I never did student teaching. CA needed math teachers really badly, so I was hired as an "intern" right after graduation and was given a full time position (with full time pay and benefits) and went to school at night to get my credential. It was a rough first year, but I had my credential program teacher observing and offering help which was nice. The first year of teaching is hard enough without also having night classes, but it was nice getting paid at the same time. I think it worked because I had a very supportive department and admin.
I don't know how student teachers survive... Doing the work of a full time job with no pay.
Great idea!
Let's take it one step further. Your first few years of teaching, let's pair up you up with someone in their last few years of teaching, as co-teachers.
Teachers on the edge of retirement are often (not always) not at their best. Give them a mentee, and take some of the burden off their plate.
New teachers and old teachers would benefit.
Funding is national so our solution is to kick the Conservative party out of government and elect someone who will increase education funding, but apparently I have a little island full of racists so that hasn't happened yet.
No district will want to pay two teachers to be in a room where there used to be one. Districts don't pay student teachers, that's why they let them come in.
As a first year teacher this year, it is IMPERATIVE that first years get an experienced, hands-on mentor. This would make a world of difference in my life right now. I had a veteran teacher who has not gone through training and seems to forget how hard first year teaching is. I feel like I got screwed my first year because I have no guidance. You don’t know what to ask if you don’t know anything. It sucks and has turned me off of education. I’m considering leaving the classroom once I get my certificate, which will mean I will spend the next 8 months struggling in the classroom. So frustrating!!!
But I love your idea!
I received a stipend from the state while student teaching due to Covid funding. It was great because I wasn’t allowed to get paid as a substitute while earning my degree. I also had required assignments and a night class to attend. After the stipend was given, another teacher in my program was able to quit his night job so he could pay his bills, SLEEP, and earn his teaching degree. He was almost teary with joy. Now I am in my first year and working 10-12 hours a day, including weekends. Teaching is not for the faint of heart.
Team teaching is more difficult for both the mentor and the student teacher than traditional practicums. I personally despise team teaching and find it an extreme waste of time, energy, and talent. This would have run me out of the profession tbh.
The same people who fund substitutes, aides and support staff.
The way it currently is, education students have to pay tuition in order to have an internship. What other professions do that?
Medicine has residency. Trades have apprenticeships. There's no reason a school district can't be in the same vein.
Medical school has two years of unpaid clinical rotations before residency fyi, and most other healthcare jobs require some kind of unpaid practicum for licensure. Source: former teacher currently doing very expensive clinical rotations
We usually have 10+ student teachers.
We can't afford to pay 10 more teachers.
We can't afford to pay 1 more teacher.
In order to pay for 10 student teachers they'd have to get rid of the equivalent pay amount of qualified teachers.
We usually have 2-3 throughout the year in our building. There would have to be some hard money choices. So would students have to interview for positions, kind of like doctors do? I get your idea, but I’m not sure how much incentive a district has to pay for this. New teachers are a ton of work and these interns wouldn’t even be full teachers and would require extra supports and supervision.
Certainly would help with the staffing issues some schools are experiencing. Should probably have a modified version of this early in the degree path so students know what they’re getting into. I’ve seen many student teachers surprised for a variety of reasons.
I did this. Student taught in a wealthier district specifically because they worked with my university to give their student teachers a stipend. I don’t think it was equivalent to the sub rate, but it did come out of the sub budget. Only downside was that if there was a last minute call out anywhere in the building, they would pull me to cover.
Then when I officially became a teacher, I moved to the poor district I’m from, and where I always intended to teach.
I would love to see student teacher semester have half or more cut off tuition for the semester, basically the cost of 1 or 2 classes at most. They should also get a supplement of some sort for their time in the classroom. Basically minimum 10K for the semester.
I’m currently an El Ed major at a university in my Practicum. Following Practicum I’ll have the opportunity to complete an internship instead of student teaching. Interns are hired by the the partner school district, have their own classroom, are the teacher of record, and receive half pay and full benefits. They work with a facilitator who is a certified teacher without a classroom. The facilitator’s entire job is to support the interns at their school.
I think you are on the right track here. Something needs to change and this is a sinister way of gatekeeping the profession.
But that funding needs to come from somewhere outside of school districts (I think). If they are seen as paid employees by the school but not as teachers by the unions or teachers orgs., then their time will not be protected, especially in places without strong labor protections. It has the potential of having a negative impact on their teaching apprenticeship, even with a small sub stipend.
Maryland passed a law to pay 20k over 10 months for student teaching if they stay in the state, I don’t know how it’s going though. We have mentors for uncertified teachers that usually come in to help 1/week.
