Why not become a relief teacher and go inside the classrooms of the Normal classes (worst case scenario), 6 classes a day? You will find out.
MOE is a large organisation with many rules and regulations and with many policies crafted by non-teachers who are policymakers.
Originally posted by Chemguide7:Why not become a relief teacher and go inside the classrooms of the Normal classes, 6 classes a day? You will find out.
MOE is a large organisation with many rules and regulations and with many policies crafted by non-teachers who are policymakers.
If you are in for the money, better reconsider. You have to be in there for a passion and it is a calling.
The rewards are great. Nothing is better when you see a truant kid turns over a new leaf. A teacher impacts eternity.
Originally posted by ArJoe:
I am a student aspiring to become a teacher, but it seems that I need to reconsider my choice now..
Whatever your passion is (a particular career, relationship, etc) , u should at least give it a shot, or else you might die (ie. at the end of your life) not ever knowing whether or not how it might have turned out.
I encourage all students who have a passion for teaching, to give it a shot. It's always a good idea to try it as a relief teacher, as ChemGuide suggested. After the relief teaching experience, those who still the passion to teach, should certainly go ahead and sign up with MOE for a permanent teaching position as a full time education officer (including applying for the NIE diploma in education).
Even if you (eg. a student, or a mid-career professional) aren't able to have the relief teaching experience, but always had, or now strongly have, a deeper calling and inner passion within yourself to teach, yes you should go ahead and apply with MOE for a teaching position (either part time or full time), including the 1 year NIE diploma course.
The experience of this profession, (or to be precise) the meaningful interaction with students, and making some difference in some of their lives, makes teaching a worthwhile experience and profession.
I never regretted joining MOE, just as I never regretted leaving MOE. Which brings me to my summary : I feel the MOE teaching experience is a valuable and irreplaceable experience that everyone who ever had, or now have, the passion to teach, should give it a shot.
Thereafter, considering everything (ie. it should be obvious to everyone in Singapore by now, that joining MOE is certainly not just about the meaningful interaction with students and making a difference in their lives, but also invevitably involves a lot of politics, bureaucracy and non-teaching duties as well), you have to decide how long you wish to stay in MOE.
Few Singaporeans stay in one career or profession their entire lives. Within a few years, most Singaporeans switch across companies, professions and industries. So go ahead and apply to join MOE. Once you're in it and given it a shot, after the first couple of years, it's time to evaluate your situation (not just in MOE, but in any career or company) and decide for yourself, whether you wish to be in this for the rest of your life, or for a good several more years, or if you should be making preparations to move on soon.
To reiterate and summarize : the MOE is as screwed up as any other large, commercial organization in the corporate world, but that should not detract or prevent you from giving yourself, and your future students, the chance to give it a shot and make some difference in some of their lives. Just be sure you go into MOE and into the school with your eyes wide open, instead of suffering some fairy tale delusion that may cause you to end up dissapointed and disillusioned (the most common complaint for new teachers leaving the service). And after you feel you've done enough, or have had enough, make preparations to move on with your life.
May you enjoy your teaching career (or at least the meaningful student interaction aspects of it) for as long as you choose to be in there.
Originally posted by UltimaOnline:
Whatever your passion is (a particular career, relationship, etc) , u should at least give it a shot, or else you might die (ie. at the end of your life) not ever knowing whether or not how it might have turned out.I encourage all students who have a passion for teaching, to give it a shot. It's always a good idea to try it as a relief teacher, as ChemGuide suggested. After the relief teaching experience, those who still the passion to teach, should certainly go ahead and sign up with MOE for a permanent teaching position as a full time education officer (including applying for the NIE diploma in education).
Even if you (eg. a student, or a mid-career professional) aren't able to have the relief teaching experience, but always had, or now strongly have, a deeper calling and inner passion within yourself to teach, yes you should go ahead and apply with MOE for a teaching position (either part time or full time), including the 1 year NIE diploma course.
The experience of this profession, (or to be precise) the meaningful interaction with students, and making some difference in some of their lives, makes teaching a worthwhile experience and profession.
I never regretted joining MOE, just as I never regretted leaving MOE. Which brings me to my summary : I feel the MOE teaching experience is a valuable and irreplaceable experience that everyone who ever had, or now have, the passion to teach, should give it a shot.
Thereafter, considering everything (ie. it should be obvious to everyone in Singapore by now, that joining MOE is certainly not just about the meaningful interaction with students and making a difference in their lives, but also invevitably involves a lot of politics, bureaucracy and non-teaching duties as well), you have to decide how long you wish to stay in MOE.
Few Singaporeans stay in one career or profession their entire lives. Within a few years, most Singaporeans switch across companies, professions and industries. So go ahead and apply to join MOE. Once you're in it and given it a shot, after the first couple of years, it's time to evaluate your situation (not just in MOE, but in any career or company) and decide for yourself, whether you wish to be in this for the rest of your life, or for a good several more years, or if you should be making preparations to move on soon.
