Do you have to have a teaching certificate to teach in a public school.?

Question

I am a Senior in college and I have a few semesters left. I was just wondering if I really need a teaching certificate to teach high school Literature. Thanks for any advise :)

Answer 1

u need a masters degree at least. MA (HONS.) english literature.

Answer 2

No you don't need one! At least not right away but eventually you will have to.  What you can do is call your state board of education and ask to apply for a provisional certificate.  This will allow you to teach for usually 2 years and you would also be generally allowed to (depending on the state) apply for another 2 year extension. This should give you enough time to go back to school and get your teaching credentials.

Answer 3

You do yes. However, I saw on the news a few months ago that they are thinking about making it where so many years experience in teaching or so many credits can be equal to a certificate in some states.

Answer 4

I'm surprised you think its so easy that you could just start now.

yes you do.

(a certificate is not simply a piece of paper - there are a couple years of methods and curriculum classes - and you need to prove to the state that you know your subject by passing a few tests - as well as any state specific tests...perhaps language acquisition..AND prove to a mentor you can handle teaching through your student teaching)

Answer 5

YES of course you do! In fact, public schools are often more strict with teachers than private schools.

Answer 6

Yes. You need to have a teaching certificate in the level you are teaching and obviously your bachelor's degree. The department of education is becoming stricter than ever because in past times students were falling behind and not doing good in their examinations. Now they are expecting teachers to be highly qualified in order to be able to form part of their team.

A highly qualified teacher is one who has a bachelor's degree, state teacher's certifications, and has demonstrated competencies in teaching and learning. Teachers may demonstrate competency by:

    * Taking and passing a state test (all new or existing teachers)

    * Having completed a college major, advanced course work or certification, or a masters degree in subjects taught (new or existing middle and high school teachers)

Answer 7

You don't say where you are from.  In CA you have to go on to an accredited credential program.  If you studied English as an undergrad you will need to complete 30 more units of education classes and 2 semesters of student teaching.  If you were not an English major, you will need to do a few additional classes in English.  There is a nationwide shortage of math and science teachers, so sometimes they can pick up emergency credentials.  They still have to complete the full credential program, but they are allowed to teach while they are doing it.  But in CA that would not happen in English.  And it really is a good idea.  Knowing literature and knowing how to teach are 2 different things.  Best of luck to you.

Answer 8

Yes you must have a teaching certificate in order to teach. You also must take the praxis tests in order to get your teaching certificate. And in addition to taking the praxis tests, you must take education classes also. Having a degree is not enough to teach high school literature.

Answer 9

Yes you need some sort of certificate, but you may be able to qualify for one of them by having degree in the field and pass the state certification test. This would be a lot easier if you wanted to teach in a  high needs area like math, science, special ed or ESL. ESL might be the best way to go. Your state will have some type of probationary, provisional, or emergency certificate that you may qualify for. Look for districts and schools advertising for ESL teachers, and in the interview mention linguistics a lot. While you can get certified though your university there are alternative certification programs that are much shorter (and cheaper) Usually you attend about 10 days worth of seminars, take the state exam and then you teach for a year on a probationary certificate, after which you can get a standard certificate. Lastly you might want to try the "Teach for America" program they are kind of like the peace corp or ameri corp, but they look for teachers for impoverished schools in the USA. Lastly you can always teach ESL abroad, all you need is a degree.

Answer 10

Yes, you do.  But if your major is not education, but some sort of literature or english major, you will only have a few classes left to take in order to get a teaching certificate.  Oh yeah, and at least a semester of student teaching.