Recruiting Professionals to become teachers

[bennymacca]

i think this is a great idea - there is a huge shortage of maths and science teachers especially, and this might help

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nationa ... 5903417672

[rcon]

Is that like the Teach for America? I always thought it sounded like a good idea, but reports are having trouble backing up the enthusiasm for it.

I know an educator (secondary) closing in on the completion of her phd (HI MUM!) who thinks it is a rotten idea - too many people who think because they're experts in their chosen field, all their ideas are naturally good ones! Reports of teachers having students bring pillows into class to nap and crap like that.

Sounds great in theory, and hope it works but very skeptical.

[gundog]

I personally think this thread should be removed as it could invoke a political arguement.

This is not a suitable vehicle for such discussion during an election process.

[maccatak11]

So we aren't allowed to discuss politics on this forum? Of course we are. What the hell are you on about gunny.

Ill post my thoughts on this later, as it might be a longish post, but there are definite pros and cons to the plan.

[Garth Kay]

I personally think this thread should be removed as it could invoke a political arguement.

This is not a suitable vehicle for such discussion during an election process.

Are you serious or is this a Level?

Opinions are allowed as is debate on all topics!

[wabbit999]

I personally think this thread should be removed as it could invoke a political arguement.

This is not a suitable vehicle for such discussion during an election process.

Your quite right I'll be voting labor

[rcon]

Your quite right I'll be voting labor

BAN HAMMER!

[Brett Kay]

Those that can't do teach, those that can't teach teach gym.

It all comes down to how you can relate and get the point across and the person actually understanding the point itself.

I had a lot of practice with my uni friends and helping them with science.

But if i stuff this current job up, i would probably be first in line for a new degree in teaching.

Brett.

[gundog]

I was under the impression that politics, religion etc are taboo subjects.

[bennymacca]

who has said this?

pretty sure we have had these topics before. in any case, this is about the idea of professionals moving into teaching, not politics. this idea has been around for a while, and gillard has obviously decided to go with it.

i have a personal interest in this, because my maths class only had 2 people in it, and i thought that was disgusting. further to that, i am now an engineer, someone who would be targeted to work in maths or science. and at least 2 people in my immediate family are teachers.

back on topic.



this is how i see it. i am mainly going to talk about maths and science.

as a professional engineer, i am sure i have more knowledge about maths, physics and electronics in my left nutbag than just about every teacher out there. even now, 8 years on, there are still specific things i remember my (very senior maths) teacher having trouble with that i could now solve in a heartbeat. granted, they would lose a lot of this knowledge if they dont use it, but the point is, an average engineering graduate would have an excellent knowledge of high school level maths and science.

having said that, i wouldn't know the first thing about teaching to students. i have tutored a few people in my time, and it is really hard.

correct me if i am wrong, but at present, i could go and do a diploma of teaching that would take a year or at most 18 months. this could easily be shrunk to an intensive course, as is proposed.


at the moment, teachers with very poor knowledge in subjects such as maths are being forced to teach it because there is noone else. i really dont envy these people, because it would be very hard for them to provide context to the things they are teaching, because they dont know the context themselves. it really is unfair on them.

when context is lacking, this is where the subjects become boring, and this is why students drop out.

i can imagine that a professional engineer with the proper training would be able to teach better than the average teacher, because they can say that they have been there and done that, and give real world examples. this is long term i am talking about, when all of the teaching fundamentals have been mastered.


the big problem will be how the professionals are transitioned into teaching. throwing them in the deep end after 8 weeks of training would obviously do more harm than good. but properly managed, over a few years, and i can see it being beneficial for both teachers, who get the benefit of learning from an expert in a field, and for the students.

I know an educator (secondary) closing in on the completion of her phd (HI MUM!) who thinks it is a rotten idea - too many people who think because they're experts in their chosen field, all their ideas are naturally good ones! Reports of teachers having students bring pillows into class to nap and crap like that.

im not sure what pillows and naps have to do with maths or whatever, but if it was me, i would be learning form the teachers on how to teach, and i think i could give my maths and science knowledge to them.

another potential concern would be with existing maths and science teachers who would feel threatened by someone from the outside coming in.

it is going to be interesting to see how this goes if it gets implemented, and i will be following it with interest.