To reiterate and summarize : the MOE is as screwed up as any other large, commercial organization in the corporate world, but that should not detract or prevent you from giving yourself, and your future students, the chance to give it a shot and make some difference in some of their lives. Just be sure you go into MOE and into the school with your eyes wide open, instead of suffering some fairy tale delusion that may cause you to end up dissapointed and disillusioned (the most common complaint for new teachers leaving the service). And after you feel you've done enough, or have had enough, make preparations to move on with your life.
May you enjoy your teaching career (or at least the meaningful student interaction aspects of it) for as long as you choose to be in there.
Originally posted by Chemguide7:
If you are in for the money, better reconsider. You have to be in there for a passion and it is a calling.
Can you imagine teaching the bright kids in Normal(Acad) who oppose you at every lesson? You have to try all ways to win them. And deal with lots of admin and CCA funding/supervision/holiday activities and marking books / worksheets / preparing for lessons at night? Plus meetings and courses to attend? And remedials on weekday afternoons?
Teacher's pay stagnates after about 10 years, unless you are promoted to HOD or senior teacher.
But the rewards are great. Nothing is better when you see a truant kid turns over a new leaf. A teacher impacts eternity.
Originally posted by ArJoe:
Hi UltimaOnline, Thanks for your advice. Initially I had the passion to become a teacher because I enjoy passing on valuable knowledge to students and I thought this is the main job a teacher does. But as what Chemguide7 has pointed out, it seems that a teacher has to deal with my admin stuff etc, so I am not certain whether I am able to deal with these. I may consider to sign up as a relief teacher after my 'O' Levels. I am perfectly fine with the pay of a teacher as long as it is reasonable, furthermore a teacher's job is extremely stable. I am sure you are a private chem tutor right? Do you mind revealing why you left MOE? Is the pay of a full-time private tutor good?
I had over a dozen reasons why I left MOE, but money wasn't one of the top 12 reasons.
One important reason I left MOE, was health / medical reasons. I have several medical conditions, and the ongoing, never-ending, perpetual sleep deprivation (which most students and teachers continue to suffer from) was exacerbating my medical problems. If I was the Minister of Education, I will insist that all schools start no earlier than 11am. Sleep deprivation lowers students IQ, and if all students had just an hour more sleep than they do, I guarantee you the national 'O' and 'A' level results would see a significant improvement.
As for private tuition, some make millions per year from it, while others struggle to barely survive. So it's impossible to say whether you'll make more money from being a private tutor, or from rising up the ranks within MOE. Even within MOE, some HODs in some schools get paid more than some Principals in some other schools. There is a wide variance in pay within MOE, and the income variance is even wider as a private tutor.
Originally posted by UltimaOnline:
I had over a dozen reasons why I left MOE, but money wasn't one of the top 12 reasons.One important reason I left MOE, was health / medical reasons. I have several medical conditions, and the ongoing, never-ending, perpetual sleep deprivation (which most students and teachers continue to suffer from) was exacerbating my medical problems. If I was the Minister of Education, I will insist that all schools start no earlier than 11am. Sleep deprivation lowers students IQ, and if all students had just an hour more sleep than they do, I guarantee you the national 'O' and 'A' level results would see a significant improvement.
As for private tuition, some make millions per year from it, while others struggle to barely survive. So it's impossible to say whether you'll make more money from being a private tutor, or from rising up the ranks within MOE. Even within MOE, some HODs in some schools get paid more than some Principals in some other schools. There is a wide variance in pay within MOE, and the income variance is even wider as a private tutor.
Originally posted by ArJoe:
Wow, I seriously wish that you were the Minister of Education, sleep is something that is seriously lacking in Jc students where they spend the time meant for sleep doing revision and homework instead.. I am definitely interested in becoming a private tutor because one gets to concentrate solely on teaching instead of handling admin works which I am not interested in,although a private tutor do not get any medical benefits etc. Do you set up your own tuition centre or work for other centres? How much do you charge your students for H2 chem tuition?
I currently operate solo, as does ChemGuide (also an ex-MOE teacher). Eagle and WeeWS (also an ex-MOE teacher) on the other hand, run the Eton tuition center.
My BedokFunland JC H2 Chemistry tuition fees are indicated as follows :
http://www.infinity.usanethosting.com/Tuition/#FeesTable
You may also wish to check out ChemGuru (another ex-MOE teacher, who now runs his own tuition center) Maverick Puah's website guide for aspiring private tutors :
http://sgsupertutors.wordpress.com/
PS.
ChemGuru Maverick Puah is now recruiting Chemistry tutors for his tuition center (see link below). But you probably need more experience and a proven track record before he'll hire you.
http://chemistryguru.com.sg/career-opportunities
15 Ways to Relieve Stress : http://news.nster.com/content185.html