Teaching English
Not that I am tired of being a professional writer(/vlogger*), but I would like to teach English to a small group of smart high school students. Just one class, I think. I think I'd be reasonably good at it, but not too good. I wouldn't be Robin Williams in Dead Poets' Society good. I would be the English teacher in 10 Things I Hate about You good, I think.
But I can't do this without a master's degree in education, which I don't want to get.
Solutions?
*I mean, at some point, I am going to accept that I am better-known as a vlogger than an author. But not today.
posted by John Green @ Sunday, September 07, 2008
90 Comments
90 Comments:
you dont need a masters degree or certificate to teach in private schools. if they like you and think you could teach they can hire you. you should come try to teach at my school. its not in indiannapolis but its not 20 hours away either. its in cincinnati; its called seven hills.
Well I hope you can do it without the masters because I am almost done doing just that. And for the record, I've already decided to bring John Green into my classroom with your books. I think that students would really get excited to learn though, if you would actually come into my room, next time you're in Grand Rapids or something. Because last time, I you just signed my book :) So my solution is, without your degree, you should visit my classroom for one class, and teach them! Inspire them! Make them love to read! Then, you'll have your wish, and I'll have mine, and they'll love you. Ps... I think the teacher in 10 Things I Hate About You is great.
Well I have no idea but.....
I'd wanna be in that class.
That'd be awesome
I've heard of successful after-school programs in which an English teacher and a librarian partner up to discuss literature with really motivated kids. I'm sure a teacher would be delighted to have an author lead a program like that.
Have you ever thought of teaching an English class online? You could limit it to 10-15 students and do some sort of online chat. Even if you only did it for a few weeks (more as a seminar than a class?) I think it could be pretty cool.
You could always hold a "book club" of sorts at a library or an after-school activity and just go more in depth like an English teacher would.
I don't know a solution, but if it helps, the English teacher at my school could be your similar looking fraternal twin brother. I'm pretty sure he's a closet nerdfighter, whether he knows it or not.
Private schools tend to have no standards (they aren't required to by state laws and there is a massive demand for teachers). You can actually teach with an undergraduate degree, but it's probably easier or as easy to get a masters. You could do teach for america which amounts to lengthy (2-3 year contract) substitute teaching status (i.e. minimal certification/qualification) pretty much, dunno if you can choose your subject. I think some schools even let you teach for a bit as long as you state a time frame for getting accredited so if it doesn't pan or you love it, either way you have space, but I'm not entirely sure about that.
I can vouch for the "private school teachers don't need masters degrees." My private school had teachers with all different random degrees, though the ones with masters were usually better than those with BAs. Though trying to imagine you teaching at my high school is pretty funny, it was all girls prep and we would have eaten you alive.
My high school doesn't require Masters degrees. It's a private school in Cary, NC. It's a fantastic school, actually, and I know I would DIE to take the class.
Yeah, I was going to suggest a glorified book club, too. But how do you know that you don't want a masters in education? I mean, you might really enjoy getting one. You could learn cool stuff.
I'm pretty sure Lit would be a lot more interesting if you were teaching it. Although, most of my AP teachers are pretty cool.
You could teach as a guest lecturer at a community college.
before you get a job as a teacher at a private school or whatever, i think it would be cool if you did an online class. or start a youtube book club where you guide people through the books and everyone can discuss them, and you get feedback. you can even assign papers, and i bet people would do them.
did you know that you can get an accredited masters degree online for your Masters of Education? a friend of mine is doing that here in cincinnati and is now doing his student teaching.
my husband wants to do pretty much the same thing, teach a small group of smart high school students. he's aiming at private schools too.
Prep school! My dad teaches at one--small classes, and you don't need a masters degree, he didn't get one for like ten years after he started teaching there, and he taught English there. Plus you'd probably get to teach The Catcher in the Rye.
I think you could come to my school (only about 2 hours away from you in Louisville) and teach a class. That would be so jokes and I bet that my English teacher would go for it. It's not high school, but it is a very smart class of 8th graders, so it is almost?
I bet everyone would be so psyched. We had Patrick Carman come the year before last (author of The Land of Elyon series) and everyone loved it.
