Early Childhood or Middle Grades degree??

[ksumn1]

I've recently completed much soul searching about my life and career (or lack of one) and decided to make a change and go back to school (again). I've decided to get a degree in Education and eventually a Media Specialist certification as well. I feel strongly about the importance of education and love to read. If I can make a difference in one childs life then I will have made a worthwhile contribution to the world. However, I can't decide between an Early Childhood or Middle School specialization. There are things I like about both.

Early childhood offers the chance to work with younger children and instill in them a love of learning and sense of self worth. Every child has a strength, be it reading, writing, math or even coloring for the little kids. Overall I feel most younger children still like their teacher. I feel I could teach younger children but I really love reading and English, I'm not sure that I could bring that love and enthusiam to math or science.

Middle Grades offers the opportunity to specialize in the areas I love. There's such a wide range of books, magazines etc that I feel I can definately find a book or article to spark a students interest in reading. I also enjoy English and writing. At this level there is more "technical" language and writing involved that I will definately need to brush up on and really study more in depth before I can teach it to older students.

I'm really in a quandry. I'm weighing the pros and cons and it's almost equal. One factor that's not necessarily a teaching issue is the fact that in GA there seems to be a shortage of Middle School teachers. This means more job openings available after Graduation. Can anyone give me some insight into how you made your decision? Or any gems of knowledge to help me make my decision.

TIA!!!

 

[We_Love_Disney]

Middle school is a tough job. But, if you love it, you can really make a difference there. You can turn a kids life around and spark a love of learning. Elementary education is awesome, and kids are generally good and full of the desire to learn and please. Tough choice. If you can handle it, go for the middle school.

Good luck!

 

[lovetoscrap]

You have a big decision and it sounds like you are doing a good job of thinking it through.

The first thing I would ask is if you have ever worked for any length of time with either age group? They are definitely VERY different!

I majored in Early Childhood Education. One of the reasons that I decided on it was because I love younger kids. I had worked in Daycares and preschools since I was in my teens and Kindergarten was a shortage area in Illinois where I went to school. I was hired for both my teaching jobs because I had the ECE endorsement on my Teaching Certificate and I can pretty much get a job with any preschool or daycare at any time because I have the degree. It was also a very small program in the Education department where I went--Elementary Ed had hundreds of students. My ECE program had less than 20. Lots of individual time and an ability to really get to know and work with my fellow students and the professors for 2 years.

I can't stand older kids! I mean that in the best possible way as the parent of a Middle Schooler! They are just not an age group I have ever enjoyed in large doses. God Bless the Middle School teachers--- there is a special place in heaven for you!

You have to look at not only the educational issues but all the extra stuff you deal with in each age group. With the younger ones you end up wiping noses, tying shoes, dealing with occasional "accidents", overprotective parents sending their babies to school, planning and implementing craft projects, etc. etc. etc.

With the Middle Schoolers you are dealing with emerging hormones, bigger attitudes, larger class sizes (you could have 100 or more different students in one day), kids that are big enough to cause you harm, the potential for great discussions with kids that "get it" etc. etc. etc.

There certainly are good and bad points to each age group. I have found that most ECE teachers can't imagine ever working with Middle School age kids and vice versa. I would suggest you find some ways to volunteer with each age group and see what you really feel most comfortable. The academics of if you are teaching them to read vs. exposing them to great literature is really just a small part of the overall things you will deal with!

Best of luck!

 

[emma'smom]

Honestly...I think your either an ECE person or a MCE person. I remember back in ED100 (in the early 90's) thinking..."Hmm, should I teach high school or elementary school?" What was I thinking? I've been in the field of ECE for almost 20 years now and I can't imagine working professionally with MCE or HS. It just isn't my skill set and/or passion.

However, my colleagues in the MCE and HS levels say the same thing about ECE. They can't conceive of how to handle a group of 20 5 year-olds with some many personal needs moving in so many different directions all at once. For me, this is what I do best.

I think you have to just decide where your passion lies...and go for it.



P.S. I was at first going to say to choose MCE because it will be far easier to find a job. However, I tell my college students who are getting their teaching licenses not to use this as their basis for making a decision....they WILL find the right ECE job when the time is right. You know what...they almost always do!

