How to become a GED Instructor?

Exam: GED Test - General Educational Development Test: Social Studies, Language Arts - Writing, Science, Language Arts - Reading, Mathematics

A GED instructor helps people who do not complete high school to prepare for the General Education Development (GED) exam. Such people include those who dropout from high school and those in the prison. However, a GED may also teach remedial skills to adults and high school students. There are requirements or qualifications that you must attain to become a GED instructor. The following are steps of attaining these requirements and becoming a GED instructor.

Attain a Degree

For you to become a GED instructor, you must be a degree graduate. You could enroll in any college or university that offers courses on adult education. It does not matter whether the college or university offers a minor, major or specialized degree in adult education. The most appropriate degrees that will enable you to become a GED instructor are the Bachelor of Science (B.S) in Secondary Education or B.S in Education. In addition to the teaching theories included in the course you pursue, you will also have to concentrate on a specific area of the subject as well as go for a teaching internship. The internship is important because it determines whether you qualify for certification or not.

Are you a degree graduate already?

If you have a degree in another field, you still do qualify to become a GED instructor. However, you will be required to complete a workshop or teaching program that prepares you for teaching. The program normally consists of theory and practical; you will learn the theory of teaching in class and go for internship to gain practical knowledge. Just like is the case with the bachelor’s degree, you choose to specialize on a particular subject. You could choose, Math, English, Science or any other subject of your passion. After completion of the workshop or teaching program, you become eligible to hold a license.

You might realize that where you intend to work, a GED instructor must have a Master’s degree; if this is the case, go for Master of Science (M.S) in Adult Education. The M.S in Adult Education gives you the opportunity to go for internship, a necessity in acquiring a license for teaching.

Alternatively, you could acquire a M.S degree through an online master’s degree program. These programs are similar to the traditional programs as they teach similar skills. However, with an online program, you will have to deliver your coursework and assignments via e-mail or any other online-based platform. The good thing about online master’s programs is that some teach distance education teaching methods; enabling you to offer your services as an instructor through a distance-learning mode.

For an online course, you only need to have a strong internet connection and a compatible web browser. The school in which you enroll for an online course provides you with a way to log-in for classes, access lecture notes, access and submit assignments as well as a way to interact with your instructors.

Become Certified

Although some states do not require a GED instructor to hold a license, most states do. Some states do offer documents to show that a GED instructor is qualified to teach. Thus, you have to ensure that you do fulfill the requirements that the state have outlined for GED instructors.

You go about this by taking the teacher assessment exams. Many states use a common exam, the Praxis 11 exam provided by the Educational Testing Service, but some states have designed their unique exams.

The exam tests how good you are at your specialized subject as well as your teaching skills. To complete the exam, you work on either a paper or an electronic test. The examiners send your results to the state’s board of education for evaluation. In addition, you pay fees to cater for criminal background check and the certification. Depending on your state, you could also be required to attend development-training programs every year.

Conduct a job search

With your degree and license, it is easy to get a job. However, you have to search for a job that is convenient for you. You could work at residential treatment centers, in prisons, hospitals, community college or even high school. Alternatively, you could work with the government that finances preparation and testing of GED programs.

To apply for available GED instructor positions, you have to create a comprehensive professional resume that highlights your education and your teaching experience. You should also mention your technical skills because, like most GED instructors, you will utilize technology in your teaching curriculum. In your resume, include a list of referees that can verify your practical knowledge and disposition.

To find any open positions, use the internet to search websites. Numerous websites can help you land your dream job. You should start with school websites; proceed to job boards and websites for state governments. Alternatively, send your resumes to institutions and schools you aspire to work with even if they do not have open positions at a particular moment, since they could keep your resume for reference in the future.

Attend Interviews

When you invited for an interview, be at your best. Answer all the questions appropriately. Show your expertise through your choice of answers. You should always be prepared to answer questions like, “why did you choose this school?”, “What is the most challenging part of this job?”, “How much do you expect to be paid?” and many more. You should conduct a thorough research of the company that invites you to the interview. You should also be aware of trends in the career as well as the average salary that GED instructors get. With this information, you will land your first GED instructor job sooner than you expected.

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