8 Week course

[labgirl]

Just wondering if anyone out there has heard of or knows anything about an 8 week course for people who hold science degrees to become a teacher. I can't decide if I am interested or not, and would love to know more about the course.
Thanks for your help.
labgirl

[tigger]

Hi Labgirl,
I heard of this around election time. Presumably this was an idea bandied about by one of the parties. I have not heard or read anything about it since though.

[fiona]

There is a thing called Teach for Australia. Here is their website address: http://www.teachforaustralia.org/
What it does is takes graduates from degrees and puts them through an intense training program for a couple of months and then places them in the most disadvantaged schools for 2 years.

Check that out and see if that was what you were thinking of.

[vlclabbie]

I read somewhere that most schools (perhaps not poor Dept schools as they won't have much choice) won't want to employ them as the course isn't long enough to really develop good teachers..... just a thought - don't shoot the messenger!

[Ian]

Don't do it LabGirl!!!
Haven't you worked out yet that Labbies still have all the fun and none of the responsibility!
I tried teaching for 12 years, and much prefer being a Labbie. The trick is to pay off your house first.

cheers
Ian

[merilyn]

Ian
We may not agree on the bio/physics argument but I agree with you on this. All the benefits of the school life eg not working school holidays (for the lucky amongst us), no weekend work, etc but none of the stresses of being a teacher, eg taking work home, working back late, coming in on weekends and holidays etc etc. My responsibility ends at the lab door - love it!

(Also Ian, my 10 year old son asked me what physics was and I told him it was all the stuff the other teachers don't want to teach. Don't worry, my husband "put him right" (in his words)).

M.

[Krysia Lee]

Hi Labgirl
I too have been considering making the switch to teaching, its interesting to read all these posts. Definitely giving me second thoughts.
I was thinking of it from purely a money perspective not a lifestyle choice.
Thanks for the food for thought guys.
Krysia

[Ian]

(Also Ian, my 10 year old son asked me what physics was and I told him it was all the stuff the other teachers don't want to teach. Don't worry, my husband "put him right" (in his words)).

M.

I have not met him yet, but I think I like your husband already! What does he "do"?

Ian

[RosalieM]

As the daughter of 2 teachers, I would say seriously consider your options!! I have seen the extra work done 'behind the scenes' at home during term time and on holidays (yes, the essay marking, lesson planning, curriculum changes all came with us to the beach!!). The previous labbie from here is now a teacher here. I work 30 hrs/week (4 days spread over 5) and she is a teacher and opted to go part time (4 days) and her pay was not much different. The workload change was quite significant!! She often says if I leave she might take her job back...

[Ian]

(Also Ian, my 10 year old son asked me what physics was and I told him it was all the stuff the other teachers don't want to teach. Don't worry, my husband "put him right" (in his words)).

M.

Merilyn,
Had you thought to explain to your son that Physics is what all the other Scientists use every day, but generally do not understand?

Ian

[merilyn]

Ian
I work in a "need to know" world, I know what I need to!
To answer your question, my husband looks after the training for Forensic Services (ie crime scene) for NSW. He loves physics, but struggles to get his head around basic biological concepts. He has proved to me that you don't have to be smarter to do physics, just different.

On choosing to move into teaching...
I guess it's different for people looking for a career path than for those of us who have dropped out of the chase (for the time being at least). As great a job as it is, it doesn't offer much in the way of advancement and if you've got goals to move on, then it might be a good choice to go onto teaching. As much as we shake our heads at their work load, the teachers I work with are very passionate about what they do and have a genuine desire to get through to their students. At least working as a lab assistant, you will have a good understanding of what the job is about. Good luck with the decisions!
M.

[J]

My husband often jokes that if I were to move to teaching he could retire and we could live on my salary.
I have been tempted over the years because he works very physically hard, and we are not getting any younger.
But teaching is so far out of my comfort zone, I'm afraid he'll just have to keep working.
I'm staying right where I am!!
J

[fiona]

THe Head of Science here keeps trying to convince me that I should become a science teacher. Her goal is to have me do my DipEd then work under her so she can train me to take over her position and then retire. I keep telling her that the whole reason I became a scientist was to avoid working with children and that before I go back to a classroom I want to do science in the real world. However, as graduate science positions are few and far between and I'm really no longer a graduate I'm starting to reconsider her position, heaven help me . But I'd urge you, Labgirl, to consider doing a DipEd instead of an 8 week course. More experience and you really get a whole year to assess whether its the career for you.

[cecmel]

Many years ago, a teacher's husband explained it this way. When he was a kid, he thought holidays were for the kids. When he started dating a teacher, he decided that holidays were necessary for the teachers' health. Then he married a teacher, and realised that holidays were for the spouses of teachers, because otherwise there would be murder and mayhem in lots of families.

Me? I did think about teaching not long after I started in this job. Then I stuck my head out into the corridor, had a listen to what was going on, and decided that teaching was a really silly idea for me. Mind you, I think most of the kids are OK, it's just that small percentage who seem to be able to disrupt any class they're in, or not in, as they choose. Then there's all that other nonteaching stuff that's expected of teachers and that seems to increase every year.

Good luck with whatever you decide. Passionate, enthusiastic and committed teachers are very valuable and definitely needed. And at least you wouldn't be going into it without prior inside knowledge of what classroom teaching is really like.

[sunray18]

I started doing the course to become a teacher - then I realised that i would have to leave my job to do the internships... and that meant no income....
THEN I observed the process at the end of the year when teacher vacancies came up and the interviews went on. All those really great casual teachers we had who were in the more senior age group {who had retrained from industry carrers} didn't get the jobs - they went to youngsters straight out of uni... they had no experience, no world experience ..but were YOUNG.... so decided better the job I had than the job I didnt have!
oh and the thought of being without an income while waiting for casual work - ie homeless and no food on table... decided me to stay put..