Teaching What You Have Not Mastered?

Question

How many of you work in a school that is well-known for hiring out of subject teachers?

There are gym teachers teaching algebra, history teachers teaching english, math teachers teaching music, etc.

Students suffer BIG TIME at the end of the highway.

Your thoughts?

Answer 1

Sometimes school districts don’t have a choice when they have students to teach and not enough teachers to teach them.  They usually end up emergency certifying them and then they have two years to pass the certification test for the subject they are teaching.

Answer 2

Under ideal circumstances, it is best for a teacher to be assigned classes within his area of competence.  (It is well to remember that competence does not necessarily mean a graduate degree, teaching certificate, or formal coursework.  Despite the outcries of many, one can be competent to teach a subject without going to formal classes.  However, it is always best if the teacher has a depth of understanding about his subject.)

All that being said, it remains true that a dedicated teacher can "pinch hit" very admirably in a subject when necessary.  It takes a TON of extra work, but a dedicated person can and will do what it takes to provide the students with a quality educational experience.  

We are too dependent on certificates and degrees in our schools.  Many of the finest teachers do not possess all the "qualifications" insisted upon by educational leaders--leaders who, all too often, are more interested in the financial support of teachers' unions than in truly excellent education.  

Why don't we try returning control of education to the local level and empower the local administrators to select the best people for the classes they teach?

Answer 3

you are wrong - there are no math teachers teaching out of subject.

Math is in such demand - they are importing teachers from the phillipines in my district.

Answer 4

Isn't this illegal? Aren't teachers suppose to only teach the subjects that they have a masters degree for?

If so, I wouldn't doubt any of this becuase like with all things, schools are exempt from ANY laws because they do NOT get in trouble for anything and THEY KNOW IT.

Your question PROVES that they do not care about the children.

Answer 5

Maybe so.  They are out of subject as far as we know.  And sometimes there are so few teachers that emergency substitutes must be found and hired to work for some amount of time.  Or it could be that a certain teacher, who previously taught one subject, is also more than qualified to teach another subject.  For example, I know a history teacher who is also qualified to teach art, and a previous computer/technology instructor who is now teaching second grade, and a high school language arts teacher whose previous assignment (that she was qualified for) was physical education.  So, yes, it may be harmful if someone is not qualified, but things are also not always as they seem.

Answer 6

I have a HUGE problem with this! I am finishing an MA and am looking at PhD programs. Pretty much the only use for a PhD in my field is as a professor. Every PhD program I've seen will accept people with as low as a 3.0 in their subject! Honestly, if someone cannot pull a 4.0 in their subject, they have NO business teaching it. If the teacher/ professor can't get superior grades, how are they going to instruct students who may even be smarter than they are?

Now, there may be people who minored in another subject, or studied another subject in detail, so they may be qualified to teach other areas despite their major. They may be perfectly qualified to teach at a lower level.

Still, EVERY teacher regardless of their major should prove via testing that they have the knowledge to teach.

Answer 7

yes they sure do.  That is why its up to the kids to want to learn and take all that they can from the teacher and develop there own ideas and or learn from what they read and what they experence themselves.