Middle School Teacher Training

Schools by State
for Middle School Teachers:

AL AR AZ CA CO CT DC DE FL GA HI IA ID IL IN KS KY LA MA MD ME MI MN MO MS MT NC ND NE NH NJ NM NV NY OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VA VT WA WI WV WY

Career Highlights for
Middle School Teachers

Training generally required for this career includes: Bachelor's degree.

Jobs and Salary
Median Salary (2008)	$49,700
Unemployment Vs. Other Jobs	Very Low
Jobs (2006)	658,000
Job Growth (2006-2016)	11.2%
Jobs (2016 forecast)	732,000

Flexibility
Working Part-Time	10%
Self-Employed	0%

Education of Current Workers
Bachelor Degree or Higher	95%
Some College	5%
High School or Less	0%

Relevant Job Titles

(Supplied by experts and industry contributors for this career category)

Algebra Teacher
American History Teacher
Art Educator
Art Instructor
Art Teacher
Band Director
Band Teacher
Bilingual Instructor
Bilingual Teacher
Choir Director
Classroom Teacher
Coach
Computer Teacher
Educator
English Language Arts Teacher (ELA Teacher)
English Teacher
ESL Instructor (English as a Second Language Instructor)
ESL Teacher (English as a Second Language Teacher)
Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher (FACS Teacher)
Grades 6 Through 8 Teacher
Grades 7 and 8 Teacher
Grades 7 and 8 Visiting Teacher
Gymnastic Teacher
Health and Physical Education Teacher
Health Teacher
History Teacher
Home Teaching Grades 7 and 8 Teacher
Humanities Teacher
Instructor
Instrumental Music Teacher
Intermediate Teacher
Junior High School Teacher
Language Arts Teacher
Language Instructor
Librarian
Library Media Specialist
Life Science Teacher
Literacy Teacher
Literature Teacher
Math Teacher (Mathematics Teacher)
Middle School Coach
Middle School Math Teacher
Middle School Teacher
Montessori Teacher
Music Educator
Music Teacher
Orchestra Teacher
Physical Education Instructor
Physical Education Teacher (PE Teacher)
Physical Fitness Teacher
Public School Teacher
Reading Specialist
Reading Teacher
Science Teacher
Social Studies Teacher
Spanish Teacher
Special Education Teacher
Substitute Teacher
Teacher
Technology Teacher
Visual Arts Teacher
Vocal Music Instructor
World Geography Teacher
World History Teacher

Information Sources

BrainTrack's information on colleges and careers is drawn from many sources, including government databases, BrainTrack's own research, and results from original data analysis algorithms.

Middle School Teacher Job Description

Career tips, salaries, and lists of schools.

To students in grades 5-8, teachers are key authority figures and role models. Middle-school-age youth are developing interests in specific areas such as math, music, English or science, and learning intense social lessons. Middle school teachers act not just as educators, but as coaches and facilitators. What their students learn from them can greatly influence their experiences and successes as adults.

Middle school teachers are responsible for educating youth according to national and state standards. Their responsibilities include:

Instructing youth in intermediate levels in math, English, history, science, music, art, social sciences and physical education
Specializing in particular areas of emphasis, often determined by what roles need to be filled at the school
Creating lesson plans, planning field trips and inviting guest speakers
Presenting established curricula as selected by the school
Preparing students for and conducting national and state tests and assessments
Using computers, games, music, artwork, videos, experiments, books and goal-setting to motivate students to learn
Selecting required instructional materials and resources
Administering and grading homework and tests
Monitoring behavior; instilling discipline and productivity
Coaching individual students and groups; promoting development of social skills through group interaction
Adapting lessons to different levels of learning ability within a group
Addressing current issues in the news, and happenings in the world and local community
Encouraging understanding of racial and cultural diversity, and social mores
Exposing students to potential careers

In many cases, middle school teachers rotate classes, spending less time with each student than elementary school teachers. They may have larger classes in public schools, or smaller classes in private schools. A two-month summer break allows middle school teachers time to plan for the next school year and to take continuing education courses.

Middle School Teacher Degrees and Middle School Teacher Schools

Middle school teachers usually get started in their career by earning a bachelor's degree in education from a college or university. They usually need to be sophomores before they can apply for admission to an education program. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and the Teacher Education Accreditation Council award accreditation to schools with educational programs.

Those interested in becoming teachers who hold bachelor's degrees in unrelated fields can attend 1-year professional development programs which qualify them for licensure.

Middle School Teacher Classes

Required coursework for an education degree typically begins during the sophomore year. Areas of study include:

philosophy of education
teaching methods
psychology of learning
use of computers and other learning technologies

In addition to these classes, middle school education students usually take course in areas of specialization such as math, English, the physical and social sciences, music and / or art. Most middle education students are expected to participate in a student-teaching internship as well.

Online Middle School Teacher Classes and Programs

Obtaining a degree or credential in middle education through an online program can be a convenient option. At least one school with an online program is accredited by TEAC. Online schools, however, may be less likely to help set up student teaching internships or assist with job placement upon graduation.

