I asked this in my other thread but thought this needed its own thread as it will be of great benefit to me and others I presume.
I am looking to get certified (in middle grades math most likely) through an alternative certification program.
My question is what are some of the best ones for Americans in regards to time and money?
The one I plan on going with right now is TeacherReady out of Florida which can be completed in 9 months online at a cost of 5k.
I hold residency in NC so that limits me due to the cost of out of state tuition at some Universities ect. The FastTrack program out of George Mason looks great (one summer completion) but im sure it would be very expensive for me!
All info will be much appreciated, thanks!
Best Alternative Certification Programs
Comment
I hope and think your going to get a lot of responses, because everyone has their favorite, and anyone who went through an alternative certification program, tends to think theres was good (or at least good enough). My comments then are what should be some important factors to an international teacher in choosing an ACP:
Accreditation: It should go without saying that what ever program you use is recognised by your state to certify teachers, and will permit you to obtain an actual state teaching certificate/license. Some programs, will advertise that they are certification programs, but all they really are selling is online classes, that may "lead" to teacher certification, though another school or agency. Some programs will advertise being a certification program, but its their own in-house certificate, which is essentially worthless.
Field Experience: Whether its an internship, student teaching or some hybrid of the two. Many programs are set up for mentoring evaluating your field experience locally. They hire retired teachers or admins to observe you and since the vast majority want to teach in the state and local city they are in, thats where they are set up to do your field evaluations. Many programs because of the recession, and falling demand for teachers are becoming more flexible about allowing outside/external/third parties do mentoring, and typically require an arrangement with your principal to mentor evaluate you. A number of international schools (including DoDDS) hire interns, but you need to make sure the program will accommodate an out of area/overseas field experience. Internships are generally a year and student teaching is generally a semester. The advantage of the semester field experience is that if you do it during the fall, you can be done by December with certification in hand in time for recruiting season.
If possible you should try to find a field experience at an IB school, it cant hurt you, and having been at an IB school will make you more competitive in a group full of newbies.
Coursework: Unless you really want face to face training, the online option is the way to go. You should be able to access the training coursework 24/7 and it should be at your own pace. Some training programs will put a limit to how fast you can go through the training, which can significantly effect your progress. You should be entitled to complete this training as quickly as possible, and ideally over the summer, so that you can start your field experience in the fall.
Testing: Unless your seeking certification locally and can show up for testing at a local administration site, states and programs that use the Praxis test are the way to go. They have testing centers all over the country, and importantly have testing overseas as well. This is an issue because usually the program requires you to do testing in stages (praxis II first, then praxis I). A program that permits you to take it at your convenience is an advantage. States that have their own testing usually only offer testing within the state, and even if in a couple surrounding states, dont have testing overseas. This requires scheduling expensive, long trips to test. This signifigantly raises the overall cost of the program.
Fingerprinting: Many states require fingerprints and a background check for admission/completion of their program. Some states use livescan, some use finger print cards. Typically the standard FBI fingerprint card in duplicate. Your program/state may send out cards (pre-coded with their agency) by mail, or you can download them here
http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/backgr ... nload/file
The main issue is finding out how to have them done. Sometimes if you live close enough you can have them done at a military base or consulate/embassy. Sometimes you can have them done by the local police (bring a friend to translate). My advice is to do it before you leave overseas.
Cost/Time: A certification program shouldnt take longer then a year (9 months) maximum, and 6 months or less is realistic. Reasonable program costs should be between $3,000 to $5,000.
Professional Development (PD): Many teachers encounter this problem. Some states have requirements that you must complete so many hours of professional development to renew your certification. Typically these states also impose requirements on what they will accept as professional development. While they all will usually accept college/university classes/credit hours, some of them will only accept PD training from specific providers, and most of these are only likely to be local options. This raises a problem, when you go to renew your certificate and find out that most of your PD isnt acceptable. The other issue is documenting your PD, some schools are very bad at providing any type of documentation, and even then PD for a particular school may only be a handful of hours a year. Some states do offer online PD options, but given the limited number of hours, you have to be diligent about doing it every year. My advice is to simply choose a state that doesnt require PD, which is why a number of teachers move their certification to California, as they do not require PD to renew the CLEAR certificate.