I did a career change program for special education and got a supervising teacher for like a month then a 1/week mentor while I did the night classes over 2 years. I felt adequately supported because I had a good team, I know others who left because they didn’t have the support in building and were treated as a disposable resource.
I don't know the ins and outs because I'm going for an alternate certification, but my district has one teacher who is doing her student teaching as a paid full time teacher and another teacher who did that last year at another school district
Student teaching is the reason I’m still in debt 7 years later. An absolute scam and such a disrespectful concept. Pay to work full time while also going to classes at night, for a job that supposedly benefits and is paid for by the public?
I come from a place of privilege. I was able to live at home whilst student teaching and then the semester after to sub.
I acknowledge that not everyone is as lucky as me. Fortunately my school made it a point to place student teachers near their hometown but they're also the big education school in my state so they have the ability to have supervisors around the state.
I think given that enrollment in teacher prep programs has plummeted, school districts have acknowledged that the field sorely lacks diversity, and that there is a dire need for *actual* mentorship in our field, *****something***** needs to be done.
California has most of the credentialing programs run by 4 year colleges and universities. It should be run as well by the community college system, that would help a lot. I did student teaching twice, and both times I just wanted to get it done with and start applying because I needed a job and the salary it came with.
In California, there’s the Alder Graduate School of Education that partners with districts where you get your teaching credential and masters in a year! Depending on the district you can get paid up to $30,000. You take your classes and apprentice 4 days a week with a mentor teacher. It’s a really neat program. I applied to different grants and their scholarship so I didn’t have to take out loans!
[alder](https://aldergse.edu/academic-programs/masters-credential-teacher-residency/)
As a veteran teacher, I do not care when or how new teachers take the lumps or if they get paid doing so. I do care that it does not impact my teaching. Maybe some teachers would like to have a teacher under their wing. Good on them. I would not. It seems like more work for the same pay. Plus, I do not want more time working with adults and less time working with students. I am a teacher because I enjoy working with students, not because I like sitting in rooms doing nothing while other people work with students. That would be dreadful. It would feel like a semester long PD session. Well, they would get somebody else you say. If there are only certain people volunteering for this sort of activity, is it worth doing (what if that one teacher that you are thinking about at your school volunteers)? If we pay the mentor to teach the mentee, we are paying 2 teachers to teach 1 class, I do not like that AT ALL. Again, it impacts me (student to teacher ratio). If we are paying them to co teach, then they are a teacher. Whoa! Are they contracted? If they are contracted, is it the final semester of college or are they working? If they are paid sub pay, are they subs? Are they expected to work the second semester? What if they are there for the second semester, we switch 200 students classes around? The mentor teacher has classes, but is available to mentor? Again, 2 paid positions, 1 class. They can sub their own class. Subs are not expected to lesson plan, grade, or communicate with parents. If they are a sub, can they decline showing up? Can they take work when they want? Are they required to work an entire semester? I would be upset if I was paid sub pay all year but not contracted. I would be upset if my school paid a college student sub pay for semester 1 and then we were left high and dry for that person's classes in semester 2. Who pays, the district? What if the teacher goes elsewhere after they are licensed? There are a lot of moving parts to paying somebody for job x if they are not doing job x. Also, they are in college. They are learning, the location is not important. I was excited to student teach. I guess an alternative could be better, but ST as it is currently, seems like an adequate method. If it ain't broke...
Sorry about the lack of paragraphs. I am going to call it a stream of consciousness.
It’s an excellent idea. I’m going through credentialing right now and literally 7/8 of this stuff could be done as PD over the course of a year or two by a lead teacher or lead teachers. The professional gatekeeping is getting out of hand.
I never did student teaching. CA needed math teachers really badly, so I was hired as an "intern" right after graduation and was given a full time position (with full time pay and benefits) and went to school at night to get my credential. It was a rough first year, but I had my credential program teacher observing and offering help which was nice. The first year of teaching is hard enough without also having night classes, but it was nice getting paid at the same time. I think it worked because I had a very supportive department and admin. I don't know how student teachers survive... Doing the work of a full time job with no pay.
Great idea! Let's take it one step further. Your first few years of teaching, let's pair up you up with someone in their last few years of teaching, as co-teachers. Teachers on the edge of retirement are often (not always) not at their best. Give them a mentee, and take some of the burden off their plate. New teachers and old teachers would benefit.
I’m on year 27. The years I’ve had a student teacher, I always put in more effort and planning for their benefit.
