Need experienced Advice about Secondary School Teaching

Shauna.OD95

Ok so I have a PLC Level 5 in Art and Design
I'm in University studying History and Art History Level 8 BA Honours
I want to apply for the PME Masters in History
My orginal intention was to be a secondary school History and Art Teacher
I tick the boxes for becoming a History teacher set out by the teaching council
My first question is advice inrelation to entering a school teaching one subject (History) and completing a course to teach another subject
Second question, for becoming an Art Teacher is there any way around not having to attend a full time art college with degree in level 8 for the teaching of art
Third question is in relation to teaching subjects like CSPE, is there evening courses I could attend that would allow me to become a CSPE teacher
I just want to have two subjects to teach, I wanted art and history but I feel this hope has gone out the window
It's obvious to read I am very lost and confused and stressed so any helpful advice from experienced people would be greatly appreciated

Afroshack

I wouldnt even try History/CSPE as a single subject unless you're able to emigrate for work. You'd be paying 12K to get sporadic, part time work at best.

Icsics

You need to contact the teaching counsel to see what ur degree would qualify u to teach. Adding subjects will cost money, depending on how many units u need to add. CSPE is now a non exam subject so u shouldn’t rely on that to secure a job.

Shauna.OD95

I studied Geography in the first year of my degree so I could look into teaching that as a subject, I enjoyed it

gaiscioch

Shauna.OD95 wrote: »

I studied Geography in the first year of my degree so I could look into teaching that as a subject, I enjoyed it

Geography would be a better alternative than CSPE. Neither History nor Geography will be compulsory under the new Junior Cert. In 2017 nearly twice as many LC students took Geography over History: 24,444 versus 12,533 students. I started teaching with one TC-recognised subject and was lucky to get a 22-hour per week job/full hours in it (my second teaching subject in that school was a subject I did in 1st Year of my degree). The following year in that school I got 12 hours teaching the same two subjects, but they were my own hours for the first time. So, aware my career was going nowhere with only one subject, that year I started in UCD's Higher Diploma in Arts at night. Over 2 years I got the required 60 ECT credits to allow me to register with the Teaching Council in a second subject. My career was much more secure then than it had been with a single subject. People in teaching who have only a single subject have only themselves to blame for their job insecurity when they refuse to do the work to register in a second subject. It's better to light a candle than curse the dark, as they say.

PS: On the other hand, my one-year HDip/PDE/PDGE cost was only have what you're going to have to pay for the new two-year teaching qualification, the PME. And as I've said here before, financially you'll be paying for your teacher's holiday so don't think you won't. And raising a family in Dublin on a teacher's salary will be very, very tough due to property prices. I'd at least look very closely for an alternative career, and I think the deciding factor for me now is all the cultural change in teaching. Paperwork and meetings are now central to the job. Standing up and teaching/encouraging/inspiring and connecting with all those young lives has, without doubt, been sidelined in favour of the "new approaches" of buzz words, objectives, plans and all the other paper-based/meeting-based aspects of teaching.

dory

Shauna.OD95 wrote: »

I studied Geography in the first year of my degree so I could look into teaching that as a subject, I enjoyed it

I tried that a few years ago and found Geography a very hard one to get extra modules done in because of the practical work. I found I could only do a more theory based subject online so I did History. You can do a one year course in UCC to add on Geography but it's part time.

As someone said above, CSPE is now non-exam so I wouldn't rely on that. Teaching has gotten extremely expensive to get into. You have to spend €12k so you'd want to be very sure of getting a job. You could add English from DCU online but it's about €5k.

r93kaey5p2izun

Don't become a teacher with just History as a subject. Don't consider CSPE as a viable second subject. There is a scarcity of Art jobs so that's not much better especially if it would be difficult and expensive to qualify in. Geography is a bit better but History/Geography is still going to be a combination where you will struggle to get full hours.

A core subject would be better but of course you should not look at adding a subject unless you really love it because it will be a hardship for you to teach for years and that's likely to be apparent to students. Whatever you add, consider how you would feel if you had 22 hours of that subject and no History. That has happened to a number of people I know who added second subjects because they were so intent on teaching as a career - many of them regret that now.

Be realistic about the costs involved and the financial realities of supporting yourself for several years on part time hours (which will in turn affect your career average pension), and on prospects for things like buying a house if that's something you want to do in the future. Most of the job opportunities are in the Dublin area. Consider the cost of living. I would not recommend it to anyone who will be entirely reliant on their own income or expected to be the main breadwinner in a family. Of course that will depend on alternative career options available to each individual too.

Shauna.OD95

I tried that a few years ago and found Geography a very hard one to get extra modules done in because of the practical work. I found I could only do a more theory based subject online so I did History. You can do a one year course in UCC to add on Geography but it's part time

I'm actually in UCC at the moment but does the geography "add on course" tick all the boxes in the teaching council requirements for perusing a teaching career do you know?