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Why Teach?
A teacher makes you feel good about who you are and inspires you to become all you can be. As a teacher you can make a difference in the life of a child or youth in your community. Teaching is a rewarding career and well-qualified teachers are in demand!
Is teaching a good fit for me?
Schools in California reflect political, social, religious, cultural and ethnic diversity which require good teachers with varied teaching styles. Here are some aspects of a teaching career to help you decide if teaching is for you:
- Do you enjoy working with people? Teaching involves working with students on a daily basis with varying class size, parents, other teaching professionals, administrators and staff.
- Are you a good communicator? Teachers need well developed interpersonal and intercultural communication skills to build trustful relationships with their diverse students and parental communities. They also need to be able to instruct and express information that students can understand while maintaining effective reading, writing and speaking skills.
- Are you academically well prepared? All students deserve well educated teachers who, by example, can help them master basic skills of reading, writing and critical thinking, and who have a level of subject matter mastery that enables them to interest and inspire students.
Teaching involves a commitment to lifelong education and a passion to their students learning and development. If you enjoy learning, working with others, and helping others learns then teaching may be just the profession for you.
How do I get started?
One way to start is to register for the TEACh3 program at Orange Coast College online and register for Education 102. You may also work with your TEACh3 counselor to set up a personalized educational plan.
While you considering teaching as a career you will need to consider what kind of credential you will want. The three most common types of credentials are the multiple subject credential (typical credential needed for elementary school classroom teaching), single subject (typical credential for teaching a specialized subject in middle school or high school), or Education Specialist (typical credential for teaching in a special needs classroom).
How can Orange Coast College’s TEACh3 program help me prepare for a career in teaching?
There are several ways Orange Coast College’s TEACh3 program can help prepare students to become teachers. The program will:
- Help students assess ability and interest in teaching as a career.
- Provide a teacher preparation center on campus that will help counseling and mentoring students.
- Provide articulated coursework to California State University system credential programs as well as other universities.
- Provide classroom fieldwork in cooperation with local schools to allow students to determine if they enjoy teaching and to satisfy service hours towards their credential.
- Develop curriculum that addresses California K-12 Education Standards.
- Provide a content foundation to prepare an engaging, competent beginning teacher.
Our program prepares you to teach and engage the minds of young learners in diverse innovative classrooms. The coursework is designed to help you develop the teaching skills needed to face the challenges of todays and tomorrow’s teaching profession. You will be prepared to have an in-depth critical understanding of curriculum and the strategies for effectively teaching in innovative classrooms.
One of the greatest benefits of completing two years of your teacher education through Orange Coast College is the tremendous cost savings and our program streamlines the education process providing a direct path from community college to an accredited university for your bachelors degree and teaching credential in elementary, secondary or special education.
What else does the TEACh3 program have to offer?
The Orange Coast College TEACh3 program offers services and pathways for students who are interested in a career in teaching. Helping students with course selection, understanding the credentialing process, which level the student would like to teach, and helping with transferring.
The Orange Coast College TEACh3 program has an agreement with CSULB to provide the first two years of a CSULB Integrated Teacher Education Preparation
(ITEP). This program is another way of demonstrating competence by completing a state approved blended program in place of an exam and a 5th year credentialing program. Approved blended programs provide you with the content foundation and the teaching skills to be an effective educator in today’s elementary school classrooms. The program has been approved by the California Commission on Teaching Credentialing. The program is designed to satisfy a State of California legislative mandate for a blended teacher education program that integrates content, pedagogy, and student field experience.
What kind of financial aid can future teachers receive?
The Orange Coast College financial aid office will help you with your financial aid needs. Financial aid covers a wide variety of programs that help students pay for college. There are three major sources of aid which include the federal government, state government and educational institutions. Visit the financial aid office for more information on these types of programs.
Orange Coast Colleges Financial Aid Office is located in:
Watson Hall
Fourth Floor
Office Hours:
Monday -Thursday:
9:00 A.M. - 6:00 P.M.
Fridays:
9:00 A.M. - 2:00 P.M.
Contact Information:
Phone: (714) 432-5508
E-mail:
Other types of financial aid programs that are of interest to teachers are listed here:
This program provides a link between current and prior armed service members who desire to pursue a career in education by providing counseling, financial aid and placement assistance.
A National SMART Grant will provide up to $4,000 for each of the third and fourth years of undergraduate study to full-time students who are eligible for a Federal Pell Grant and who are majoring in physical, life, or computer sciences, mathematics, technology, or engineering or in a foreign language determined critical to national security.
Provides information on Cal Grants, APLE (Assumption Program of Loans for Education) is a competitive teacher incentive program designed to encourage outstanding students, district interns, and out-of-state teachers to become California teachers in subject areas where a critical teacher shortage has been identified or in designated schools meeting specific criteria established by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and other loan information.
Forgiveness loan program and other services.
Forgiveness loan program and other services.
Forgiveness loan program and other services.
Forgiveness loan program and other services.
What kind of salary can I expect to make if I become a teacher?
According to the California Department of Education Orange County salary survey of public school districts, average Elementary teacher salaries range from $45,526 to $66,539 per year, depending on experience, the size of the district and college units completed. Secondary (high school) teachers start at an average salary of $45,318, but average $68,642 per year after several years of experience.
What is the difference between a multiple subject and single subject credential?
A multiple subject credential authorizes teaching in “self-contained classrooms.” This includes almost all the elementary school teaching positions as well as some middle school and limited high school positions.
A single subject credential authorizes teaching specified subject matter courses in one of the following areas: agriculture, art, biological sciences, business, chemistry, English, foundational-level mathematics, geosciences (specialized), health science, home, history or social science, economics, industrial and technology education, languages other than English (specify), mathematics, music, kinesiology (physical education), physics (specialized), science (specify). It is required for almost all high school teaching positions as well as most middle school positions and limited elementary school teaching positions.
What should I do if I already have a bachelor’s degree?
Teaching in elementary, middle or high school are options. Other related careers included counseling, principal, school administrator, superintendent and college/university professor. There are several professional associations to belong to including The American Federation of Teachers, The California Teachers Association and The Parent teacher Association.
As a college graduate, you can complete a traditional preparation program, which consists of 2-3 semesters of coursework and student teaching beyond the BA degree, or if you have an offer of a teaching position, you can get a pre-internship or internship to teach while earning your credential. Contact the college/university you want to attend, visit TEACH California to search for a program.
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