If you did teach a class, I had better be in it. Because you were the only one who was able to explain the political situation in Georgia (and Nepal and Pakistan) to me in understandable terms. I think you would make the most jokes teacher ever.
As someone who taught high schoolers before pursuing grad degrees, the difference between junior/senior high schoolers and freshmen in college is pretty minuscule. I would start by trying to get a course at a community college or small university. The other option would be to find a school that participates in an emergency certification process (they hire people who have degrees and life experience but not ed credentials)
Ooh do an online class at, like blog TV. I don't know if you can limit how big the main room is, but you could let, say, the first 30 or so people in and teach whatever you'd like to. I would attend that sort of online class! It would be made of awesome :D
Teach homeschoolers! If you find the right group, they're smart, motivated, and you can teach using almost any format (and any time) you want. I'd suggest finding a home school co-op to work with and offer a class through that. I was home schooled and I would have LOVED to attend an English class by an author.
I should mention that I teach adolescent lit and your books and I live in Illinois. If you ever want to try out a guest lecture, I'd gladly hand over my class for a day.
Well, if you ever do go somewhere as a guest lecturer or something, I will be there. Hands down.
A John Green lecture/seminar would be made of so much awesome. :]
Online teaching? Pick a group of lucky people and personally tutor them via Skype or something. :P
You have no idea how often I've thought about how awesome my life would be if you were my English teacher, John. Seriously.
xxx Kayley
You don't need a Master's in Education to teach in many states. After homeschooling me for several years and then substitute teaching while I went to high school, my mother decided to become a full time teacher. Many districts have special certification programs that allow you to teach full or part-time as long as you complete the program within a predetermined time frame. It is sort of costly and takes up quite a bit of time, but if it's something you'd really like to do you should look into it. Good luck! (Best wishes?)
Private schools.
I agree with Kayley.
And I would love to be in these hypothetical tutoring sessions of awesome.
I was just thinking the same thing last week, when I was visiting a particularly motivated and wondrous school. Considered leaving it all behind and becoming a teacher.
Then I thought about having to go back to University and went all cold and twitchy.
*sigh*
first we need a catapult, an ice pic and a watermelon. The rest will fall into place.
Or you could do an online class and Nerdfighters could be your students. It's not tactile, but it serves the purpose
I'm sure any GOOD HS English teacher would love to have you take over a class. You just have to find one!
I don't know about everyone else, but I'd happily take a BlogTV online class from you. Although, I won't be in high school for much longer. Eh, I'd take it anyway! :)
I have to say that you do strike me as the English teacher type. Like, a good English teacher. Maybe verging on awesome. I've known some teachers who are your brand of awesome and I think adding your number to theirs would be a nice thing to do for the future nerdfighters. However, as much as teaching at private/prep schools could get the job done, I'm a little hesitant to send you into that kind of environment. No offense. I feel like the public school kids need you more *says public school kid*
If your heart isn't absolutely set on high school, you could try teaching a class at a community college. If you taught freshman English, you'd still be teaching kids about the same age as high schoolers. Plus, community colleges are much less stringent about what they require of their teachers than regular colleges.
But honestly, I bet you could teach in just about any high school (private or otherwise) without any additional schooling. I mean, come on, you've made a successful career out of reading/writing! Who could possibly be more qualified?
Have you thought about workshops? There's one for young writers of speculative fiction - the Alpha SF/F/H workshop, here - http://alpha.spellcaster.org/
Maybe something like that?
The governor's honors program in georgia highered my friend Harry Thomas as a grad student in lit. to teach. He got to teach a class on southern lit, a class on fiction writing, and a class on batman. Batman! And one of the other teachers has taught classes on Gay literature, on Wicked, on Beofwulf, on LOTR,on Star Wars, and on whatever he damn pleases. All the kids there have to interview and so they all really want to be there and are all total nerdfighters. It's basically nerd camp. The communicative arts program is really neat. If you are interested you should go to www.vsu.edu/ghp
You could teach a small online group. You'd have to limit it and probably have to deal with some sort of application process (eek! work!). Of course, that wouldn't earn any money, but I doubt that was your aim.
I've had techers in public school in Michigan that I know didn't have masters degrees.
