How to Get a Teaching Job in Texas

Do you want to teach in Texas? Here is a quick explanation of how to land your dream teaching job!

In order to teach in Texas, you must be certified. To get certified, you either get a degree in education and get certified through your college, or you get a degree in something else and do alternative certification.

Two Options:

1. Earn your degree in education and get certified through your college
2. Earn a degree in any field and get certified through alternative certification

Both routes have the same requirements:

1. Complete required coursework
2. Complete mandatory observation hours
3. Pass TExES exams, including the PPR EC-12
4. Complete your field experience (either 12 weeks of student or clinical teaching, or a one year internship)

If you choose alternative certification, you can be hired by a school district after you pass your exam. The sooner you pass, the better! We sell great digital study guides and sample tests at www.coresubjects.net

*After you pass your exam, apply as much as possible! Deliver your resume in person to schools and district offices. Attend job fairs and go to interviews. Send a thank you letter after the interview expressing your interest in the job. Network as much as possible. Consider substitute teaching to get your foot in the door.

Studying for the LOTE Pedagogy Section

Are you preparing for the LOTE Spanish 613 exam? Or any of the TExES LOTE (French, German, etc.)?

For most test takers, the most challenging portion is the pedagogy/instruction and assessment.

Even native speakers who attended school in Mexico, Spain, or other countries have failed this exam. Even though their Spanish is excellent, they did not learn the pedagogy section! We offer a digital course to help you prepare for the pedagogy section, as well as the lesson plan. You will learn about second language acquisition theories, instruction techniques, foreign language programs, and important people and concepts you need to know for the exam. This section is the same for all LOTE exams (French, Spanish, etc.), so you can benefit even if you are taking a different LOTE.

In addition, you will see an example of a lesson plan that would earn a perfect score, and have the opportunity to upload your own lesson plan and receive feedback on how to improve your score.

Interested? Enroll at campus.educadium.com/texeshelp/

We also offer phone tutoring, and in the 30 minute session we go over tips and strategies to help you make the most of your independent study time. We can also teach you where to put accent marks and explain concepts you do not understand about the pedagogy. Our tutor, Sandy, has passed the exam and is ready to help you!

BTLPT and LOTE Registration Deadline Approaching

Job fairs are already occurring!  But don't worry, the hiring will continue through the summer.  If you have not yet passed the BTLPT or LOTE, the last day to register is April 15, 2016.  The exams will be offered April 30 through May 7. After that, the next opportunity to take those tests is July.  As a result, it is critical to sign up and take it in April/May if you hope to teach for the 2015-2016 year!  You can get 10 percent off study  material using the code EPP10    Just click on the links on the right hand side to buy the study material.  Best of luck!

Did You Pass the BTLPT or LOTE?

Did you recently pass the BTLPT or LOTE?  I would love to hear from you!  Please let me know what resources you used and how you were successful.  Thanks!

Free LOTE Pedagogy 5 C's Questions and Answers

A lot of LOTE test takers struggle with the multiple choice pedagogy questions, especially the ones that are scenario based and related to the 5 C 's.   Below are two sample questions.  Refer to the 5 C's to answer these questions. The correct answers and explanations are below.

16. Which example below best represents an activity for intermediate level high school Spanish students that demonstrates how they could meet the Cultures standard?

A. Showing a video about a holiday celebrated in the target culture and having a class discussion about how it is similar to and different than holidays celebrated in the US.

B. Assigning a chapter on Latin American history in a Spanish textbook and taking students to a Latin American history museum.  Upon returning to class, give students a quiz over the textbook assignment and have a discussion in the target language about how the historical perspective of the Latin American countries differs from the perspective portrayed in American textbooks.

C. Having students read a chapter in a history textbook in the target language, watch a video in the target language, and then write a response about what they learned.

D. Taking students to a celebration hosted by a local Latin American group, and instructing students to pay attention to the items available for sale.  After returning to class, students will write a response in the target language and have a class discussion about how these products are related to the perspective of the culture.