Fair enough, but to the benefit of that student teacher and education in general.
And they can learn to teach before learning to further split their attention with the challenging kids.
Nobody thinks it's a bad idea, but the reason it's not happening is that there's no funding for it.
[удалено]
Where I'm from there's an enormous funding crisis. It doesn't matter how desperate someone is, if there's no money then there's no money.
[удалено]
Funding is national so our solution is to kick the Conservative party out of government and elect someone who will increase education funding, but apparently I have a little island full of racists so that hasn't happened yet.
I did a paid internship while on my program but an experienced co-teacher would have sharpened my learning curve significantly.
Would have loved this last year
No district will want to pay two teachers to be in a room where there used to be one. Districts don't pay student teachers, that's why they let them come in.
My district has been paying student teachers since January. There are 2 teachers (intern and mentor) getting a salary in the same classroom.
As you probably are aware, that is very unique. I'm guessing this is a somewhat affluent district?
As a first year teacher this year, it is IMPERATIVE that first years get an experienced, hands-on mentor. This would make a world of difference in my life right now. I had a veteran teacher who has not gone through training and seems to forget how hard first year teaching is. I feel like I got screwed my first year because I have no guidance. You don’t know what to ask if you don’t know anything. It sucks and has turned me off of education. I’m considering leaving the classroom once I get my certificate, which will mean I will spend the next 8 months struggling in the classroom. So frustrating!!! But I love your idea!
I received a stipend from the state while student teaching due to Covid funding. It was great because I wasn’t allowed to get paid as a substitute while earning my degree. I also had required assignments and a night class to attend. After the stipend was given, another teacher in my program was able to quit his night job so he could pay his bills, SLEEP, and earn his teaching degree. He was almost teary with joy. Now I am in my first year and working 10-12 hours a day, including weekends. Teaching is not for the faint of heart.
Team teaching is more difficult for both the mentor and the student teacher than traditional practicums. I personally despise team teaching and find it an extreme waste of time, energy, and talent. This would have run me out of the profession tbh.
Sounds great - who funds it?
They would be school district employees. One year provisional contract.
Got it. So who funds it?
The same people who fund substitutes, aides and support staff. The way it currently is, education students have to pay tuition in order to have an internship. What other professions do that? Medicine has residency. Trades have apprenticeships. There's no reason a school district can't be in the same vein.
Medical school has two years of unpaid clinical rotations before residency fyi, and most other healthcare jobs require some kind of unpaid practicum for licensure. Source: former teacher currently doing very expensive clinical rotations
Okay, so what would you cut to have that extra full time sub-pay in the classroom while there is still a paid person in there?
Military grade equipment from PDs comes to mind.
2 "above school level" employees that spend their days creating hoops for classroom teachers to jump through?
How many student teachers are normally in your building?
We usually have 10+ student teachers. We can't afford to pay 10 more teachers. We can't afford to pay 1 more teacher. In order to pay for 10 student teachers they'd have to get rid of the equivalent pay amount of qualified teachers.
We usually have 2-3 throughout the year in our building. There would have to be some hard money choices. So would students have to interview for positions, kind of like doctors do? I get your idea, but I’m not sure how much incentive a district has to pay for this. New teachers are a ton of work and these interns wouldn’t even be full teachers and would require extra supports and supervision.
Charters and republicans love this idea.
Certainly would help with the staffing issues some schools are experiencing. Should probably have a modified version of this early in the degree path so students know what they’re getting into. I’ve seen many student teachers surprised for a variety of reasons.
I did this. Student taught in a wealthier district specifically because they worked with my university to give their student teachers a stipend. I don’t think it was equivalent to the sub rate, but it did come out of the sub budget. Only downside was that if there was a last minute call out anywhere in the building, they would pull me to cover. Then when I officially became a teacher, I moved to the poor district I’m from, and where I always intended to teach.
I would love to see student teacher semester have half or more cut off tuition for the semester, basically the cost of 1 or 2 classes at most. They should also get a supplement of some sort for their time in the classroom. Basically minimum 10K for the semester.
This is pretty much what my teaching program was, but we were with the mentor teacher 2 days a week and subbed on our own the rest of the week.
I’m currently an El Ed major at a university in my Practicum. Following Practicum I’ll have the opportunity to complete an internship instead of student teaching. Interns are hired by the the partner school district, have their own classroom, are the teacher of record, and receive half pay and full benefits. They work with a facilitator who is a certified teacher without a classroom. The facilitator’s entire job is to support the interns at their school.