Well, if you decide to do the online workshop type option that people are suggesting, I would SO get in on that. I'm not in high school anymore, but I'm going to a community college for Graphic Design, which means no more General Education classes. I was afraid of missing good English classes, but if you were teaching something like that, it would be amazing.
You can enter a credential program and most likely get out in under a year, no master's required. The best part of it all is the student teaching, you'd spend the year working in a high school lit classroom under another teacher developing lesson plans and actually teaching the lessons, almost from day one.
w00t john!
english is the best subject
I'd be disappointed if you taugh science or something
then you'd be 'serious john, too smart for his own liking' instead of 'cool john, so hip he's to fly for his own good'
...or something like that
I agree with Kayley also. I've got just over a month of high school here in Australia to go (I'm at a private school and I'm fairly sure you only need a DipEd, my mum's an English teacher) and I would take high school English again to learn from you. And I love my English teacher. Then again I just love English.
Though some commenters suggest community college, you'd actually need a masters for that; far easier is the emergency credential (for public school) or private school teaching route. That said, you could probably teach writing (not literature) in either high school or community college w/o an advanced degree since three novels pretty easily qualifies as the "or equivalent" that they always list as an alternative credential to the masters. We're all about credentialing in academe, alas, but I think you could get a credential online fairly easily. Or start by substituting--you can do that with an emergency credential (no master's required), at least in my state and I assume many others.
(BTW I reviewed Paper Towns yesterday...)
You can become certified in English without getting your master's degree. Many universities do it and you have to take classes but not as many as for a masters degree.
P.S. When are you going to tell us where you will be on your tour dates? Right now we only know the cities but when are we going to get more specifics? I know I am going to be at the Pittsburgh date and I want to bring students of mine who have read your books, but I need more details so I can tell parents.
You would be better than the English teacher in The Dead Poets' Society. I'm just sayin'. And I know that in some public school systems you don't have to have your Master's at all. In TN, or at least in Blount County, you only need your Bachelor's degree in the subject and a minor in education. Anywho, I guess that isn't the case for Indianapolis. You should just contact a school and find out b/c, honestly, those kids would love English so much more if you taught it to them.
Teach for America? I don't think you need a Master's, but I think you have to commit for a certain amount of time, and they might put you wherever they need you, not necessarily just in Indiana.
Maybe you could write a grant for a writer-in-residence program. Or, if you're willing to teach online, I could find you a small group of high school kids in about 10 minutes. Or, just do it on blogtv...although the group might be a little big.
Good luck.
You could apply for private schools because they don't require certification. You could also do some sort of summer camp or after school club or tutoring program. You could also find out if there are any nerdfighter English teachers around you, because I'm sure they would love it if you went to their classrooms to teach their students!
or....Tutor students in English at your local library or tutoring center. You could charge extra for being an "expert".
I agree with Heather. Additionally, you could always do sort of Master Classes. Given, you wouldn't be teaching a class for an entire year - you could probably get a week or two, though - but it's still something. You should call high schools, and I bet they'd love to have to do a workshop on something (not necessarily writing). Good luck. Anyone would be lucky to be taught by you.
Teach a class for homeschoolers? I know there are a lot of people around here who teach science to homeschoolers one day a week or something like that. It could be a more intensive class than in a lot of school settings.
Hi John,
I think the world needs more good teachers and I think you'd be one of them. I'm inclined to believe that it differs from state to state. In California (if I'm not mistaken) you don't need a master's degree in order to teach K-12 (or even community college for that matter, or wait even university teaching doesn't require a master's) but teaching credentials which can be had after fulfilling a few classes and taking a few state exams.
Following your blog has made me think about teaching and also made me wish I had majored in English Lit back in undergrad. Instead I followed the lucrative path of Language Studies (French) double majored with Theatre Arts. Then a few years after undergrad, I put myself back in school to study Graphic Design. Ah, well.. what are you gonna do?
The thing about teaching that intimidates me is the crappy bureaucracy (wow. I really don't know how to spell that word) that I'd have to deal with. Or the crazy parents. Because as all my friends who are teachers will attest: The students are AWESOME. It's the other stuff that bogs you down and makes it seem like any other job.