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I am currently in an MAE (Masters of Arts in Education) program in Special and Elementary Ed. I will also be certified in Middle School Language Arts.

The first thing you need to do is check out your state's requirements. In my state you cannot have your primary certification in middle school. At our university is an endorsement, but you must have been an undergraduate major in that subject. The other way to get your certification (the route I am going) is to simply take the PRAXIS in the middle school content area you want.

I had my BA and was working at Disney when I decided to come back. Since I did not do the pre-MAE as an undergrand I had a semester of undergraduate work to complete first. Part of our state requirements is that before you can do your clinicals you have to do 55 hours of observation across different settings. This was a great way to see different grades in action and decide what I wanted. Perhaps your state does something similar.

The other thing is that my program has us do hours well above and beyond what the state requires to get our degree. To date I have observed/assisted in: Kindergarten, 3rd grade, and 4th grade. In the summer all the elementary majors teach summer school and I taught 6th grade reading, hence the reason I am getting middle school language arts, I loved it! This fall as part of the special ed professional development school I will be doing a 7th grade and a 4th grade special ed placement. This is all before I do my teaching internship.

Make sure that your program puts you in a variety of classrooms, that has been one of the biggest learning experiences for me. I have done stuff on early childhood and in middle school. I love both but prefer middle school because I love to read and you can do so much with them at that age because they are getting into some more advanced material. Also, if you are a more organized person, middle school is much more organized than early childhood.

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me. I have been in the position you are in now (Elementary or Special Ed? Early Childhood? Add a middle school endorsement?) and it is a tough decision. Good luck!

 

[golfgal]

I would STRONGLY suggest if you go the middle school route to get a dual certification in English/Language Arts and something else more marketable--special education, math, science, etc. I am sure there are is a shortage of teachers in your area but most likely they are math/science.

There isn't a whole lot of difference between middle schoolers and pre-k kids. I always said that 3 years olds are just practicing to be teenagers .

In MN to get a secondary license, middle school and high school, you major in your subject area and get a minor in secondary education. Anything you can add to those is going to make you more attractive to a district, coaching, driver's education, whatever.

 

[Pigeon]

I would think about which age group you prefer to be around. Unlike the pp, I think there is an enormous difference between being around little ones and middle schoolers that colors just about everything.

In my area, it is much easier to get a job teaching middle school than elementary, but your area might be different.

 

[MrsPete]

I've recently completed much soul searching about my life and career (or lack of one) and decided to make a change and go back to school (again). I've decided to get a degree in Education and eventually a Media Specialist certification as well. I feel strongly about the importance of education and love to read. If I can make a difference in one childs life then I will have made a worthwhile contribution to the world. However, I can't decide between an Early Childhood or Middle School specialization. There are things I like about both.

Early childhood offers the chance to work with younger children and instill in them a love of learning and sense of self worth. Every child has a strength, be it reading, writing, math or even coloring for the little kids. Overall I feel most younger children still like their teacher. I feel I could teach younger children but I really love reading and English, I'm not sure that I could bring that love and enthusiam to math or science.

Middle Grades offers the opportunity to specialize in the areas I love. There's such a wide range of books, magazines etc that I feel I can definately find a book or article to spark a students interest in reading. I also enjoy English and writing. At this level there is more "technical" language and writing involved that I will definately need to brush up on and really study more in depth before I can teach it to older students.

I'm really in a quandry. I'm weighing the pros and cons and it's almost equal. One factor that's not necessarily a teaching issue is the fact that in GA there seems to be a shortage of Middle School teachers. This means more job openings available after Graduation. Can anyone give me some insight into how you made your decision? Or any gems of knowledge to help me make my decision.

TIA!!!

I understand your quandry. When I started college (100 years ago) I wasn't sure what I wanted to teach, so I just declared middle school. My naive thought process went something like this: Middle school's in the middle, so if I want to switch up or down a level, it won't be such a big deal. I ended up switching majors altogether, but after a couple years in the business world, I returned to school to pick up a teaching certificate -- it was what I wanted to do in the first place, and I should've never switched gears. When I came back to school, I knew what I wanted and quickly earned a certificate to teach high school English.

Random thoughts on making this choice:
People say that you choose elementary school because you like working with children, high school because you like the subject, and college because you want the opportunity for research.

