I did decide to go for it and sign up for the MATC - Masters in Education / Teaching Certification Program at North Park College.  I know that there are more certified teachers graduating these days than there are jobs to fill.  I do hope that in a couple of years school districts will be anticipating openings as the early baby boomers will be retiring.  Gosh, I hope so.  I’ve always wanted to teach but never pursued it.  I’m not sure what grade level I’d like to teach but I do know I am looking at  Elementary Education.  I also have enough classes/credits to be endorsed in Social Studies for middle school so that’s a plus.

I need 3 classes for Special Ed and am considering that as an option as I know it is a specialty in demand - that and Reading Specialist which really interests me but is not an option at my school.  Perhaps after I get my certificate and Master’s Degree I’ll pursue that option.

My first class is almost over.  I just started and I only have one more week - time flies.  We studied how the Brain learns and WOW.  A lot of it was common knowledge but so much was such an eye opener.  It also made me do a double take at our education system since much of what we learned about Windows of Opportunity (best learning times for children in different areas - musical instruments, foreign language, etc.) contradicts when we teach them.  The system is getting better but we are still a long way off.  All this and only one class.  It makes me wonder how teachers reconcile what they know about best teaching practices and the realities of the curriculum and class options available.  My guess is that they work with what they have and try to be the best teacher they can be with the resources they have. 

I have really enjoyed this class and look forward to the rest of them.  I also received my substitute teaching certificate and just got my mandatory TB testing done so I can apply to be a substitute teacher.  The job market for Marketing and Public Affairs is abysmal so this might be a great solution, plus it will give me an insight into different grade levels, etc. and maybe point me in a particular direction.  I look forward to subbing my first class.  I also hope it is a great way to network so that when I am certified as a teacher I might have a better chance to get an interview if I know some of the school personnel.  I’d love to work in our district here, how fabulous would that be?  I do know it is a difficult district to get into, but I sure will try. 

This class has taken me back to some of the great teachers I have had in the past - the ones who knew how to engage the children, and to some of the not-so-great teachers like my High School Geometry teacher who called our row (including me) “no-brains”.  All of us in the row did not do well in the class and I for one know that I shut down after a few of those comments. It wasn’t until college, many years later that I was able to overcome my math issues and start fresh.  From Elementary Algebra to Intermediate Algebra to College Algebra, Finite Math, Calculus, Statistics I and Statistics II, I finally felt I was able to do it.  Okay, maybe not Calculus (my only C in college and happy to get it!) but that’s okay.  I strive to be the teacher that can make a significant learning impact on my students, at the very least I want to be the teacher that does no harm to her students, by words or by actions - I want my students to know that each and every one of them “can do it”.