But I suppose all this is neither here nor there. Whatever route you choose with this teaching idea, I'm sure you'll excel and inspire. Good luck to ya! er... Best Wishes!
Honestly I'd rather have the English teacher from 10 Things I Hate About You than Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society as an English teacher. If anything you'd be better than my English teacher from last year who, when we were discussing Crime and Punishment, got, like, really angry that we didn't find prostitution to be morally reprehensible.
Well, I don't think this is what you had in mind, but you could always teach English as a Foreign Language like I did in Japan. Most programs are just looking for people with a Bachelors.
Singing "Head Shoulders Knees and Toes" 5 times daily may not exactly be "Catcher in the Rye" but it was still pretty Awesome.
You could have a kind of English club or something like it and lead the discussions of books.... But that probably wouldn't be with High School students. You could try that out for a while at a university or through a bookstore and then if you really like it enough, maybe you'll be motivated to get your Masters! :D I think you would be an incredible English teacher, just for the record.
you can kind of tour and go to different high schools to teach. although, knowing us high school kids, most of us would be bored to death and hate you.
i wouldnt though. cuz i love you.
or you could...have an after school class? hehe.
im not sure.
but i hope you do fulfill ur wishes. cuz u deserve it.
cuz u rock.
:)
It's not high school kids, but you should go and teach at Vermont College in their MFA in writing for children and adults. And I am so completely 100% serious.
You would be an AMAZING teacher!
If you taught at a private high school you would not have to have a Masters or a teaching credential.
But if you were to go back, I'd suggest an MFA, because basically you're just writing and workshopping, stuff you do anyway.
I think your long-term destiny is to be a creative writing lecturer at a small college somewhere. Some writers are good at writing, some are good at public speaking, you are great at both, which is pretty rare.
As a fan of your Catcher in the Rye commentary on youtube, I think you would make an outstanding English prof. If you don't already have a Master's in English or American Lit, it can never hurt - besides, you'd be a celebrity in all your classes. If you don't go that route, you can still count on your loyal students whenever you do youtube commentaries to open up in depth discussions on the literature you choose to dissect.
You could do private schools and you could always be a professor at a small college
Gather some Nerdfighters (of any age) and just teach them whatever you want to. I know most of us would love that!
I say you just invite a bunch of high school nerdfighters to come and listen to your one-time-teachings!
Do you know where you don't need a master's degree to teach?
England!
Seriously, I think it's the best way forward. Plus, my English Lit class is just made up of about twelve of us. How soon can you be here? I have English first thing tomorrow (8.45am BST) and we're talking about Rudyard Kipling. Will you join us?
No, in all honesty, I think you'd be fantastic and I'm sure there's a way you can do it. I don't know if in the USA they have some very part-time teachers as they do here, such as my Philosophy teacher who only teaches two classes - ours is a class of seven.
Everyone else's comments seem to be veering towards private schools, a subject I have very little knowledge about, much less those in the USA. The very best of luck (and best wishes, of course!) with it if it's something you decide to pursue, though.
- Rosi
P.S. (And I think it's something that you should pursue as long as it doesn't stop you from writing those incredible books of yours :) )
I'm working on my Literature M.A. right now, with the intention of going on to teach at the community or full-time college level (you're welcome to come guest teach a session in the composition course I'm grad teaching, next time you're in Colorado).
If you only want to teach for a semester or two, you might try to network any connections you've forged on your book tours and come into a university as a visiting writer. You'd be focused more on the creation of literature than interaction with it, but your authorly credentials can take you far. It's very common at the higher ed level to have seminar courses with published writers: you wouldn't, obviously, be teaching to high school students, but your class would probably have a good slice of eager frosh-types. Just a thought.
You've got to be kidding! You could get a job in private school in a snap. Around here you need a Masters in your content area to teach at the local community college or to teach the "college in the classroom" course (college credit offered in the HS) but not just to teach. In public school you do need teaching credentials though. If you're serious check out any private school in your area. It sounds like you'd be a great teacher.
um move to louisville. jcps has this thing where you can get your teachers degree without all the other masters classes while you start teaching. and you could teach at manual, which is basically a school of really bright people.
and louisville, despite it's huge amounts of suckiness, also contains a fair amount of nerdgfighters. expecially at manual. manual is like a school for nerdfighters.
or become a long term sub, for like, pregnancies, and stuff like that. you def. don't need a degree for that.
