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Can I become a Teacher? (Newbie here)

colms17

Hello there, so as the title suggests this is my first post

So my question here is, and iv been trying to figure out all day, is can I become a Teacher if I have done the LCA and not the traditional Leaving Cert?
Iv always wanted to be a teacher, pretty much all my family is made out of teachers so i guess its only normal for me to want to be one so bad.

I completed my LCA with a 74% Merit. (10% off a distinction -_-) Iv been searching and googling all day and this is what iv found out so far:

I can go to GTI (Galway Technical Institute) to do a PLC in Applied Social Studies then if I receive and ONLY if i receive a distinction in 5 or more modules I can progress to do a BA in Arts.

But here's the question I have: If I successfully complete my Arts Degree, can i progress to do a Teaching Diploma? As I understand you need a certain level of Maths in the normal Leaving Cert to apply, but I didnt the Leaving Cert Applied... So does this mean I can't apply for my Teaching Diploma unless I go back and do the normal Leaving Cert?

Head is messed up been searching all day and not one answer. Thanks in advance!

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looksee

I think you will find you do need LC, however before you go any further you need to specify whether you are talking about Primary or Secondary teaching, and if Secondary what main subject(s) you would be offering. If you are over 23 (on the 1st January this year) then LC may not be relevant, I am not sure what the alternative is, in some ITs for example you would be interviewed.

There can be a tendency for people to see course requirements as an obstacle put in their way. In fact, if someone struggled at LC he may well find that degree level is more than he can cope with. As well, other students will have very good leaving certs - the listed requirements are really the base level, it is necessary to aspire to higher than the basic requirements. You mentioned the 5 distinctions at PLC level. Again this is regarded as an automatic way in; it is not, if there are sufficient people with 8 distinctions then 5 will not be enough.

I know this is all very negative and off-putting, but you have to be ready for this level of competition. You may well have potential to be a really good teacher, in which case follow it through - do the PLC course anyway and see where it takes you.

colms17

looksee wrote: »

I think you will find you do need LC, however before you go any further you need to specify whether you are talking about Primary or Secondary teaching, and if Secondary what main subject(s) you would be offering. If you are over 23 (on the 1st January this year) then LC may not be relevant, I am not sure what the alternative is, in some ITs for example you would be interviewed.

There can be a tendency for people to see course requirements as an obstacle put in their way. In fact, if someone struggled at LC he may well find that degree level is more than he can cope with. As well, other students will have very good leaving certs - the listed requirements are really the base level, it is necessary to aspire to higher than the basic requirements. You mentioned the 5 distinctions at PLC level. Again this is regarded as an automatic way in; it is not, if there are sufficient people with 8 distinctions then 5 will not be enough.

I know this is all very negative and off-putting, but you have to be ready for this level of competition. You may well have potential to be a really good teacher, in which case follow it through - do the PLC course anyway and see where it takes you.

My apologies I was speaking of Secondary Teaching. I would like to teach any of the following four: English, Irish, History or Religion. I understand what you mean by someone who may have had difficulty may very well find a degree overwhelming. I resorted to the LCA due to mental health issues I was dealing with at the time. Since then I have fully recovered and ready to put my head down and work so I can get to where I want to be.

My Aunt is a teacher in Dublin (Im from Ennis in Clare) and she just replied to an sms i sent. She told me a teaching diploma is open to anyone in University with a Degree. This is what she believes and not absolute fact. I'm going into the Fás office tomorrow to find out the answer if i can't find it by the end of tonight.

I understand there may be competition but i'm very enthusiastic about becoming a secondary school teacher, i'm willing to put in as much work as possible to get where I want to go. I won't give up. Thank you for replying btw i didn't think id receive any reply

paperclip2

You need a degree with Teaching Council approval. You don't specifically require a Leaving Cert as its the degree you hold that will determine your eligibility for the PG Dip in Education/ Professional Masters in Education. However where I could potentially see a problem is when you come to apply for jobs. School Principals may look for your LC results and this could, (I'm not saying will), put you at a disadvantage. But that's only a worst case scenario possibility. If you really want to teach then go for it.

spurious

I doubt anyone would look at Maths results for an Irish/History/Religion/English post.

OP, some of the finest teachers I taught with did not do a Leaving Cert., but went back to education as mature students, or trained on a different path.

I wouldn't be advising anyone I cared about to go into second-level teaching the state it is in at the moment, but if it's what you want, go for it. More power to you.

colms17

spurious wrote: »

I doubt anyone would look at Maths results for an Irish/History/Religion/English post.

OP, some of the finest teachers I taught with did not do a Leaving Cert., but went back to education as mature students, or trained on a different path.

I wouldn't be advising anyone I cared about to go into second-level teaching the state it is in at the moment, but if it's what you want, go for it. More power to you.

Sorry for the late reply. Thank you all for your answers, I didn't expect any feedback whatsoever. Iv decided to pursue the career, i'm starting a PLC this September. It's only a stepping stone but im very excited!

paperclip2

Best of luck with it Colms17.