ESL or Special Ed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of bilingual is Spanish-English bilingual. If you could find a school hiring Russian bilingual staff for a bilingual classroom, you might be able to get an emergency certificate and agree to go get a masters within a certain period of time and teach. ESL teachers are different than bilingual teachers. ESL does English support as a resource teacher who pushes into classrooms or pulls small groups out of classrooms. Bilingual is a grade level teacher who teaches a grade level, but in the native language plus helps kids transition over to English. There's a lot of different models and the details vary by school.

Sped is in high demand. I'm not sure what your state requirements are, but because of federal sped laws, you probably would actually have to have a sped certification to teach. (meaning you can't get your degree while teaching, the degree would have to come first) But some states are kinda backwards and might allow it, who knows how it is where you are.

I'd say Russian, while valuable, is MUCH less in demand for bilingual teachers. Talk to your state board of education about their certification requirements for each of these. You can also talk with a university and one of the profs would likely be able to advise you. Be aware that you are talking about 60+ hours a week of work and for sped, it's more like 70+. Good luck. It's a really hard career.

Sorry, my wording was a bit confusing. I'm looking at ESL positions and under requirements, it says "Bilingual (Spanish) preferred." So I'm wondering if it would be a huge hit to my chances if I don't speak Spanish or if there's enough demand for me to get a job even if my second language is Russian.

I'm in VA and it looks like I can get a provisional license for SPED after taking a course at GMU.

Keep in mind that getting a provisional license requires actually getting a principal to hire you, and that's not always so easy without experience or an endorsement. The best way to guarantee a job is to start as an aide and get your certification while working full time. I know a lot of people who became teachers that way, and they were able to have a guaranteed job waiting for them when they finished. I think the district paid some of the degree, too. This was in FCPS. I currently am in PWCS, which has a very high need for ESL right now, although I don't know to what extent they will actually hire on a provisional. It's possible, but no one likes to do that if they can find certified.

That's a great idea. I wish I'd worked as a school para in when I was younger first.

I used to work in DC Public Schools but moved to another state in the northeast, and with the funding model, special Ed provides more funding based on need but not ESL. Thus ESL teachers are less needed. Plus with the current administration, I'd bet special Ed is a bit safer. However, I don't think not speaking Spanish as an ESL teacher is a huge issue. At least a few ESL teachers I've worked with didn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most of bilingual is Spanish-English bilingual. If you could find a school hiring Russian bilingual staff for a bilingual classroom, you might be able to get an emergency certificate and agree to go get a masters within a certain period of time and teach. ESL teachers are different than bilingual teachers. ESL does English support as a resource teacher who pushes into classrooms or pulls small groups out of classrooms. Bilingual is a grade level teacher who teaches a grade level, but in the native language plus helps kids transition over to English. There's a lot of different models and the details vary by school.

Sped is in high demand. I'm not sure what your state requirements are, but because of federal sped laws, you probably would actually have to have a sped certification to teach. (meaning you can't get your degree while teaching, the degree would have to come first) But some states are kinda backwards and might allow it, who knows how it is where you are.

I'd say Russian, while valuable, is MUCH less in demand for bilingual teachers. Talk to your state board of education about their certification requirements for each of these. You can also talk with a university and one of the profs would likely be able to advise you. Be aware that you are talking about 60+ hours a week of work and for sped, it's more like 70+. Good luck. It's a really hard career.

Just to clarify- this person is talking about ESL in elementary school. The model in elementary is that ESL providers push in or pull out and help smaller groups of kids, but they don’t have self-contained classes or classrooms. In middle and high school ESL teachers conduct their own classes. They are the teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve been in the field for many years. ESL jobs these days are actually not as easy to get as people believe, especially at the elementary school level. A few years ago they changed the certification rules and any teacher can take a Praxis test to get the endorsement. Prior to that move, they had to take about 6 extra classes to qualify if they did not receive that endorsement through teacher education program.

The year that this new rule was implemented, there were 10+ teachers at my school immediately bought a book and took the test. It is seen as a very easy path to get out of the classroom. They all passed and left the classroom. The test is basic common sense and anyone who has taught before & can retain information from reading a short book can pass. That’s from 1 single school. Imagine all the other schools with classroom teachers who also have the same plan. It became very difficult to get, just like any of the “coaching” positions or “specialists” that allow you to also get out of the classroom. This is only for elementary schools. I do think you will have a better chance at the high school or middle school level. ESL teachers at those levels are running their own classrooms like the other teachers so the incentive to get out of the classroom is no longer there.