Teach at my school! Where some of the teachers aren't even licensed before they are hired.
Upside: I would PUSH to get in your class. Yay Nerdfighter teacher that will actually help me (:
Downside: I live in the middle of nowhere, and I question the intelligence of my peers hourly.
Plus: You sort of remind me of one of my English teachers here (That I love!), but just the way I'd imagine you to teach ^_^
I thought you only needed a bachelors to teach (if not, this seriously puts a stop on my fun option job. Yes, i think teaching would be fun)? No, I'm pretty sure you only have to have your bachelors degree to teach here in CA, and maybe take a exam/more course or something because that bachelors ins't in education. Not exactly sure but a masters insn't required in most schools.
However, you could become a substitute teacher very easy. All you have to do is hold a bachelors degree and pass some competency test. And that way if your called in to substitute you can just take over that class and turn them all into nerdfighters :)
don't they have drive-through colleges nowadays?
ahh but the thing to remember is one day youtube will be "soooo last year" and your book will still be around to teach, inspire and entertain. so will vloging is short lived fame, your books, are long term fame. (untill books become "sooo last year" but then we have bigger problems)
I'd say do a workshop type thing..and I wouldn't worry about not having a Masters in Education, people will want to sign up for your class regardless. :)
come teach at my private school! all girls prep school in need of an english teacher.
we have teachers straight from college, no masters required.
There are plenty of summer camp opps where you would be welcome. In Ohio, there are camps for middle and high school gifted kids held around the state at various universities.
http://www.ode.state.oh.us Search on "summer gifted."
Also Ohio Wesleyan's "OWjL Program" for middle school gifted.
I'm pretty sure anyone who's ever seen you wished you were their English teacher. I do. But, as I live in Australia, that's not really seeming likely... I haven't got anything to suggest that hasn't already been said.
I just would like to reiterate that I would like to be part of that group.
If only you lived in Seattle. There are some alternative and semi alternative schools that would be willing and able to take you.
It's 2 a.m., and at 2 a.m. I'm not about to scroll through 76 comments to see if this suggestion has been made yet, but have you considered offering your services as a guest lecturer at nearby schools? Just cold call them and ask to speak to the head of the English department. I dragged my father to do some guest lecturing once or twice while I was in high school; my teachers seemed to appreciate the break, and the other students seemed to appreciate the change of pace. Case in point, my dad spoke about the topic of family law, which is a very dry and at times depressing subject, and kids whose names I didn't even know were coming up to me afterward and proclaiming, "I LOVE YOUR DAD!" As a guest lecturer, you would be able to dictate your own schedule and determine for yourself how far away from home you want to travel, and being a novelty, you'd be pretty much guaranteed a rapt and receptive audience. And if you don't receive a rapt and receptive audience... well, at least you never have to go back again, right? Downside, you probably wouldn't get paid for it... but you'd be doing a service to whatever education boards happen to exist around you, and let's face it, someone has to help out where education is concerned. Personally I think you'd make an excellent guest lecturer and that it would be a very inspiring event for any students who would get to hear you speak.
What if you just got a buncha kids together, like a book club (the NF book club is cool, but you don't really meet with them), and you could teach about the books the club reads. If you're really that concerned about getting paid, you could have everyone pay dues or something.
at my high school, we have a "career day" which sounds lame, and is, but also is very enjoyable.
you could come and use one of our classes to do whatever you like.
Oh, in the way of people who sort of resemble John...The Iowa governor's speech writer looks a good deal like a potential John twin...
Teach at Indian Springs. Technically you don't need a degree to teach there, and they'll accept you because you went there, and they're looking for English teachers. Plus the school is full of nerdfighters, and your memories... And Mr. Lusco.
In North Carolina, and in many Southern states, you only need a 4 year degree, and to pass the Praxis test. You get hired as, what is called, a Lateral Entry teacher. The school pays for you to take the certification classes, and you have 3 years to do so. About 30% of the state is Lateral Entry, and having a masters is never required (only rec. so you'll get a 10% pay increase). It's also very easy to get a job in the South as we are very short on teachers. Good luck in your search!
