Teaching: A Door to a New World
Assistant superintendents can make up to $90,000 a year, while superintendents can easily reach over $200,000. Pre-condition? Having experience as a teacher (at least 3 years) and a master’s degree in educational leadership or management. That is a lofty goal for anybody who wishes to become a teacher, but there are many administrative positions that go unfilled every year. Curriculum specialists, coordinator special education, dean of students, principal, evaluation specialist, all these positions were taken verbatim from the Houston ISD website, with annual salaries ranging from $44,000 to $80,000.
Becoming a teacher does not necessarily mean that one will spend the next 25 years in the classroom, though many educators are happy to do so. There are many supporting “roles” to be filled in schools and administrative offices that are essential for the good functioning of the district. Ambitious professionals who wish to make an impact in education at a higher level can aspire to many positions, from working as a principal to being elected on the local school board or migrating to TEA (Texas Education Agency), where they can oversee the whole spectrum of education in the state.
My own district has several departments which bring their expertise to the various campuses, such as bilingual education, career and technical education, dyslexia, grants, migrant education, dropout prevention, and many others. Since our schools are composed mainly of Hispanic students, many of whom grew up in a Spanish environment, it is essential to tailor English instruction to their needs to make sure they succeed once they transition out of high school; a knowledge of Spanish is therefore quite useful for aspiring teachers, although not mandatory.
Should you decide to remain in the classroom, there are many other activities that are open to you. You can combine coaching with teaching if you are active in any of the sports that are popular in middle and high school. One of my best friends in special education is also the high school golf coach, which affords him an opportunity to travel with his team to regional tourneys, and to receive a nice stipend for his efforts. If you played football, the most popular high school sport, there are many positions open to you all over the state as a football coach.
Since a teacher works (very hard) approximately 185 days a year in his/her regular duties, it is easy to imagine that there is time to do more with the free time. You may decide to write a book about education, or lead a group of students to Europe during the summer, or to historical sites in the U.S., or take advantage of countless opportunities offered teachers. Another friend spent 3 weeks in Spain all expenses paid to learn about teaching strategies in that country and exchange views with local educators.
Do we have too many days off, as some people claim, compared to other professions? My answer is: We can never stop learning how to be better teachers; our dedication makes us look for opportunities to broaden our horizons, to update our knowledge, and to motivate our students to do the same. There is no more rewarding profession than teaching. You should try it sometimes!
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I think technical education solves the problem of unemployment. Technically educated people will at last earn even their bread in honest and honourable way. Many people think that this education lowers their dignity. They prefer to be hungry lawyers than well fed mechanics.