Knowing Spanish is not “required,” although there are some principals who will have a preference for it, so those people will have an advantage. But a former principal that I worked for never hid this preference. She believed the kids will learn “more” if they have a teacher who can explain concepts/instructions in both Spanish and English. These teachers can also be used as unpaid interpreters during mandatory school events…

As far as special education, these job varies. It’s not all horrible/stressful. It really depends on what your specialization is and the school you work at.

This is what I would recommend researching these careers: school counseling, school psychology, SLP, OT, social work (school social worker). Some of these will give you a career path outside of education.

FYI- the test which needs to be passed is not common sense questions like PP mentioned. You will need to know linguists and details about their language acquisition theories, the IPA alphabet, phonetics, advocacy laws, language acquisition assessments including bias/reliability/validity and hundreds of related ESL vocabulary terms,etc etc. The exam is very specific to ESL knowledge; it’s not a basic generalized exam for all subject areas. FYI

[Anonymous]

They all passed; every single one of them. Didn’t even need a second try. You do not have to get 100% of the questions correct to pass.

The point being that studying/memorizing and taking a test is far less work and less expensive than taking classes.

[Anonymous]

I worked in sped and ESOL and I love ESOL (now called ELD in MCPS) and and don’t want to go back to SPED. I speak some Spanish, which helps, but is NOT required to be an ELD teacher. The SPED staff I worked with love it have done it for decades, but it was not for me.

I suggest you pick up some sub jobs in both and see what they are like before committing to either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was underemployed during the recession when we first had kids so I became a SAHM to avoid going into the red for daycare. I'm looking to go back into the workforce once my youngest is in school. I majored in a foreign language (Russian) and did language tutoring at college so ESL makes sense but I'm also looking into elementary special ed because my kids have special needs and I know there's a shortage. Is there a big difference in job availability? I don't speak Spanish and the local listings all day bilingual in Spanish preferred. I don't know if I'd classify myself as bilingual in Russian but I'm just short of fluent.

I personally would do ESOL just because it’s easier. SPED is a ridiculous amount of paperwork and take-home work. Yes, you can start teaching almost immediately and get the degree along the way, BUT, you are going to regret it. If you decide to go this route anyways, stay away from Non Cat/ CAT B and autism classes. These classes without proper training will destroy you. If you are interested in autism and want to work with autistic children - look into getting an ABA degree.
If you have a degree in something already - look into middle/high school teaching endorsements. Good luck. I’m in the same boat, also thinking about going into education, mainly because of my kids.

[Anonymous]

You can't seriously want to teach right now. Things are bad and likely to get much worse. Save yourself in advance and don't start.

[Anonymous]

A lot of these positions are getting cut.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was underemployed during the recession when we first had kids so I became a SAHM to avoid going into the red for daycare. I'm looking to go back into the workforce once my youngest is in school. I majored in a foreign language (Russian) and did language tutoring at college so ESL makes sense but I'm also looking into elementary special ed because my kids have special needs and I know there's a shortage. Is there a big difference in job availability? I don't speak Spanish and the local listings all day bilingual in Spanish preferred. I don't know if I'd classify myself as bilingual in Russian but I'm just short of fluent.

I personally would do ESOL just because it’s easier. SPED is a ridiculous amount of paperwork and take-home work. Yes, you can start teaching almost immediately and get the degree along the way, BUT, you are going to regret it. If you decide to go this route anyways, stay away from Non Cat/ CAT B and autism classes. These classes without proper training will destroy you. If you are interested in autism and want to work with autistic children - look into getting an ABA degree.
If you have a degree in something already - look into middle/high school teaching endorsements. Good luck. I’m in the same boat, also thinking about going into education, mainly because of my kids.

My degree is in a foreign language that is not taught in the local school district.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of bilingual is Spanish-English bilingual. If you could find a school hiring Russian bilingual staff for a bilingual classroom, you might be able to get an emergency certificate and agree to go get a masters within a certain period of time and teach. ESL teachers are different than bilingual teachers. ESL does English support as a resource teacher who pushes into classrooms or pulls small groups out of classrooms. Bilingual is a grade level teacher who teaches a grade level, but in the native language plus helps kids transition over to English. There's a lot of different models and the details vary by school.

