CHINA SPRING, Texas (KXXV) — China Spring High School is offering a Teaching and Training Program of Study where students who think teaching might be the right career path for them gets a realistic look of what it's really like. Being able to put together lesson plans and be inside real classrooms to see what the day in the life is of a teacher, head course instructor Allison Chapman hopes this with cut down on the teacher shortage in the state.
- According to the Texas Tribune, 13.4% of teachers left their jobs between Fall of 2021 and Fall of 2022.
- According to the Texas Education Agency, the declared teacher shortage areas are:
- Bilingual/English as a Second Language
- Career and Technical Education (secondary level only)
- Computer Science/Technology Applications
- English Language Arts and Reading (secondary level only)
- Mathematics (secondary level only)
- Special Education
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
For some select students in from China Spring High, it’s an opportunity to test out a potential career.
“It's just something that I've always wanted to pursue,” said China Spring High School junior Maci Spell.
These students are enrolled in the Texas Education Agency’s Teaching and Training Program of Study, which gives them an inside look at what it’s actually like to be a teacher.
“It’s been cool to actually be able to go into the classrooms and really interact with students and like help them in different ways and learn how to help,” Spell said.
Getting hands-on, real-life experience to see if a career in education is in their future.
“We’re learning stuff about, like what goes on in the classroom and like lesson plans and how you set up lessons and how some lessons require different things,” Spell said.
— or not.
“Just as I was getting older, I think I kind of outgrew like the dream job of teacher. I especially with this class, I got to understand like the reality of it and what all goes into it and it's still amazing and I still like am interested in it, but I think just um like finding what I truly wanted to do,” said Caitlyn Gerick, junior at China Spring High School.
In the State of Texas, there’s definitely a teacher shortage.
THE TEA lists subjects as most in need of new hires.
According to the Texas Tribune, a little more than 13% of teachers left their jobs between fall of 2021 and fall of 2022.
“I really think that programs will help with this teacher turnover and teacher shortages because they will really know that this is exactly what they want to do and it's different than what people think very different and uh um like Maci said you have to be really flexible and know that every day is going to look different and you can have a passion for it,” said Allison Chapman, Career and Technical Education Teacher at China Spring High School.
The key is being hands on early so these future teachers know exactly what they’re getting themselves into.
“I want to be a special education. I just feel like that's what God has like called me to do and I just love being able to like actually really help somebody and just have those connections,” concluded Spell.
