Friday, August 5, 2011

The ABCs & 123s of Teacher's Education

So you’re applying to teacher’s college. A few things I need to ask before I get into this topic juuuust to make sure you’re in it for the right reasons:

  • Is teaching your calling? Can you see yourself as a teacher in 10 – 20 years?
  • Do you genuinely enjoy working with youth and believe you will instill confidence in your students?
  • Are you doing it for summers off & a ridiculously good benefit package?
  • What are your teachable subjects? Do students require these subjects or are they electives? Think strategics
  • Are you aware you probably won’t have a full-time position for 5-10 years?
    …unless if you are willing to teach in the Northern Territories in which case, are you willing to relocate?

Hopefully this opened your eyes a bit and you are reassured that yes, you want to be a teacher 100% and will do anything to get a position. Or maybe you just realized this isn’t quite for you.

The Facts:
Teacher Education is a one year post-graduate program required for those who wish to pursue a career in teaching. You must complete at least a 3 Year Pass to apply to Teacher’s College (or complete a Concurrent program which combines your undergrad with teacher’s college). Upon completion of Teacher’s College, you must be certified by the Ontario College of Teachers and pay an annual membership fee to maintain their certification as a teacher in Ontario.
  •           You'll need 2 months to research schools and prepare your applications. Deadlines for Ontario teacher education programs can be found here: http://www.ouac.on.ca/teas/teas-dates/
  •           Program requirements and fees for each school are different. Check that you meet the academic & teachable requirements for different grade levels.
  •           The majority of applications will require descriptions of your relevant volunteer experiences, so hopefully you’ve been involved!

Enough with the jibber jabber – you can find more information on the TEAS website about deadlines, requirements etc.

What I really want to talk about is the possibilities of where you can go to school. It’s all based on your personal preference, so which would you choose: Canada, America or Australia.
Usually students will apply to Niagara University if they were not accepted into a Canadian school (they are more competitive). And the ones that go to Australia do it to satisfy their desire to travel. If you decide to teach outside of your province/country, be sure you are certified to teach back home when you return. Career Services has visitors throughout the year from CANTEACH, AustraLearn, KOM Consultants and Degrees Overseas. Check our events widget on our homepage for updates on employer & post-grad showcases. Also keep your eye out for our Career & Post-Graduate Expo attendees!

The following are a list of Ontario schools that provide Teacher’s Education:
  • Brock University
  • Lakehead University
  • Laurentian University
  • Nipissing University
  • Trent University
  • University of Ottawa
  • Queen’s University
  • University of Toronto
  • UOIT
  • University of Western Ontario
  • Wilfrid Laurier University
  • University of Windsor
  • York University

Samantha

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