Sped is in high demand. I'm not sure what your state requirements are, but because of federal sped laws, you probably would actually have to have a sped certification to teach. (meaning you can't get your degree while teaching, the degree would have to come first) But some states are kinda backwards and might allow it, who knows how it is where you are.

I'd say Russian, while valuable, is MUCH less in demand for bilingual teachers. Talk to your state board of education about their certification requirements for each of these. You can also talk with a university and one of the profs would likely be able to advise you. Be aware that you are talking about 60+ hours a week of work and for sped, it's more like 70+. Good luck. It's a really hard career.

Just to clarify- this person is talking about ESL in elementary school. The model in elementary is that ESL providers push in or pull out and help smaller groups of kids, but they don’t have self-contained classes or classrooms. In middle and high school ESL teachers conduct their own classes. They are the teachers.

That's not true everywhere. There are still sheltered ESL classes in some schools, especially outside of FCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of bilingual is Spanish-English bilingual. If you could find a school hiring Russian bilingual staff for a bilingual classroom, you might be able to get an emergency certificate and agree to go get a masters within a certain period of time and teach. ESL teachers are different than bilingual teachers. ESL does English support as a resource teacher who pushes into classrooms or pulls small groups out of classrooms. Bilingual is a grade level teacher who teaches a grade level, but in the native language plus helps kids transition over to English. There's a lot of different models and the details vary by school.

Sped is in high demand. I'm not sure what your state requirements are, but because of federal sped laws, you probably would actually have to have a sped certification to teach. (meaning you can't get your degree while teaching, the degree would have to come first) But some states are kinda backwards and might allow it, who knows how it is where you are.

I'd say Russian, while valuable, is MUCH less in demand for bilingual teachers. Talk to your state board of education about their certification requirements for each of these. You can also talk with a university and one of the profs would likely be able to advise you. Be aware that you are talking about 60+ hours a week of work and for sped, it's more like 70+. Good luck. It's a really hard career.

Sorry, my wording was a bit confusing. I'm looking at ESL positions and under requirements, it says "Bilingual (Spanish) preferred." So I'm wondering if it would be a huge hit to my chances if I don't speak Spanish or if there's enough demand for me to get a job even if my second language is Russian.

I'm in VA and it looks like I can get a provisional license for SPED after taking a course at GMU.

Keep in mind that getting a provisional license requires actually getting a principal to hire you, and that's not always so easy without experience or an endorsement. The best way to guarantee a job is to start as an aide and get your certification while working full time. I know a lot of people who became teachers that way, and they were able to have a guaranteed job waiting for them when they finished. I think the district paid some of the degree, too. This was in FCPS. I currently am in PWCS, which has a very high need for ESL right now, although I don't know to what extent they will actually hire on a provisional. It's possible, but no one likes to do that if they can find certified.

I have tutored and I worked at a local prep school's summer ESL program back when I was in college. When I was underemployed, I worked as a sub and IA at a local parochial school. So I don't have public school experience but it's not like I've never set foot in a classroom.

You should attend some job fairs and recruiting events. You'll have the best luck in FCPS elementary schools, which have a lot of ESL openings, and in PWCS, which have openings at all levels. In FCPS, some of the recruiting events have an option to speak with people in the licensure department, which would be very helpful for you.

[Anonymous]

If you're not fluent, you're not bilingual.

[Anonymous]

A lot of posters here are confused. Department of education cuts are not the same thing as teaching positions being cut. There is so much administrative bloat in education at all levels and there is always a need for more teachers.

Before you do anything else OP you should substitute teach. That will give you a clear sense if you can handle the job. Oh also do not get both ESOL/ELL and special education together your teaching schedule would be a nightmare pick just one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot of posters here are confused. Department of education cuts are not the same thing as teaching positions being cut. There is so much administrative bloat in education at all levels and there is always a need for more teachers.

Before you do anything else OP you should substitute teach. That will give you a clear sense if you can handle the job. Oh also do not get both ESOL/ELL and special education together your teaching schedule would be a nightmare pick just one.

Title I schools receive funding from the federal government, which includes staff positions. 22% of the workers in my city are federal workers so the school system is also planning its own cuts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot of these positions are getting cut.

Not in APS! We’re throwing tens of millions of dollars to more ELL and SPED teachers while reducing library availability