Online Secondary Education Degrees
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Individuals who are interested in pursuing a degree in secondary education must enjoy working with children, have great communication skills, and be highly organized. This is a very hands-on, rewarding field, as teachers get to watch their students learn new concepts and become fascinated by them. Individuals interested in working in specialized areas and with the best educational background currently have the best employment outlook.
With secondary education, teachers educate their students by providing them with a very specific curriculum. They play a very important role in their students' lives because they assist them with both intellectual and social development. Most of the students have already learned the basic concepts in each subject, so it is the job of the secondary education teacher to delve deeper into each subject to teach students more advanced concepts.
Secondary education teachers are in charge of putting together their lesson plans each week, grade papers, meet with their students' parents, and prepare report cards during each semester or quarter. The environment of a teacher is mostly in their classroom. Teachers work full time, or an average of 40 hours per week. In addition, they share the same seasonal breaks as the students and have most summers off.
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Career Specializations
In the secondary education industry, teachers can specialize in teaching particular subjects to their students. In order to obtain this specialization, teachers must complete extra courses in this area during their master's degree program. They also must have extensive knowledge of the subject, both through textbooks or lecture and through hands-on experience. Some examples of these subjects include science, math, social studies, biology, and pre-algebra.
Differentiated instruction is a rising field. This is all about understanding that your classroom is a diverse audience, with students of varying backgrounds, and tailoring your instructing to reach all of them.
Degree Levels Available for Secondary Education
- Bachelor's in Teaching or a Related Field: 4 years
- Master's in Secondary Education or a Related Field: 2-3 years
Education & Certification Requirements
In order for individuals to get a job in the secondary education teaching field, they must first receive their bachelor's degree in teaching or a related field. This will take approximately four years to achieve. Then, for most job opportunities, they must move forward and receive their master's degree in secondary education or a related field. This will take approximately two to three additional years to complete.
During these two programs, teachers must also complete an internship or externship, plus a semester or quarter of being a teacher's assistant. These hands-on experiences will provide students with the most applicable training that they need in order to do their future job to the best of their ability.
All individuals who are interested in teaching in public schools must be certified by their state. In order to do this, they must pass the board exam that is provided by the Board of Education for the state in which they live or plan to teach. Most private schools do not require teachers to have this type of certification. It is also very important that teachers in public schools keep this certification up to date through continuing professional education.
Salary Information
As with every other industry, it is very important that individuals seeking work in secondary education have a great educational background, experience, and location, and work for a great school district in order to obtain the highest level of yearly income. With that being said, the average yearly salary range for a secondary education teacher is from $35,000-$83,000. (BLS)
Job Outlook
According to the United States Department of Labor, the secondary education industry is moving at an average pace right now. It is expected to grow an additional 13 percent throughout the decade of 2008-2018, which is the average for most industries right now. The fields in highest demand within the secondary education industry are math, science, and language arts.
The reason for the increase in growth for this industry is due to the current high enrollment rate of students. This does vary by state, though, since the baby boom generation currently has children that are leaving the school systems and moving on to college. There has also been an increase in the funding for education that has been provided by the government. (BLS)
Related Careers
Vocational Teachers: These are teachers who specialize in teaching their students life skills or future career training. They do a lot of career guidance training with their students, and much of their curriculum includes internships that will prepare their students for their future career. They also work to strengthen what their students have been taught within their regular core curriculum classes.
Education Administrators: These individuals have the job of overseeing and managing an entire school district. They must develop budgets, oversee all staff, train new staff, and maintain records. They also must plan for all activities that happen within their school district.
Child Care Workers: These individuals work with very young children who are not yet of school age, while their parents are at work. They sometimes manage child care businesses in their homes, while others work for different child care businesses within their community. They perform very basic teaching duties with the young children.
Teachers Assistants: These individuals assist teachers in their classrooms. They also provide one-on-one support for children in the classroom who are having a difficult time with the course materials. They will sometimes take over the class if the head teacher needs time to provide lesson plans.
Counselors: These individuals work in different settings such as schools, offices, hospitals, and rehabilitation clinics to assist patients in overcoming certain problems. Counselors may specialize in certain areas such as drug and alcohol abuse, disease, adolescents, and marriage and family. They observe and listen to the problems that their patient is dealing with and the put together a plan to help them overcome those issues.
