Please help, need advice.

Hi everyone I was wondering if I could have some advice. I have a Master's in Elementary Ed. 1-6 and have been teaching in a Catholic School for a year. I want to get a job in a public school and I know how hard it is. I was thinking about going and getting a second masters in special ed. but I dont know if its worth it. I want the special ed. background but I dont want a specail ed. class (I know that sounds bad). I keep hearing that public school wont look at me without the special ed. Please let me know what you think I should do I am sooo very confused.
Thanks

Re: Please help, need advice.

I would get our master's in Early childhood special ed , (its birth-2) this is what i have mine in and has opened many doors for me......however this is a field that i am truly interested in and dedicated to ......not all teachers are made for special ed! HAve you had any experience in special ed? Hofstra has a great program, but it is a bit pricey

Re: Please help, need advice.

honestly, as a special ed. teacher if you don't want a "special ed. class" then don't bother getting a Masters in special ed. you WILL get a special ed. class with a special ed. certification. i also have an elem. license and not ONE interview was for regular ed. which was fine with me...

yes, there is a chance that you would get a regular ed. classroom OR an inclusion classroom, but chances are you will HAVE to work with the special ed. kids....and if you don't want them, i really wouldn't bother.

depending on the type of special ed. class it is, it can be very physically and emotionally draining... but so worth it... i couldn't imagine doing anything else.

i honestly think that you need to get a certification in that you're passionate about, not one that is just going to get a job... you could be miserable otherwise.

Re: Please help, need advice.

Thank you, I absoulty love what I do but at times I feel that I should have more than just elem ed. I wish I knew all this when I went for my Masters I would have done a dual program.Thank You!!

Re: Please help, need advice.

As a special education teacher, I highly recommend getting a Masters degree in special education. Now I know you said you don't want a "whole special ed class" but the odds are in a public school you will have a class with a good number of students with disabilities in the class or you will have to teach an inclusion class. I would get the knowledge base so you are better equipped to teach students with special needs.

Re: Please help, need advice.

you could easily get a job with NYC schools. And like a PP said, not every teacher is made for Special ed, and that's OK! I know I probably could not handle having 28 kids with no help.

Re: Please help, need advice.

I completely understand what you are going through. I got my BA in journalism and then I decided I wanted to teach elementary school. So I taught in a private school in queens for 4 yrs while I got my Masters in ELED. I left my full time position in June of 07 because I moved to Li. So far I have only been called for sub positions. It is so frustrating. I even applied to NYC and was told that there were to many candidates with my certification. I have been thinking of getting an additional certification as well. But I really don't want to teach special ed. I subbed in a few special ed classes and it was a lot to deal with. I really have a new appreciation for special ed teachers after experiencing a little bit of what they have to deal with. So I don't know what to do either.

Re: Please help, need advice.

I got my Masters in Elem Ed 1-6 (when I started in 10 yrs ago it was N-12 )

but now that I had 1-6, I felt the same, that I needed special ed with such an increase in services/classifications.

so im now taking 4more classes, which (if I choose a certain class as my elective) gets me the special ed that I want, plus birth-2, which I didnt even really think about, but might as well.

you should speak to an advisor at the school of your choice. they can guide you.

Re: Please help, need advice.

What about a certification in Gifted and Talented or ELL? I don't know how many credits you need, but this is something I was thinking about for myself. I was also thinking about getting certified in Reading, but I don't know if you need an entire master's degree or if you can just get certified in that as well.

Good luck!