17. Students in a Spanish 1 (beginning level) class are learning basic greetings in the target language.  After the teacher has modeled proper pronunciation, and shown them a video with people using the greeting, she breaks them into partners (groups of 2) to practice.  Then, they must practice while she circulates to evaluate their use of the greeting and gives them constructive feedback.  This scenario best addresses which standard?

A. Communication 1.a

B. Communication 1.c

C. Comparisons 4.a

D. Communities 5.b

Use the 5 C's (standards for learning a foreign language) from ACTFL to design appropriate instruction.

1. Communication

                a. Students participate in conversations, ask for and give information, express   emotions, and share opinions.

                b. Students understand written language and spoken language on various topics.

                c. Students use the target language (Spanish) to present ideas, information, etc to an    audience on various topics.

Instruction: Design fun, engaging activities for students to practice speaking in Spanish.  Give students various topics to choose from to have conversations with partners, find fun videos and songs for them to watch and listen to, and then have them respond to comprehension questions related to the videos and songs.  Allow students to choose a topic or idea to present on, and as an alternative, allow them to pre-record it and show it to the class (at least on occasion, presentations should be live).

2. Cultures

                a. Students show an understanding of the relationship between perspectives and           practices of the culture(s) they studied.

                b. Students show an understanding of the relationship between the perspectives and products of the         culture(s) they studies.

Instruction: Allow students to research a culture of their choice, as long as it is a culture that speaks the target language (Spanish).  The goal of the project should be for them to show how the ideas, thoughts, and perspectives of the culture are related to their practices.  For example, if the country they choose to research is predominantly Catholic, they can discuss some Catholic traditions the culture practices.  If the culture has places a large emphasis on family, they can discuss common family traditions.  Students can demonstrate that they understand the relationship between the perspectives and products of the target culture(s) by studying the ideas of the culture, and what products they produce.  It is helpful to watch advertisements about products (from youtube or other Internet sources).  Students might even create their own advertisement and explain to the class how the product is related to some common perspectives of the culture they studied.  For example, if el día de los muertos is very important to that culture, the student could choose to make an advertisement about flowers or food used to make an altar to remember loved ones that passed away.

3. Connections

                a. Students extend their knowledge of other disciplines through the target language.

                b. Students gain information and learn about different viewpoints that are available       through the foreign/target language and its cultures.

Instruction: Collaborate with content area teachers (math, science, social studies, English language arts) in order to know what students are learning.  You may also refer to the TEKS to find what students are expected to know for each subject.  Then plan activities, games, and find videos or songs related to that material.  Teach students jargon or vocabulary in Spanish related to the concepts they are learning in other classes.  This will reinforce their knowledge, and will provide them with new vocabulary and perspectives about the knowledge they learned in other classes.  Students will also begin to understand that learning about a particular subject can be very different when learned in different places, and see how culture can affect learning.  For example, an American social studies textbook about the Spanish-American War would probably be quite different than the Spanish version of the same war.

4. Comparisons

                a. Students show an understanding of the nature and structure of language by comparing the target language (Spanish) and their own language.

                b. Students show an understanding of the idea/concept of culture by comparing the      cultures they studied and their own culture.

Instruction: Teach students about cognates, and point out similarities and differences of sentence structure and word order in Spanish.  Have students discuss with a partner how their culture is similar to and different than the cultures studied in class.

5. Communities

                a. Students use Spanish in school settings and in other places.

                b. Students demonstrate evidence of being life-long learners by using the target             language not only for class, but also for pleasure and for enrichment.

Instruction: Encourage students to use Spanish in real world settings- stores, restaurants, etc.  Offer extra credit if they record an interview with a native speaker or watch a movie in Spanish and take notes.

16. D – D is the best option because Standard 2.a delineates that students should have an understanding of the relationship between the products and perspectives of the culture(s) studied.  Although option A is related to culture, it is not as thorough or as learner-centered as option D.  Option B is associated with the Comparisons standard, and option C is not very learner-centered and is not as focused on culture.

17. A – A is the best option because the students are working in pairs and participating in a short conversation.  Option B is incorrect because they are not presenting to an audience.  Option C is incorrect because the question is not related to comparisons.  Option D is incorrect because it does not necessarily show evidence of students using the language for personal enjoyment.