The other day I got a message from a student who'd attended a school where I taught years ago. He now has a Ph.D. and is teaching English at the collegiate level. He said he was planning to leave and look for a teaching position in a high school ... what did I think? What advice?
Well, first of all, I did that! With a fresh Ph.D. I left public school teaching in 1978 to go teach at Lake Forest College north of Chicago (Lake Forest, IL). I thought that's what I wanted to do. I didn't, as I soon discovered, and we stayed only one year before returning to Ohio, where I would teach secondary school for the rest of my career. I did not regret that decision for a flicker of a second.
Second, I retired from public (middle) school teaching in January 1997, so my knowledge of public secondary schools today is, to say the least, dated.
Third, I retired from teaching in a prep school in June 2011, nearly a decade ago.
So ... with those caveats in mind, read on ...
Of course, if you want to teach in a public school, you will need to have a teaching certificate from the state. That document, as you surely know, requires coursework, student teaching, etc.
Private schools, which generally pay less than public schools (and boarding schools tend to pay less than day schools), don't really care about the certification; they care about your qualifications and experience--and how much you will cost them (as I discovered when I tried to return to the classroom after my Lake Forest year).
I should add that I loved both private and public education. In both settings I had wonderful students, terrific colleagues (some of the best teachers I ever saw taught at Harmon Middle School in Aurora, where I taught most of my career). But--in my public school experience, I had more classes filled with more students. Early in my career I had 200 students/day! (That got better.) Try assigning--then grading--200 essays!
At the boarding school where I taught (Western Reserve Academy (1979-81, 2001-2005, 2007-2011) I had fewer and smaller classes (three/day with about a dozen students in each). But--boarding schools make many other demands on your time--dorms, coaching, meals, etc. It's a 24/7 job.
Public schools have changed a lot since I retired in January 1997. At that time "proficiency testing" was just emerging--and drastically altering the curriculum. (Our grandsons, 9 and 15, have taken far more standardized tests than I did, K-Ph.D.) Scores, scores, scores--those became the measure of success (or failure) for teachers, administrators, and school districts. It's horrible.
Private schools have been less affected by that foul movement. (Can you tell how I feel about it?)
But here are some realizations that I absorbed as my career proceeded: If you love your subject matter, if you remain a learner as well as a teacher, if you are comfortable with technology (which is always changing),if you are "flexible" (oh, do unexpected things happen!), if you like/love young people, if you hate being in self-dug ruts, if you have a sense of humor (and like to have fun in class), if you have a thick skin, if you are willing/eager to learn from more experienced colleagues, if you can become your own most severe critic, if you are always open to change (change needed because of your experience), well, teaching is a wonderful career. Exhausting, consuming, invigorating, disappointing, inspiring. Wonderful, in other words. The years will fly ...
Sure, I got frustrated all the time--was disappointed in myself--failed to ignite some students--got annoyed at some of the quotidian tasks of the profession--had unpleasant encounters with colleagues and parents (not often--sometimes).
But the rewards--personally, professionally (not financially!), intellectually--were enormous.
And I have to say that the vast majority of my many "friends" on Facebook are former students--and being in touch with all of them has been a heartening benefit of my career, a benefit that I never could have predicted.
So ... final advice ... Chaucer's words are key: gladly learn (never stop!) and gladly teach.
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