The Trials and Tribulations of Trying to Teach

For the past 6 or 7 months or so I've been in the process of qualifying for a licence to teach music in Massachusetts public schools. This has proven to be a challenging, rewarding, and very long process, and while the job market is shaky I hope this work pays off down the line as we approach the end of the school year.

Educational and testing standards vary from state to state. Some states require testing, some do not (the later are generally states with lower educational performance). Living in a state with very high standards and requirements has, personally, proven to be a barrier to learning to teach in the past but as I get older the desire and calling to do what I love becomes less resistible; after all, you can only tread water for so long in life. I have never taught music in a classroom setting, except for holding chorus rehearsals in public school classrooms. I have never even substituted for a math or social studies class but I can tell you I am excited about the prospect of teaching. I like working with young adults and I figured, for the most part, that kids who are taking music in high school want to be there so I think high school is the place for me. This also opens opportunities to run after-school activities and work on musicals and what not which would generate some extra cash. In order to get my foot in the door Massachusetts requires a couple tests, lots of studying, and a pile of cash. Here are the details:

To teach in middle school and high school all teachers must pass two of the Massachusetts Test for Educator Licensure (MTELs). Everyone must pass the Communication and Literacy Test which is basically a test which ensures that you have adequate reading comprehension, decent ability to write, and can identify and correct syntax and stylistic errors in other's writing. The test takes about four hours and is divided into two sections. Section one is primarily multiple choice while section two is mostly longer writing assignments. I took this test a few weeks ago and found it somewhat easy though I'll feel foolish if I get my results back and haven't passed the test.

The other test required is a test on the subject matter you wish to be licensed to teach; obviously for me this is music. I took, and passed, the music test two months ago. Prior to the test, I studied for about a month before hand. I went to school for music (for undergrad and grad) and consider myself an accomplished artist but, I often lack the technical knowledge that this test asked for so I had a lot of work ahead of me. I generally studied for a hour or two every night for the two weeks prior to taking the test and before that I studied sporadically. The biggest barrier to passing was becoming accustomed to the terminology which the test used. They were using phrases that were completely foreign to me for ideas with which I was familiar. Despite the challenges in this test I passed on the first try so then I moved on to working towards the C&L test which I previously mentioned. I'm really excited to design some plans and projects to teach kids, now all I need to do is find an actual position!

In addition to the intellectual demands this process requires of you, it can actually end up being pretty expensive. Each test costs about 100 dollars and actually applying to get your license costs around that amount as well. By the end of the process of taking the tests, applying to a licence, and applying to jobs could end up costing me around 400 to 450 dollars. This is a small price to pay for sometime I feel this passionately about in my mind. Some of the most influential people in my formative years were my teachers and I look forward to providing that sort of guidance to kids who are going through the same things I went through when I was their age.