Friday, August 29, 2008

    Where to teach

    A new reader e-mails the following:
    Hello,
    I ran across your blogspot in an effort to discover colleges that I might apply
    to (to teach online). I JUST received my Master's in Elementary Ed. so I don't
    have very many options...as far as being qualified for teaching very much. I
    just wondered if you have any suggestions about where I could use my Master's
    to teach online? I have applied to Phoenix and am awaiting the next phase. They
    requested a whole packet of info, which I turned in...I am looking for more
    places to teach at, as I NEED the money desperately! And I have three small
    kids, so it's ideal for me not to have to leave home...
    Anyway, you are welcome to put this question on your blog, I just didn't want to
    take the time to set up a google account...so here I am.
    thanks so much!
    Sincerely,
    ~desperate for extra money :)

    This is a very trick question. Where to teach online has a lot to do with factors that you will have no control over: enrollment, fluctuations and moods of out-of-sight deans, etc.

    I would first begin asking, aside from the outright desperation, what sort of requirements you would be willing to fill. You sound, just by the note above, to be willing to accept just about anything. That will be fine for now, but watch out...the online faculty as pushed in ways onground are not.

    For instance, you will be asked to respond, in decent length and detail, to each and every posting, question or e-mail from your students. Not too bad if you have 1-3 sections, but it can get burdensome fast, especially once weekly grading kicks in. UofP is especially stringent about you answering questions in length (think 10 lines or so) to each student posting. You are expected to share a lot of yourself, your experience and your thoughts. If you can type quickly, you will be ahead of the game, but factor in at least an hour per day in answering each section. I didn't make that cut for them.

    Other schools will depend on their respective calls for Ed teachers. My experience is in Comp, so I don't know if I can recommend. I know that Capella prefers only PhDs. Baker College out of MI might be a place to look. Kaplan is another, although I don't know their Ed offerings.

    Staying home and grading is a great boon, but don't underestimate the time required. I feel, especially in the accelerated sections (UofP were 5 weeks long), you will be expected to put in a large amount of "face" time online.

    Hope this little bit helps.

    Would you like me to read this to you? Listen