Ask Sooga about being a high school math teacher.. ugh

[Sooga]

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how many hours do you honestly put in per week with grading, preparation etc. included. do you coach any sports?

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No sports, but I'd like to try to get into doing basketball or baseball if I could.... As for each week grading/preparation, I'd say it averages out to about an hour a day extra.

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and school day = 6 hours in cali?

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Typically, yes. Some bigger schools have staggered schedules that call for a 0 period and 7th period, but for the teachers themselves, they usually all work 6 hour days, with 1 conference period (a free period where you can run off copies, have parent conferences, etc. etc.) You can elect not to have a conference period (and be paid more) but personally I don't think it's worth the trouble. You can get a lot done during that extra period.

[Green Kool Aid]

hey sorry ive been asking a bunch of questions but its something im really interested in.

what is the best and worst thing about being a teacher?

[Sooga]

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1) What classes do you teach? Which classes would you like to teach?

2) If I sat in on a typical class, what would I see (how much time do you spend lecturing, what activities do you give to students, etc)?

3) Are you constantly surprised by the lack of mathematical ability possessed by your colleagues? [img]/images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img]

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1) I currently teach Algebra 1 and Algebra 2. I'd always thought I'd like to teach the high AP classes and such, but now I'm not so sure. AP and higher classes deal with a lot more annoying parents than lower level classes (and I deal with a lot of them as it is), and those higher classes generally have more students per class, since the school policy is to let the lower-level classes be smaller classes. But of course in the lower-level classes you have discipline problems you don't really get in the higher level classes, so I guess it's pretty even either way.

2) Generally I tend to go over the previous night's homework and any questions for the first 5-10 minutes, then spend the next 30 or so going over the new material, and I give them the last 15 minutes or so to get started on the homework, in case they have any questions. As for activities, I try doing different things like giving them an activitiy dealing with m&m's if we're doing probability, or mixing together a big bowl of punch if we're going over liquid mixture word problems... but sometimes I can't think of anything to do other than just 'boring lectures', so it's usually just that.

3) Yea it's pretty sad. It's better at my new school than at my old one, though. Most teachers I've seen are not really 'math teachers' but just teachers who happen to be teaching math. I'm even more amazed though by some of the lack of fundamentals a good portion of my kids have. Anything involving fractions or decimals and they just don't even want to attempt the problem. I don't remember it being that bad when I was in high school (early-mid 90's).

[sushijerk]

Are asians better at math?

[NinjaMan]

1. I was in highschool from 1997-2000, have the students changed much since then? If so, how?

2. Are you one of those teachers who can see something in someone if they just apply themselves?

3. Why do kids hate math?

[Jorge10]

Ok I am currently working on my math degree to become a teacher, so is it worth it? By that I mean are you that much better off than say a guy who got a liberal studies degree and is teaching in elementary school.

I would like to play a lot of poker when teaching, will it be possible while getting my credentials?

Also when I get my degree can I teach right away while working on my credentials?

[Homer]

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m&m's

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m&m's are also good for exponential growth/decay experiments (and if the kids have no idea what's going on they'll at least enjoy eating the m&m's at the end) [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[jason_t]

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Do you have a degree in mathematics? What's the certification process in California?

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Yea I have a major in math. I heard some scary statistic that something like 25% of high school math teachers don't have a major OR minor in math. Don't know how reliable that stat is, but it does sound about right, based on the math teachers I've been colleagues with.

The certification process used to be you could just get your Bachelor's degree, take a couple of 'teaching' classes, and get your credential. Now with Bush's 'No Child Left Behind' mandate, you have to jump through a LOT of different hoops to get your credential. Bachelor's, then about 4 semesters of work to get your preliminary credential, then 2 more years of something called BTSA (Beginning Teacher something something) to get your clear credential, which is basically a 'real' credential. You then renew that every 10 years. I'm currently in the BTSA program, and let me tell you, suicide isn't looking like too bad an alternative right now. It's not hard work, but it's just busy useless crap work, that when piled upon the crap I already have to do makes life very bad.

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Can you work on these concurrent to starting teaching?

[Sooga]

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hey sorry ive been asking a bunch of questions but its something im really interested in.

what is the best and worst thing about being a teacher?

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The best thing? The vacations.. no but seriously, the best thing about teaching is just interacting with the kids, and really getting to know them. I mean let's be honest, if push came to shove, you could probably program a robot to just teach math to someone. But the students need to be able to see you as someone who cares about them, and who they can come to for advice (sometimes for things they don't even want to talk to their parents about). Helping a student through something difficult is definitely rewarding.

What do I hate the most? Well this credential process is a major pain in the ass, and I wish I was teaching in another state because California has more hoops to jump through than most. Second most I hate annoying parents who think their D/F students are actually A/B students and that I need to magically find a way to make that happen. Other than that though, I don't have any other complaints.

Are you thinking of becoming a teacher or something? If so, I'd recommend it to you if you 1) truly enjoy talking to and being around kids, and 2) really have a passion and knowledge for your subject.

[BeerMoney]

Do u fantasize about screwing your female students?

Do you whine about being a teacher/salary all of the time like most teachers?