If you’ve been teaching for a couple of years, the time might be right to consider advancing in the education industry. As you research teacher promotion opportunities, there are plenty of options available. Take your time to figure out what you love about the profession, and plan to move forward in a way that builds on those strengths.
Here are three specific methods of advancing your education career:
1. Earn Your Administrative Credentials
Becoming a school leader can be a solid way to advance your career. How can you become a principal? This career path typically requires a master’s degree in educational leadership, an internship, and at least three years of teaching experience.
Your coursework will focus on leadership, building relationships with parents, and creating unity in your building. You’ll gain hands on experience working closely with an experienced administrator. If administration is the route you decide to take, be sure to check with your state to see the specific requirements you’ll need to be eligible.
Being a principal isn’t the only way to put administrative credentials to use. Here are four other positions where an educational leadership degree may be necessary:
K-12 Assistant Principal
College Dean
Athletic Director
Parent Partnership Program Director
2. Earn a Master’s Degree
Administration isn’t for everyone. If you don’t have any desire to be a principal, that’s okay. You can still advance in the educational field. Getting a master’s degree is a great way to boost your salary and open up new career potentials.
With online courses becoming more popular, you don’t even need to worry about commutes or making it to class on time after a long day of teaching. Just be sure to pick a reputable school if you do enroll through an online college. You’ll also want to make sure that it’s an accredited school. You don’t want to pay a lot of money for a degree that turns out to be just a worthless piece of paper in the eyes of your state.
You can pick any number of degrees, either directly related to your current position, or one that you’d like to explore in the future. Here are five ideas for you:
Master’s in Reading: Become a reading coach
Master’s in Instructional Design: Oversee the curriculum at your district
Master’s in Design & Technology: Head up the STEM Department
Master’s in Early Childhood Education: Direct a preschool chain
Master’s in Special Education: Become a special education director
This is just a handful of the many advanced degree options available for teachers. With so many possibilities, be sure not to just jump into a program without thinking through your end goal. You’ll want to earn your master’s in a field that complements your future plans.
Are there any areas that you would like to become more involved in? What are your strengths? Use these ideas to pick the ideal degree for your situation.
3. Write Curriculum
Are you enthusiastic to dive into curricula? Is aligning content to standards easy for you? If so, writing curriculum may be the perfect way to boost your education career.
If you have a master’s degree in the field, you’d like to write about, it’s a definite possibility. You can write for the homeschool market, the public school market, the private school market, or the college market. Another possibility is to create curricula for adult learners. eLearning is currently booming, and there’s room for many voices. Why not add yours?
There’s a difference between implementing and writing curriculum, so if you do decide to go this route be sure to spend some time researching best practices. You’ll also want to spend time doing research on what’s already out there so you don’t just repackage the same old material. You can find some basic information here to get you started writing a curriculum.