Accreditation: It should go without saying that what ever program you use is recognised by your state to certify teachers, and will permit you to obtain an actual state teaching certificate/license. Some programs, will advertise that they are certification programs, but all they really are selling is online classes, that may "lead" to teacher certification, though another school or agency. Some programs will advertise being a certification program, but its their own in-house certificate, which is essentially worthless.
Field Experience: Whether its an internship, student teaching or some hybrid of the two. Many programs are set up for mentoring evaluating your field experience locally. They hire retired teachers or admins to observe you and since the vast majority want to teach in the state and local city they are in, thats where they are set up to do your field evaluations. Many programs because of the recession, and falling demand for teachers are becoming more flexible about allowing outside/external/third parties do mentoring, and typically require an arrangement with your principal to mentor evaluate you. A number of international schools (including DoDDS) hire interns, but you need to make sure the program will accommodate an out of area/overseas field experience. Internships are generally a year and student teaching is generally a semester. The advantage of the semester field experience is that if you do it during the fall, you can be done by December with certification in hand in time for recruiting season.
If possible you should try to find a field experience at an IB school, it cant hurt you, and having been at an IB school will make you more competitive in a group full of newbies.
Coursework: Unless you really want face to face training, the online option is the way to go. You should be able to access the training coursework 24/7 and it should be at your own pace. Some training programs will put a limit to how fast you can go through the training, which can significantly effect your progress. You should be entitled to complete this training as quickly as possible, and ideally over the summer, so that you can start your field experience in the fall.
Testing: Unless your seeking certification locally and can show up for testing at a local administration site, states and programs that use the Praxis test are the way to go. They have testing centers all over the country, and importantly have testing overseas as well. This is an issue because usually the program requires you to do testing in stages (praxis II first, then praxis I). A program that permits you to take it at your convenience is an advantage. States that have their own testing usually only offer testing within the state, and even if in a couple surrounding states, dont have testing overseas. This requires scheduling expensive, long trips to test. This signifigantly raises the overall cost of the program.
Fingerprinting: Many states require fingerprints and a background check for admission/completion of their program. Some states use livescan, some use finger print cards. Typically the standard FBI fingerprint card in duplicate. Your program/state may send out cards (pre-coded with their agency) by mail, or you can download them here
http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/backgr ... nload/file
The main issue is finding out how to have them done. Sometimes if you live close enough you can have them done at a military base or consulate/embassy. Sometimes you can have them done by the local police (bring a friend to translate). My advice is to do it before you leave overseas.
Cost/Time: A certification program shouldnt take longer then a year (9 months) maximum, and 6 months or less is realistic. Reasonable program costs should be between $3,000 to $5,000.
Professional Development (PD): Many teachers encounter this problem. Some states have requirements that you must complete so many hours of professional development to renew your certification. Typically these states also impose requirements on what they will accept as professional development. While they all will usually accept college/university classes/credit hours, some of them will only accept PD training from specific providers, and most of these are only likely to be local options. This raises a problem, when you go to renew your certificate and find out that most of your PD isnt acceptable. The other issue is documenting your PD, some schools are very bad at providing any type of documentation, and even then PD for a particular school may only be a handful of hours a year. Some states do offer online PD options, but given the limited number of hours, you have to be diligent about doing it every year. My advice is to simply choose a state that doesnt require PD, which is why a number of teachers move their certification to California, as they do not require PD to renew the CLEAR certificate.
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higgsboson
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Mon Jun 14, 2010 1:13 am
If you don't mine spending time in America, 2 to 3 year, you can get paid while working on your certification. I started a 3 - year program in Arkansas but never took the Praxis exams at the end. Wish I did.
Most Southern states have these type of programs but they place you in high need areas, either very rural or inner city.
Most Southern states have these type of programs but they place you in high need areas, either very rural or inner city.