Middle School Teacher Requirements

The traditional career path for middle school teachers involves obtaining a bachelor's degree in middle school education before obtaining a teaching license. Due to high demand for public school teachers, most states now allow graduates with bachelor's degrees in non-related fields to attend one-year professional development programs to qualify for licensure.

Teachers who work for private schools do not need to be licensed but must have a bachelor's degree in education.

A potential teacher's state board of education or licensure advisory committee usually grants licensure for grades 5-8. Each state has different specific requirements, but most require a bachelor's degree, completion of an approved teacher training program, and practice teaching that is supervised. They may also require a minimum grade point average, training in technology and / or a master's degree at some point in the future. Graduates from a school accredited by the NCATE or TEAC find this to be an advantage when obtaining licensure.

How to Evaluate Middle School Teacher Schools

Consider asking these questions when comparing middle education programs:

Location - What does the state require for licensure? What states fund education well and offer the best amenities for teachers?
Reputation - Where do the school and its education program rank nationally? Is the program accredited by TEAC or NCATE? If an online program, have direct-learning organizations granted accreditation?
Class size and courses - Are class sizes conducive to particular styles of learning? Are course offerings comprehensive?
Tuition and financial assistance - Are loans, scholarships and work study programs available? What support is available to help students take advantage of these opportunities?
Student-teaching internships and job placement - Does the school facilitate placement in student-teaching internships during school and jobs after graduation? Are the kinds of internships that are available relevant and desirable? How many graduates are successfully placed?

Apply For a BrainTrack Teaching Scholarship

BrainTrack offers a scholarship for teaching students that are planning to teach any grade between kindergarten and 12th grade. The scholarship gives a winning and runnerup award every semester to students currently in a teaching degree program, which can include bachelor's or master's degrees. Applicants are asked to provide essays on their experiences as a teaching student.

Scholarship Details and Submission Form

The BrainTrack Scholarship for Teaching helps current students pay for their education. Entrants must respond to essay questions that are geared toward helping people evaluate teaching as a potential career path. BrainTrack will publish those essays which prove most helpful to future students.

The scholarship is open to students with at least one semester of credits towards graduation with an appropriate degree in teaching. One student award of $1,000 for the best entry and one of $500 for the second best entry is planned for each of two semesters, on an annual basis. Entry deadlines are November 1 and March 1, with awards payable towards the student's current or following semester.

Winners will be selected based on the creativity, focus, overall thoughtfulness, accuracy, and practical value of their responses to essay questions. Determination of winners will be undertaken by a committee that includes independent judges familiar with teaching as well as BrainTrack staff.

For more background on BrainTrack and its scholarships, please visit About BrainTrack Scholarships.

How to Apply

Submit answers to questions designed to help those considering teaching as a career path. All answers must be entered into the scholarship entry form, which is started by clicking the I Agree button below.

Rules

Scholarship entry deadlines are November 1 and March 1 of every year. The deadline for the next scholarship award is March 1, 2010.

The scholarship competition is open to enrolled students who have completed at least one semester of credits in a teaching degree program and are currently pursuing a degree. Students must be enrolled in one or more relevant classes at the time of the entry deadline. Students may be in either a full-time or part-time program. They may also be enrolled in an on-campus and/or online program.
Winners will be notified by email and telephone, typically within six weeks following the entry deadline. All award payments are made to the school, toward the student's tuition.
Candidates may submit only one entry every 12 months.
Entrant's school must be in the US and have accreditation recognized by the US Department of Education.
Entrant must be a US citizen, have permanent resident status, or have an appropriate student visa.
Entrant must be living in the US or if living abroad entrant must be a US citizen or permanent resident currently enrolled in an online degree program with a qualified US-based school.
All submissions become the property of BrainTrack's publisher, FutureMeld LLC, and entrants grant permission to FutureMeld to use their essay answers, school name, and degree status for promotional or other purposes.
Entrants that are selected as finalists will be contacted by FutureMeld to provide one or more references from their school. FutureMeld will contact the reference(s) to verify an entrant's qualifications for the scholarship.
For non-winning entrants, FutureMeld will keep a student's name, contact information, and references private for use only in conjunction with this scholarship.
Winning entrants will have their name published. Winners must agree to a brief telephone interview with a BrainTrack staff writer for publication as part of the winners' announcement.
BrainTrack reserves the right to change rules between scholarship competitions at its discretion and to make rule clarifications at any time as needed.
Questions or comments? Please contact BrainTrack using our contact form.

Relevant Schools That Respond Quickly to Info Requests Through This Site

School names link to detailed profiles. Use the Info from the School link to contact the school directly for more information. You may request information from as many schools as you like.

School	Campuses	Awards	Info
Alvernia College	PA	Certificate	Info From School
Ashford University	Online	Bachelor	Info From School
Bethel University	MN	Certificate	Info From School
Strayer University	DE, VA, AL, MD, UT, GA, NC, PA, WV, TN, FL, DC	Master	Info From School
Strayer University Online	Online	Master	Info From School
University of Phoenix	AZ, UT, IN, NV, CO, ID, TN, CA, FL, HI, NM	Bachelor, Master	Info From School
University of Phoenix Online	Online	Associate, Bachelor, Doctorate, Master	Info From School
University of Saint Mary	Online	Master	Info From School
Walden University	Online	Master	Info From School

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