Elementary Ed or Secondary Ed...I need to choose one!?

Question

I'm currently set on Secondary cuz i want to teach english(pardon my grammatical errors ..lol), like genres and writing papers. But dealing with high schooler's attitudes intimidate me. I hear elementary ed is better cuz the kids still listen to u. I'm still floating on both majors. Any advice, please? Thanks.

its just internet slang...thats what i meant by grammatical errors. >_^
Because it seems funny for a want-to-be english teacher to write poorly.i was j/k.

Answer 1

It depends on your tolerance. i started teaching in middle age and i subbed in elementary first for the same reasons you said. they were too needy and clingy for me. they need constant entertaining and attention. middle schoolers i found, were from hell. still immature and silly but hormones. nasty to each other and no attention span. i got placed at a big high school as an art photog teacher and was scared at first of what attitudes i would get. but i'm still there 7 years now. i like the teens a lot better. they are not as bad as you think theywould be and you can joke with them a little and have off days and they sort of understand. and you get a new set every hour so if you get one that is rude, it's only for an hour a day. that was my take on it. but again, if i was younger, the elementary might have been preferable.

Answer 2

No! Go with your first instinct - Secondary Ed. Then work your way up and become a college professor someday. You will be paid well.

Don't let people intimidate you in terms of behavior. In elementary school, you will feel like you are BABY SITTING! You don't want that. The fact is, as long as you lay the rules up front and you tell students what is expected of them, and you follow through with consequences, you will be fine. I was afraid of secondary ed, so I started off early childhood, then elementary, middle, secondary, and even college! What a waste of time, it took me this long to realize that I preferred teaching the more sophisticated stuff to older students. So my suggestion is don't be like me - just because I thought I was afraid to deal with the older students, I went the opposite way and then it took all this experience from various levels to work my way up because I then realized that this is what I wanted.
Perhaps some experience subbing might lead you in the right direction -Good luck whatever you choose.

Answer 3

I'm an elementary education teacher and believe me....the kids don't listen to you. You may be able to control them more easily but as the saying goes...smaller kids....smaller problems....bigger kids....bigger problems. Teaching elementary school is much harder work mentally and physically too, than teaching secondary school. You are on your feet all day with the little kids too, at least K-3. Perhaps 5th, 6th or 7th may be nice grades for you to teach if you want older kids who will still listen and give you less "attitude" than high school kids would. Certification is different state to state, for instance in NY certification is N-2, 1-6 and 7-12, so you are kind of stuck unless you get dually certified. It also helps to have a special ed. certification too.

Answer 4

There are much higher expectations of teachers in elementary schools. Some teachers like this, while others feel working with high school students has more potential.

Have you considered becoming a Substitute teacher in your local public school system? This way you could see firsthand the differences in these age groups.

From a 20yr Substitute, who has encouraged dozens of subs to get hired as fulltime teachers.

Answer 5

If you want to TEACH English, learn to capitalize it!! Then set a good example by writing correctly and not using "internet" language. If one of your students handed in a paper written as your question was, you would (I hope) fail the paper. Choosing elementary vs secondary as a major has much to do with the age of students you most want to teach. Answer that question and act accordingly.

Chow!!

Answer 6

Secondary Ed is the way to go!! I taught HS for 8 years and LOVED every minute of it. Kids will have attitudes no matter what grade you teach. At the high school level, you will get more planning time, less parents to deal with, and have the chance to really dive into English - at the elem. level, you'd have to probably teach all subjects, leaving little time for you to really get into English.

Answer 7

If you can, substitute in an el ed classroom and a secondary classroom. I did both and found out very quickly I belong teaching high school english! good luck!

Answer 8

In elementary school you have to guide those kids through everything. You can't just tell them to read quietly for 10 minutes - they'll go nuts! In higher grades you have a little more breathing room to allow them more independent work - which you will need with papers to grade, lessons to write, paperwork to complete, etc...

Answer 9

subbing is a good idea to see where you would like to be. i like the older kids much better. i like their sense of humor and you can talk to them. i also like when the bell rings, you can just say, c-ya! i dont know....jr hi is my favorite grade level. granted i do special ed, i was a sub for a while and i found that that age suits me just fine. if you like english and literature, then stay with what you will enjoy teaching. you will be much happier in the end because you will be doing what you like. my calling was/is history, but i adore special ed and i wouldnt be anywhere else...
good luck!

Answer 10

Whoa, so you make English errors and ask for us to pardon you. Interesting.... Your writing skills indicate you need to take more basic classes. If you are intimidated by high school student, please don't major in secondary ed.