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human capital
April 21, 2009
Hoping to “fall back” into teaching? The jobs are scarce
With the economy in the shape it is, some people are considering pursuing teaching as a “fallback career.” But the reality is that the very same economy means that there are relatively few jobs for teachers this year. Looking at budget cuts and expecting fewer people to leave, many districts, including New York City, are cutting down on hiring.
The city’s Teaching Fellows program, the most prominent route into the classroom for career changers, is planning to accept significantly fewer applicants. I heard from one friend who got an acceptance last week, but far fewer applicants are being accepted than in past years. Two GothamSchools readers reported in the comments section of a post from January that their Teaching Fellows application statuses were finally updated last week: One was rejected, and the other was deferred even longer, until the city’s budget situation becomes clearer.
Still, the Department of Education has extended employment offers to some applicants it considers likely to be particularly successful in shortage areas such as math and English, through a new initiative called TRQ Select. (TRQ is the acronym for the Office of Teacher Recruitment and Quality.) This week, the DOE’s hiring office is using its Twitter feed to profile some of those new teachers in under 140 characters. Here’s an example: “Pia, ESL Teacher- Fordham grad, taught English in Haiti and Panama, served in Peace Corps in Morocco.”
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April 21st, 2009 10:13 pm
Last year Teaching Fellows had 3,000 fellows, rumor has it about 700 next year … will be interesting to see whether TFA has cuts … they seem to the the “darling” of the DOE
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April 21st, 2009 10:15 pm
I reported back in January that TFA was planning to cut its entering cohort from about 500 to 350 this fall. I haven’t heard any updates since then.
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January 17th, 2010 11:39 am
[...] with lawyers, is true of other fields too. There are few jobs for scientists, engineers, nurses and teachers. The outlook for humanities graduates is [...]
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January 17th, 2010 6:27 pm
“Fall back in to teaching” is a major misnomer for people who had lives in different sectors. It is typical of young professionals who go through recession to teach for a couple of years and then, when the economy improves, to move on.
The entire premise that you can simply “fall back into teaching” is used in a society that does not quite understand the demands of teaching, especially in urban school settings.
The only “Fall” that people can engage on is what their expectations of a teaching career can truly be. I have seen many several teaching fellows that become discouraged within the first 3 years and to imagine the type of schools and administrators they fall under. Not only can classroom management be a nightmare but when one is not really backed up by the administration, teaching in those circumstances can be like being caught in the trenches. Either you face uncertainty head on or you are shot by your own lines in the back.
PS: How can you “fall back on teaching”?
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