Uneducated teachers

[geocup]

HappyV - actually, I disagree with you. Teaching supervisors CAN and DO teach you how to deal with 30 students. It is how the teaching students is able to interpret what is taught to them!!!

 

[lesliefu]

having taught for more than 10 years and just completed a PGDE this past (May - my 2nd one that is) I must agree that supervisors are indeed helpful to teaching one how to deal with 30 students, and that yes, they do teach alot of philosophy, paradigms too...at the end of the day I think it is the conversation between supervisor and student that happens which is the most educational to the student teacher. in fact after teaching for so long, i thought i knew MORE than the actual supervisor because i had the hands on experience, but i was able to learn things from the supervisor that made me see things in a wider light....at the end of the day, I think, it is up to how reflective a learner the student is...

 

[geocup]

well done on gaining your PGDE, lesliefu! Do you teach primary or secondary? During my Prac. I sometimes thought that I knew more than my supervisor too.... funny. But one day I saw him in action with a kindergarten class and he was absolutely amazing.

 

[TheQuasimother]

There is a great difference between homeschooling and what goes on in a classroom of 30-44. Also, the classes that Cara mentions are enhancement classes e.g. ballet, soccer etc. I have yet to come across a good enhancement class where my child is enrolled and the teacher is not qualified. If the teacher is not qualified/experienced, you can tell. E.g. A certain institution had a stay at home mum teach the Sat tots soccer and it was a disaster!

But JJ Mrs P brings up a very important point - The children deserve it. Why would you shortchange your child?

Yes. As trained teachers, we've all come across them, academics who are/were our supervisors during our teaching practicum telling us what to do and not to do. They may not know what is best as a lot of academics are governed by theories and limited research. Nothing beats practical classroom experience. But you do go to teacher's college for a good reason - the pedagogy. The practical knowledge untrained teachers have is incomplete behind the rationale.

Even EDB is aware of this. If you look at the salary disbursed to teachers, they do allow untrained teachers to gain experience and teach in the local schools but after a few years, your salary isn't increased unless you get your teaching certificate. Essentially, they DO require you to get trained.

So if a local school teacher is encouraged (through monetary means i.e. to progress along the salary scale - get their annual increment) to get trained after a few years, why should we allow any other school (especially the so called international schools) to get away with it?

 

[lesliefu]

i teach primary school...am taking a couple years off now to complete my doctorate though...the one thing with the PGDE though is that I wished the practicuum period was longer so those in training could get more because it takes a while for most to just KNOW the kids before practicing your teaching skills...

 

[Elise]

lesliefu - Sorry that you didn't get more practical experience, but I would like to briefly outline the practical experience incorporated into the BEd in Australia as you seem to think these BEd students have little to none.
Year 1 - 3 week block ( lower % load) + 1 day per week for 8 weeks in other schools
Year 2 - 4 week block ( % of load increases) + 1 day per week in other schools for 8 weeks
Year 3 - 1 week of obs/prep + 6 week block - building up to 100% of teaching load in final week
Year 4 - 1 week obs/prep + 10 weeks block - building up to 100% in final 3 weeks - also including action research and implementation project on a relevant problem existing within the assigned class, eg comprehension.
The BEd, particularly at UNE, is heavy with practical and relevant teaching experience including miscue analysis, reading recovery strategies, programming, assessment and reporting, behaviour modification, etc.

I hope that helps clarify your worries about lack of practice teaching opportunities. When seeking a tertiary course, it is best to look at the reputation of a university for the faculty you wish to study.

 

[TheQuasimother]

In HK, if you are applying to the NET scheme with EDB and I presume it applies to the local teachers trained overseas too, you need to complete at least 40 days of teacher training to become a registered teacher - different from a permitted teacher. And, your foreign credentials need to be cleared by a quality assurance board.

 

[AmyH]

http://www.ceop.police.uk/Wanted/CS0711-2062/

here is a perfect example why people working with children should be police checked. This guy is wanted (missing from UK), assumed abroad and has a TEFL certificate so could theoretically come to hong kong and get a job teaching our children. scary thought.

 

[HappyV]

The PGDE/PGCE courses are not really the equivalent of a BEd - more like the quiiv. of a GradDipEd, which in Australia usually has 10-12 weeks prac.

 

[bryant.english]

In the UK it is standard practice to have police checks- even if somebody is going to complete repairs on the school grounds they have to be checked. Again, I wrongly assumed that this was standard practice in Hong Kong but obviously not. This should be mandatory.

Let's remember that Ian Huntley had background checks done on him! Having also taught in the UK I can tell you that background checks will stop some poor sod who did something silly as a teenager but will not stop a determined child molestor. I teach in HK now and despite being qualified and background checked am never left alone with the children! As an English teacher in HK your job is essentially to teach from a standard set using teacher's guides and pre-prepared lesson plan. You normally have to prove yourself before you can use your own lesson plans and normally have to submit these to the school in advance.

Also, don't talk about the UK as though ..., it's like everyone has rose tinted glasses and forgets about huge classroom sizes, unqualified teaching assistants left on their own for days, violence, drugs, etc, etc. These threads always smack of prejudice to me. In my opinion, having worked in both, the HK education system leaves the UK system in it's dust and as such, I, and many other western teachers with kids, choose to have our kids schooled in local schools rather than the international ones.