Wanted: Teachers who know the cold, mechanical precision of instruction as well as how to display human skill and craftsmanship in lessons that yield results transcending conventional student learning rates.
One way I’ve worked with personnel search committees and administrators is by offering a choice between working with someone with a personal-professional identity and other applicants who blend in and follow what others do.
This choice addresses a key question faced by school administrators everyday: Are teachers part of the “American tradition of individualism” or followers of patterns established by others?
Decide which option you choose to offer, then offer it clearly.
Where to apply: Contact your local education agency. If they want you among their teacher corp, they can arrange for credentials and a contract for you as long as you have a bachelors degree from an accredited college or university.
Tip: Know yourself as a teacher and prepare to demonstrate how you can raise student learning rates with limited ramp up time.
Tip: Be careful. Not all educators will want someone with different backgrounds in their schools. Do your homework before meeting with a school agency representative. Learn how open they are to ideas and practices that may not fit into their expectations of students and teachers. Informal meetings with local newspaper reporters will help winnow down your options to those most likely to want to talk with you.
Tip: Show school personnel and students how useful your Tablet PC or UMPC is for instruction and learning only after you know that they’re interested.
Keep trying. A position is waiting for you somewhere. It’s your job to find it.
(Post edited 09-09-07.)