| The following information was provided by a teacher who has had experience teaching in two provinces, and has taught at all levels from grade 1 through grade 12. |
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"Teaching is a professional career which has many rewards, but takes many years of preparation, and has a fairly heavy work load. In order to become, say, a high school teacher specializing in a certain area (Social Studies, for example), you will have to attend university for 4-6 years and obtain a degree in that area. In other provinces, you might need to take a further year of study at a Teachers' College to obtain an additional B.Ed degree. Alberta allows their teachers to obtain their teacher training while they are in university, so the additional year is not necessary. Elementary teachers can take a degree in the subject of their choice, but one pertaining to subjects they may teach would be helpful. Following graduation, you must be hired as an interim teacher, and successfully complete two years of teaching, before qualifying as a permanent teacher. The work doesn't end there, however. As a professional, a teacher must maintain competency in his or her field, which may be changing rapidly. A science teacher, for example, must keep abreast of the current knowledge, which requires a lot of reading and attending of conferences. In addition, teachers must become knowledgeable about the curriculum they are expected to teach, even if it is outside their area of expertise. An elementary teacher may be required to know a lot about many different subjects, none of which they were originally trained in. This too requires much reading and attending of workshops. Finally, a teacher must be prepared to accept the responsibilities of the profession. As a salaried employee, they are expected to complete all the work necessary to facilitate their day-to-day teaching. Unlike other jobs that end when you leave work, the teacher must, on their own time, prepare lessons, mark collected work, prepare and mark tests, prepare reports, and attend numerous meetings and workshops. Most teachers also undertake some sort of extracurricular workload, such as coaching, preparing newsletters, or supervising a Grad committee. Most teachers spend many hours outside of school time completing these tasks. The salary for teaching is typical of similar professions with comparable educational backgrounds (years of university), such as nursing (RN), or engineering. It's not a profession where you can get rich ... after 10 or so years, your salary reaches maximum, and if you want to continue teaching full time, that's as high as it goes. Also, you are allowed NO tax write-offs ... no deductions for anything related to teaching, no GST rebates, no cheap gas ... after 10 or 11 years of teaching, close to 40% of your paycheck will disappear as income tax. But it is a very rewarding job, where you can see the immediate results of your efforts, and where every day is different. Good teachers love their job, and couldn't imagine doing anything different! (And the summer vacation is nice too ... although you aren't paid). People in high school who are considering teaching as a career need to think about what kinds of skills they will need, and what they need to do to prepare. A good teacher is someone who cares about others, and loves to explain things. Jr. High teachers have no fear of standing in front of a classroom full of disinterested teenagers, trying to get them interested in the day's topic. Elementary teachers don't mind wiping runny noses. A high school student who is a prospective teacher will also need the marks necessary to enter university, and be able to maintain them. That person should love to learn new things, and be very adaptable, as being a good teacher means that you will continue learning things throughout your career. Given the current inevitable trend toward technology in the classroom, a prospective teacher must be one who is comfortable working with computers. Computers and technology are integrated in to the curriculum at all grade levels from 1 through 12, so the teacher-to-be must be someone who can teach computer fundamentals to grade 2 students, or spreadsheets to 11-year-olds, or wordprocessing to 17-year-olds, depending on the level where you teach. Finally, someone who is interested in teaching as a career must be flexible enough to go where the jobs are. Be prepared to accept a job outside of a city, at least to start. And don't be afraid to consider other provinces. While teacher training is very standard across the country, the rate of pay isn't. Alberta's teachers generally make less money than those in other provinces, and certainly teach longer hours with fewer periods off for preparation. In addition, some provinces pay teachers more if they are specialists. Teachers qualified to teach more than one Sr. High subject can make a lot more money in those provinces. I hope this gives you some idea of what it takes to become a teacher." |