You want to be employable when you graduate; the South has been experiencing a teacher shortage for a number of years, so you will get a job in Georgia. No problem. More jobs exist at the elementary level (obviously -- just look at the numbers). If you go middle or high school, remember that the "big four" (English, History, Math, Science) are always in need; people who teach electives sometimes worry about their jobs being there next year. Each school has only one (maybe two) media specialists, band directors, health occupations teachers, and so forth . . . but those same schools have 10-12 English teachers, history teachers, math teachers, and science teachers! So play the numbers; you might be the most wonderful media specialist in your graduating class -- if the media specialist at my school intends to work another 10 years, you have no chance of being hired for that job for the next decade. On the other hand, if you're certified to teach English, jobs will pop up either because someone left or because the school grew (that's happening all over the South). In addition, foreign language teachers and special ed teachers are always in demand simply because fewer people are qualified to do those jobs. Special ed, though, is really tough and has a higher burn-out rate than the other areas -- the people who stay in that job for years and years are very special themselves and are worth their weight in gold.

In my state -- this may not be the same everywhere -- you can "teach down" one level. I'm certified 9-12, but I could teach middle school. Obviously, the middle school principal wouldn't choose me if a person with a middle school certification was there waiting, but in the South principals take what they can get!

Most media specialists start out as English teachers, then go back and add on a media degree . . . then they wait for one of those elusive positions to open up. Same for most other specialities -- just about everyone starts out in the classroom, then some move elsewhere: administration, guidance, drop-out prevention, whatever. Others -- like me -- start out with intentions of moving to something else, but after a couple years can't imagine leaving the classroom.

Middle school teachers in this area teach on teams -- so if you were the English teacher, you'd have three partners: one a science person, one a math person, one a history person. The four of you'd have about 100-120 students between you, and you'd coordinate your lessons for those kids. High school teachers tend to be more "on their own". I can't say much about elementary (except as a parent).

I suggest that you take the plunge, go ahead and enroll in your first classes. If your college is anything like the one near my school (the one that sends loads of student teachers our way), you're going to be required to observe quite a few hours -- even in your earliest classes. That's going to give you a better sense of what each age level is really like. If after hours in the classroom you decide you've made a bad choice, you can switch. Talk to the teachers whom you observe; they want to help you!

 

[vettechick99]

I've done both lower and uppper elementary (actually, as SPED I've done K-5) and they are all soo different! I love being able to relate somewhat to the older kids, but they are so hard to discipline. With K-1, you can look at them and they stop in their tracks!

Can you shadow a teacher for a few days? Not sub, but follow the teacher as they carry on their daily activities? IMO that is the best way to get a feel for the grade - the kids are less likely to act out of character if you are just blending into the background.

 

[MushyMushy]

I think the best way to find out which direction you want to go is to get started, get enrolled in a program and get into a classroom ASAP.

I started out in early elementary ed and it only took a few weeks in a kindergarten class for me to discover that I did NOT want to be around young kids as a career. There's even a big difference between the middle school ages. If you like younger kids, 6th grade might be for you. They still love their teachers and are so open and wonderful. But they're also very needy like an elementary student. 6th grade is my limit. 8th grade, on the other hand, is close to being in a high school environment. The students are still very friendly and personable, but are a lot more independent and have minds of their own. I'd love to teach only 8th grade. 7th grade... well, they're aliens from another planet.

 

[MM27]

When I started college I was certain that I wanted to teach kindergarten or 1st grade. I was an Early Childhood Education major, but at the time the certification in NJ was Prek-8 so I would be certified to teach in that range.

After I graduated college I got my first teaching job and was hired as a 2nd grade teacher which I was happy about. I had done my student teaching in 1st grade, but my junior year field experience was in 2nd. Two days before school started the principal came into my classroom as I was setting up and told me that they were moving me to 4th grade

I was sure that I was going to hate it, but 9 years later I can say that I'm so glad that I was moved. I love the independence of the kids, I love that they are still excited to be in school (most of them anyway) and that I can share with them my love of math and science (we're departmentalized).

Check with your state to find out about certifications. NJ has since switched up certifications. We now have prek-3, k-5, middle school with subject area certification and the same for high school.