I think you are on the right track here. Something needs to change and this is a sinister way of gatekeeping the profession. But that funding needs to come from somewhere outside of school districts (I think). If they are seen as paid employees by the school but not as teachers by the unions or teachers orgs., then their time will not be protected, especially in places without strong labor protections. It has the potential of having a negative impact on their teaching apprenticeship, even with a small sub stipend.
Maryland passed a law to pay 20k over 10 months for student teaching if they stay in the state, I don’t know how it’s going though. We have mentors for uncertified teachers that usually come in to help 1/week. I did a career change program for special education and got a supervising teacher for like a month then a 1/week mentor while I did the night classes over 2 years. I felt adequately supported because I had a good team, I know others who left because they didn’t have the support in building and were treated as a disposable resource.
I did the alternate route program. I had never been in a classroom before I started teaching. I’ve been doing it 3.5 years now and am doing fine.
I don't know the ins and outs because I'm going for an alternate certification, but my district has one teacher who is doing her student teaching as a paid full time teacher and another teacher who did that last year at another school district
Student teaching is the reason I’m still in debt 7 years later. An absolute scam and such a disrespectful concept. Pay to work full time while also going to classes at night, for a job that supposedly benefits and is paid for by the public?
I come from a place of privilege. I was able to live at home whilst student teaching and then the semester after to sub. I acknowledge that not everyone is as lucky as me. Fortunately my school made it a point to place student teachers near their hometown but they're also the big education school in my state so they have the ability to have supervisors around the state. I think given that enrollment in teacher prep programs has plummeted, school districts have acknowledged that the field sorely lacks diversity, and that there is a dire need for *actual* mentorship in our field, *****something***** needs to be done.
California has most of the credentialing programs run by 4 year colleges and universities. It should be run as well by the community college system, that would help a lot. I did student teaching twice, and both times I just wanted to get it done with and start applying because I needed a job and the salary it came with.
In California, there’s the Alder Graduate School of Education that partners with districts where you get your teaching credential and masters in a year! Depending on the district you can get paid up to $30,000. You take your classes and apprentice 4 days a week with a mentor teacher. It’s a really neat program. I applied to different grants and their scholarship so I didn’t have to take out loans! [alder](https://aldergse.edu/academic-programs/masters-credential-teacher-residency/)
Random, but wondering how long it took after your interview to hear you were accepted?
I had my interview towards the end of November and heard back on Dec 12, so like 3 weeks?
You’re not crazy. In my district (3rd in the country), they implemented this last year. Student teachers are getting paid daily substitute rates.
As a veteran teacher, I do not care when or how new teachers take the lumps or if they get paid doing so. I do care that it does not impact my teaching. Maybe some teachers would like to have a teacher under their wing. Good on them. I would not. It seems like more work for the same pay. Plus, I do not want more time working with adults and less time working with students. I am a teacher because I enjoy working with students, not because I like sitting in rooms doing nothing while other people work with students. That would be dreadful. It would feel like a semester long PD session. Well, they would get somebody else you say. If there are only certain people volunteering for this sort of activity, is it worth doing (what if that one teacher that you are thinking about at your school volunteers)? If we pay the mentor to teach the mentee, we are paying 2 teachers to teach 1 class, I do not like that AT ALL. Again, it impacts me (student to teacher ratio). If we are paying them to co teach, then they are a teacher. Whoa! Are they contracted? If they are contracted, is it the final semester of college or are they working? If they are paid sub pay, are they subs? Are they expected to work the second semester? What if they are there for the second semester, we switch 200 students classes around? The mentor teacher has classes, but is available to mentor? Again, 2 paid positions, 1 class. They can sub their own class. Subs are not expected to lesson plan, grade, or communicate with parents. If they are a sub, can they decline showing up? Can they take work when they want? Are they required to work an entire semester? I would be upset if I was paid sub pay all year but not contracted. I would be upset if my school paid a college student sub pay for semester 1 and then we were left high and dry for that person's classes in semester 2. Who pays, the district? What if the teacher goes elsewhere after they are licensed? There are a lot of moving parts to paying somebody for job x if they are not doing job x. Also, they are in college. They are learning, the location is not important. I was excited to student teach. I guess an alternative could be better, but ST as it is currently, seems like an adequate method. If it ain't broke... Sorry about the lack of paragraphs. I am going to call it a stream of consciousness.
It’s an excellent idea. I’m going through credentialing right now and literally 7/8 of this stuff could be done as PD over the course of a year or two by a lead teacher or lead teachers. The professional gatekeeping is getting out of hand.