I was wondering how is the job market for teachers in this economy? Good? Bad? Would you advise someone to pursue it in this bad economy? Thanks everyone
There is definitely a teacher shortage in the US (I’m assuming you’re talking about K-12). Enrollment at teacher colleges is down. If you google “teacher shortage” there are plenty of articles about it.
If you pursed a teaching career you could definitely get a job somewhere. Whether it would be a good job or a job you enjoyed is another matter entirely.
The second paragraph nailed it. Try volunteering to aid teachers in a local school to find out if you would like to teach. Most schools would love to have free help.
Math & science teachers are in the most demand & have been for quite a while.
While there is a shortage in certain specific fields (math and science teachers at the high school level) in better school districts there can be extreme competition for elementary school “classroom teacher” positions. At least where we are (suburban Boston) open positions are attracting hundreds of applications.
Depends on what part of the country (USA) and what you teach. Special education, it seems, always has a demand for teachers.
Now, as to if you’ll actually like working as a teacher…
The pay typically isn’t all that. Hallgirl1 graduated and got her teaching certification and the only job she was able to find (outside of working in the Philadelphia School District*) was as a substitute. She loved teaching, but the parents and administration? Forget it. She gave it up after a year and has moved on to another career.
*The Philadelphia School District has been plagued with significant challenges. No way did she want to work for them.
It depends on where you live. It also depends on whether you’d be willing to relocate if, say, there is a surplus where you’re living now.
Math, science, and special ed teachers are traditionally and almost always in short supply.
A lot of people are leaving education in droves because of the Common Core/teaching to the test and political/parental issues. I have several teacher friends who ALL want to leave the profession altogether because of the demands Common Core puts on them. Some of them are tenured and, because of that, feel they cannot leave.
I have another friend who will be getting her certification in May. She’s looking at private/prep schools because she sees the damage Common Core can do. I daresay she probably has a LOT of company in that regard as well as competing with those who don’t have certification (it’s not required for private/prep school).
Anecdotally, I know two freshly minted teachers (math and history) who struggled for years to get a permanent position. Both had to endure long periods of subbing- with all the uncertainty that brings-- before finally getting a classroom. One had to move from Sacramento to LA, and neither are teaching in desirable schools.
We struggle to find good teachers in Texas. Mind you, I am in one of those problematic “urban” districts. But even in the suburbs, I don’t think it’s that hard to find a job somewhere in the metroplex, especially, as mentioned, in math and science. Alternatively, sometimes “obscure” subjects–like Latin, Accounting, Dance–are also high demand. There aren’t many sections of these classes, but there also aren’t many teachers.
I think if you are pretty determined to stay in a particular town or small city, it might be harder.
Volunteering should be your first step. Spend some time in multiple schools where you think you’d like to teach. Talk to teachers, administrators, students, and if you can, parents to see what they think about the school and the district. Get a feel for how a school actually works and how the administration, faculty, students, teachers, and parents interact. Observe a few school board meetings because this is where policy decisions that would affect you are made. Some schools and districts are a teacher’s wet dream because the administration is supportive and allows teachers to do their job. Others are cesspools where politics and gamesmanship matter more than actual education, and where teachers spend more time fighting than they do teaching. Most are somewhere in the middle.
Next, find out what your state requirements are to get a teaching certificate, and make sure you find a program that will help you get there. There may be multiple routes, but not all of these routes will get you what you want if you’re looking for a permanent job. Explore all of them.
Once you’ve done this homework, see if you can get access to whatever means teachers in your state have to actually find open positions. You may find lots of open positions in the subjects you’re qualified to teach, and you may have other skills that will help you get a job. Keep in mind, however, that you may be expected to advise an extracurricular activity with these skills, and this requires a significant investment in time and money.
Basically, my point is that you need to think and do a lot of homework to make a good decision. The teaching profession is more than just a job with a paycheck, and anyone who goes into it needs to understand that.
In most cities with strong colleges (for example Pittsburgh) you can barely cross the street without bumping into someone with an education degree so getting a halfway good start in a halfway good district is pretty tough. And once you are there don’t expect much support or cooperation from the parents or the community at large. If you are willing to head somewhere rural and put up with being the “respected outsider” there are a lot of spots to be had and it isn’t a bad gig.
I taught in a rural area, and except for math, science, and foreign language, each opening got hundreds of qualified applicants. Unless you’re really specialized, it might be pretty difficult to find a job quickly.
Special Ed is in a class of its own. Those teachers seem to get jobs more quickly, but they burn out more quickly, too. That’s an extremely difficult job.
IIRC, OP lives in New York City and is an applicant to the NYC Teaching Fellows program, who are targeted to high-need subject areas and high-need geographical areas.
Unless I’ve confused him with someone else, which is quite possible.
A friend of mine got qualified to be an elementary school teacher at about age 35. 10 years later the friend is still working odd jobs and trying to get a teaching position, even in an inner city school system.
The critical problem is he is male and no school district in Missouri will hire a male teacher. They’re all terrified; certain that any male wanting to teach school is actually a child molester.
And before that, it was No Child Left Behind. I can name a half-dozen people off the top of my head who left education, often at a huge financial and personal cost, just because of NCLB. 
Oh, good grief. With all the stories about FEMALE teachers carrying on with their students, they should be concerned about them, too. :rolleyes:
Omg seriously?
Nope that isn’t me
Not the answer you want to hear, but it depends 100% on the district and state you’re looking to teach in. Pay, benefits, contract details, and all the rest are wildly variable state by state.
I’m not here to get an answer I like I’m here for an answer that is the truth. I would have to agree with what you wrote about it all being location based.
Yes. 100% seriously.
Being as he lives in the crotch of the pants held up by the Bible Belt there seems to be some pretty backwards thinking thereabouts.