DGS49
Diamond Member
- Thread starter
- #61
(1). Teachers are generally not required to have Masters degrees. Any state with such a requirement would be an outlier. (I suspect the poster who goes by the name of "Unkotare" does not have a Masters; he surely would have mentioned it). Most states have a requirement for additional COLLEGE (not necessarily GRADUATE) credits in order to get permanent certification, and many colleges profit from this requirement by offering ersatz "Masters" degrees for just a few credits more than are required for permanent certification, in order to induce teachers to come there for their supplementary credits. For the teachers, a Masters degree usually adds to their compensation. But these are bullshit Masters degrees. There is no thesis, no comprehensive exams. Academic rigor? Are you kidding? Mainly "methods" courses.
(2). In no state are K-12 teachers required to have a Bachelors degree in their subject area - not that that, by itself, would guarantee anything like "professional" competency. The general rule is, a degree in "education," with some number of credits in the actual subject area. The dearth of math and science teachers with MATH and SCIENCE (B.S.) degrees is a national disgrace, made worse by the artificial barriers that are in place to prevent mid-career scientists and engineers from becoming teachers. In any rational world, the preference would be for a Chemistry teacher being someone with a Chemistry degree, and a couple courses in "education," rather than the other way around.
(3). A professional-level examination in ENGLISH? Social Studies? Are you kidding me? There is nothing that could possibly be on such an exam that would be even remotely comparable to the scope of knowledge required to successfully take the Bar Exam (any state), medical board exams, the CPA exam, or the exams for getting a P.E. certification. It is just laughable.
(4). A Profession implicitly requires that you practice competently, or be subject to civil liability for MALPRACTICE, as well as being disbarred. A teacher who is a failure in a union-environment school district, will be back in the classroom year after year, albeit with more supervision and "help," but the actual number of public school teachers who are removed from the classroom because their students didn't learn anything is microscopic.
(5). Again - and very significantly - there is no teaching equivalent to the state Bar Association. The Bar Association (and its analogs in other Professions) creates rigorous and comprehensive requirements which must be met BEFORE you can enter into the practice, they require that practitioners stay up to date, they enforce not only competence but ethical standards, and they are in place for the benefit of the PUBLIC, not the practitioners. They are fully funded by the Professionals, through membership and other fees. The differences between a Professional association and, for example, the NEA, are profound and unbridgeable.
There are a lot of "professions" that people practice with great professionalism. Some of them require a lot of technical or industry-specific knowledge. Consider, engineers, chemists, designers, accountants, nurses, HR professionals, and so on. To say that these people are not "Professionals" is not an insult, it is merely a statement of fact. They go to school, learn some stuff, get a job, work hard, and make valuable contributions to their employers. Sometimes they even have to get a state license (e.g., beauticians).
But that is not what a Profession is, not what a Professional is. Teachers are not Professionals in any meaningful sense.
(2). In no state are K-12 teachers required to have a Bachelors degree in their subject area - not that that, by itself, would guarantee anything like "professional" competency. The general rule is, a degree in "education," with some number of credits in the actual subject area. The dearth of math and science teachers with MATH and SCIENCE (B.S.) degrees is a national disgrace, made worse by the artificial barriers that are in place to prevent mid-career scientists and engineers from becoming teachers. In any rational world, the preference would be for a Chemistry teacher being someone with a Chemistry degree, and a couple courses in "education," rather than the other way around.
(3). A professional-level examination in ENGLISH? Social Studies? Are you kidding me? There is nothing that could possibly be on such an exam that would be even remotely comparable to the scope of knowledge required to successfully take the Bar Exam (any state), medical board exams, the CPA exam, or the exams for getting a P.E. certification. It is just laughable.
(4). A Profession implicitly requires that you practice competently, or be subject to civil liability for MALPRACTICE, as well as being disbarred. A teacher who is a failure in a union-environment school district, will be back in the classroom year after year, albeit with more supervision and "help," but the actual number of public school teachers who are removed from the classroom because their students didn't learn anything is microscopic.
(5). Again - and very significantly - there is no teaching equivalent to the state Bar Association. The Bar Association (and its analogs in other Professions) creates rigorous and comprehensive requirements which must be met BEFORE you can enter into the practice, they require that practitioners stay up to date, they enforce not only competence but ethical standards, and they are in place for the benefit of the PUBLIC, not the practitioners. They are fully funded by the Professionals, through membership and other fees. The differences between a Professional association and, for example, the NEA, are profound and unbridgeable.
There are a lot of "professions" that people practice with great professionalism. Some of them require a lot of technical or industry-specific knowledge. Consider, engineers, chemists, designers, accountants, nurses, HR professionals, and so on. To say that these people are not "Professionals" is not an insult, it is merely a statement of fact. They go to school, learn some stuff, get a job, work hard, and make valuable contributions to their employers. Sometimes they even have to get a state license (e.g., beauticians).
But that is not what a Profession is, not what a Professional is. Teachers are not Professionals in any meaningful sense.