? I know in other states that you can go into teaching as long as you pass the certification exam without having to pay all that money and spend all that time in an additional program.

As far as I know, there is no way to bypass an alternative certification program (ACP). We had at least 2 or 3 people with PhD's in our ACP class last fall...and that's only the ones I knew about, there may have been more.

knowing the material is the simplest part of teaching. it's the actual teaching of material to students that is the difficult part. managing your classroom will either make or break you. that's where an ACP or student teaching comes into play.

Another option is to take a job at a charter school. The pay was terrible but it gave me a year of experience that helped me get a job in a public school. Whatever region you are wanting to be in should have a listing of the charter schools on their website.

I'm looking to do this, and I want to become certified as an EC-4 bilingual/ESL educator. From what I hear, bilingual positions are competitive, but they are still very highly sought. Am I hearing right?

Also, what program do you recommend where you can work full-time and take the certification courses? Right now I'm seriously considering www.texasacp.com

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But, the notion that I'm currently qualified to teach the teachers chemistry but not teach high school because I haven't gone through an ACP is ridiculous to me. Am I missing something?

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Absolutely!

Knowing the material and being able to sustain classroom management while teaching the material is a whole different world. Besides the management issues, there are too many intangibles to even begin to list that come into play once the classroom doors close and you start to teach.

There is so much politics, red tape, and rules/procedures that any Joe Schmoe cannot just come in off the street with a fancy degree and have access to the education of young minds. You'll need to jump through the same hoops (as annoying and mind numbing as some of them are) as the rest of us.

another thing to shummy is are you able to dumb it down enough so that the kids understand it. it is easy to you but will be very complicated to them.

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I'm looking to do this, and I want to become certified as an EC-4 bilingual/ESL educator. From what I hear, bilingual positions are competitive, but they are still very highly sought. Am I hearing right?

Also, what program do you recommend where you can work full-time and take the certification courses? Right now I'm seriously considering www.texasacp.com

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bilingual isn't as competitive as most because the qualified applicant pool is somewhat small. they are very highly sought even along the border.

the certification process basically boils down to joining an online program or going to a physical location. there have been a few mentioned on here in past threads. i went the iteachtexas route. it was fairly easy. everything was online except for the certification tests. most of it was work at your own pace.

Being a teacher has always been something I wanted to do. I was looking at one of the ACP programs and it has a class from Mid July to early August - 9am-4pm daily.

Is it too late to get hired on for the fall? If I wanted to go forward with my ACP what would you Ags suggest and realistically when could I find employment? (knowing the hiring factors now like freezes, etc...)

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/education/Alternative_certification_doesnt_guarantee_teaching_job_97782494.html

My fiancee is looking at getting her accelerated teaching cert for texas, however we live in Shreveport, LA. Is it still possilbe to do a Texas program?

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Being a teacher has always been something I wanted to do. I was looking at one of the ACP programs and it has a class from Mid July to early August - 9am-4pm daily.

Is it too late to get hired on for the fall? If I wanted to go forward with my ACP what would you Ags suggest and realistically when could I find employment? (knowing the hiring factors now like freezes, etc...)

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finding a job won't be impossible, but you will be more or less limited to schools in desperate need of a teacher. these are usually small towns and schools in trouble with the state although there are exceptions. contact the program and ask about the 30 hours of observation that are required.

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My fiancee is looking at getting her accelerated teaching cert for texas, however we live in Shreveport, LA. Is it still possilbe to do a Texas program?

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it shouldn't be a problem although you may want to e-mail a program to check on the required 30 hours of observation. i doubt that it can be done in LA.

ATMhockey, we may be looking at the same ACP program. I'm enrolling tomorrow for a session that begins July 27 - Aug 2. As I understand it, once you are enrolled in a certification program and have passed the TexES exam, you can start applying for jobs in the surrounding districts.

I was dismayed to find that the next exam that the TExES test I'd want to take (#192 EC-6 Bilingual Generalist) isn't until October 2. I am so hoping to get hired on soon after that, but pickings may be slim.

If anyone is looking for a High School teaching job within driving distance from BCS (Science, Math, English, SS) let me know.

My wife is looking for a teaching position. She is EC-4 HQ and has her ESL and Special Education Suppliment Certificates. Two questions, she just got offered a Pre K teacher position at a head start program in fort worth. Will this count towards teaching experience in the eyes of a major ISD, so she might get a k-4 job next year? Also, does anyone know any connections in the DFW area they would like to pass along that might be looking to hire a HQ wonderful first year teacher?

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My wife is looking for a teaching position.

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she just got offered a Pre K teacher position at a head start program in fort worth.

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Sounds like she is no longer looking.

I'm certified EC-8 Generalist with the ESL Supplemental. I have applied at school districts all over DFW and emailed all the principals and am not having any luck. Does anyone know of any schools that are hiring or have any connections?

try looking for jobs here
https://www.teacherjobnet.org/

Thanks, I've applied for all the jobs I'm certified for on that site.

have you've tried www.schoolspring.com and www.tasanet.org?

Why is it so hard for First year teachers to get a foot in the door? My wife is more than qualified and she has had two interviews this whole summer?

it's easy to get a foot in the door in a district where not many people want to live and work. or a town where there isn't a nearby college. in a metropolitan area? not so much. getting a first year job has become pretty difficult because the applicant pool has swelled, not as many teachers want to retire in iffy economic times, and many districts are having to cut back on hiring. it's just generally difficult. you might have to throw out a hundred resumes and hope for 5-10 interviews. i recommend dressing up nicely and hand delivering resumes to principals or principals' secretaries. you want your application to stand out when there are a 100 other applicants.

And don't forget that everyone wants to teach when they've either been out of work for a while. Nothing against that but a lot of people have decided to teach in this economy. Subsitute and let the principal know you are looking for a permanent job.

I finally lucked out and got a job with a charter school last week.

I am hearing really bad things for all the rest of the people still searching for teaching jobs. Of the 300 or so people who completed my alternative certification program last fall, less than half were able to find a job to this point.

And in San Antonio alone, I believe they've had at least 2 (maybe even 3) more classes of around 300 churned out during that time. There are just way too many people flooding the teaching market.

TEA just put out a job search

http://www.tea.state.tx.us/districtSearch.aspx