I actually read Katherines about 2 years before B2.0 just because I was bored and my local library featured it. Greatest accidental book I ever picked up, by the way.
I think that you already have 83 Comments on this, but as someone who is Currently in her last semester of school working towards becoming a teacher, I know the feeling of the desire to do the best job EVER but not totally for sure if the going to school thing makes it worth it.
I for one think it IS worth my sacrifice in time to continue to be in school to get my masters so that I am a better teacher for those kids. I want to be THE BEST teacher they could possibly have, and if that means I need a masters, then I'll have a masters.
You however have the amazing talent, however, of already being a famous, published writer who has clearly demonstrated your ability to garner the attention of teenagers and get them to do Good Things, as well as write, and read critically in english. This, I feel, would make you an excellent candidate for entering the teaching arena via non-traditional methods, such as Sharon suggested, you getting a Writer in Residence at a local college. If you could then hold workshops with high school students (Which i think you would be prepared to do; and workshops would typically contain only highly motivated, intelligent kids), then you would make the university AND the local school district AMAZING, and they would be all for it. While You would also have to deal with the bureaucracy, which is a Pain beyond belief, at the end of the day, if you positively affect just ONE kid, and perhaps help them grow their own affection and respect for a work of literature, then you will (hopefully) enjoy it, and the effort/time investment would be worth it. :) Have a fun 10 weeks!
That is perfect! I have a Master's Degree and I was just thinking I would like to write a book like Searching or Alaska and you have an awesome writer's brain and you were thinking you would like to teach. We should switch for a few days!
okay, john green, i have come up with a solution, and it just makes SO MUCH SENSE.
first of all, i just read in "faith and science" that you are a christian who feels exactly the same way about using the word "christian" as i do. then i read in this blog that you want to teach a small group of intelligent high school students, but you don't want to get a master's degree. my school, barrington christian academy, started a ninth grade in 2006. i was in that ninth grade, and now i'm in that eleventh grade. we have a full faculty, including two english teachers, but we could actually use another one because we're adding 12th grade next year. my class has eleven people in it. a lot of us are pretty smart, and we all really want to learn.
a lot of the teachers at bca either have their masters or PhD, but teachers are hired on the basis of how good a teacher they would be, not how long they've been to school.
BCA IS AWESOME. come and teach us your nerdfighting ways!
p.s. ...................bca is in rhode island
if you actually seriously consider this (and i realize that would be improbable, because ripping up your life isn't nice), but you have NO WAY of figuring out what to do, go to www.bcacademy.org, or use google.
it's kind of a one in a million kajillion chance, but i'm a hopeful kind of person
I second Johanna's thought - there are many programs that are technically outside school, but can give school credit with special approval.
And, if you know of any schools in Indianapolis that tend to have interesting extra programs, it would be pretty easily set up. Many schools would jump at the opportunity if you approached them - and many would probably allow you to co-teach with a teacher or even start your own class since it's just a single one. Because you're not interested in teaching full time, the only document you would need to obtain in most places would be a substitute teaching license, but I don't think you would even need that.
If you were moving back to Ohio I'd just give you one of my classes, LOL, but because there are so many people in the comments that are willing for the same thing, I bet you'd easily work something out if you looked. :)
work at brebeuf!
so i came across this site since i was trying to find lesson plans for your book an abundance of katherines. I have a semester left before i am qualified to begin teaching and my class in young adult lit has me doing a small project where i'm researching lesson plans on a contemporary YAL novel. i'm not finding much, but here is some of my advice about getting in and being a teacher. I think most schools would be pumped to have you working on their staff. For the students to be working with someone who has really proven himself in the literary world to be teaching their class would make the experience a bit more authentic. that being said, to be a teacher in an environment that is not a private school would take some time and investment. I, for example, am getting a degree in secondary education with a concentration in English and after i start teaching i will be working on my masters in English. you could work on that or see if the success in the real world of literature would convince a school to give you a chance to see what you can do.
teach at private school. preferably my private school...
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