Teacher's Salary
 

My first question in does anyone downsouth know what state do teachers make the most money? I'm trying to decide if I'm going to move to ATL or Houston Texas. I'm considered highly qualified in Louisiana so I don't know how it works in other states.

Okay this is the best advice I can give from my perspective..(I will actually graduate in December in Texas)

I would suggest not only looking at salary but also at cost of living. I think I've seen some reasonable districts in Houston ranging from 34K-37K (I think..) I know Alief or Aldine pays the most in Houston if I'm not mistaken. HISD I heard was offering signing bonuses but that's because it's considered inner city where you may get a class full of at-risk students.

Since you are coming from another state I'm thinking that you will have to take the test in Texas called the TExES (Texas Examination of Educator Standards) Check out this website www.texes.nesinc.com

Hope that helps!

Re: Teacher's Salary
 

Have I answered this before? :confused:

I had your exact same dilemna 4 years ago.. I narrowed it down to Houston and Atlanta. I was also a certified teacher in Louisiana, and I thought carefully about it. In the end I noticed the salaries were about the same but Texas had a lower cost of living. Also it get cold in the ATL and being originally from Cali that was a no for me. If you are from Lousiana then you may want to consider the distance. Lousiana is a 2 hour drive from Houston so thats nice.

Missam05 is correct. I work in Aldine and they start at $37,000 and Alief I believe starts at $38,000. Then it depends on your area, if you are doing anything bilingual, spec. ed, math or science and are certified you can walk into ANY school district in Houston and get hired. I teach social studies so, I don't receive a critical needs stipend. To be honest I like Houston (now) teachers make pretty decent money and the cost of living is realistic. We just built a house in September on 2 teacher salaries and it was way above my expectations for a first home. What areas do you teach in?

Thanks for the information. I teach Special Education-Resource. I had a temporary teaching certificate last year, but since then I have taken and passed Praxis 1 & 2, but someone told me that I would not be able to just move to Texas or ATL and start teaching I would have to take another job mabey as an aide or something else until I become certified in Texas. I don't know. I'm trying to get certified through a certification program. I graduated in Sociology. That's for all your advice. I really appreciate it.:)

You can make some big bucks teaching public school in Georgia if you have 1 or more graduate degrees.:) Plus the schools here are desperate for special ed folks!

Don't believe what "folks say". Continue to do like you are doing. Contact the state departments of Ed to get an official answer. What you have posted above doesn't even sound right. Teachers, especially Special Education (math and science) teachers are needed all over the country. In that you are HQ, that makes your chances finding a job even greater.

I feel for those teachers who aren't HQ, they will be getting the "boot". :o

Good luck! Go get that Master's degree (and plus 30) (if you haven't done so already!)

When I graduated from Southern I was an education major so all I had to do here was take the TEXES/EXCET which is the "Praxis" for Texas. However my husband was a Thereputuc Rec. major and he teaches. When we moved here 4 years ago to teach all you needed was a bachelors degree, then it was a defeciency plan, then you had to be accepted in an ACP program, then you had to be actually enrolled in one. Now you need to be in an ACP program but also have taken and passed the first part of the TEXES to be considered "highly qualified". So the requirements are getting tougher. "No Child Left Behind" means every kid must have a "highly qualified teacher" for 2005-06.

My husband just finished his ACP program yesterday(Praise God) he went through ACT Houston http://www.acthouston.com/ This program usually is a whole semester but he went through the Summer session which was only 5 weeks. If you go to their website it will link you to every school district in the Houston area so you can see that districts requirements. Places like Alief, Aldine, Fort Bend won't even talk to you unless you are certified or close to it but HISD, and the smaller districts are easier to get into. Since you are special ed, they may make major exceptions for you. Thre is a HUGE shortage in every district in Spec. Ed, I would call every schhol district and explain to them your situation and let them tell you do you meet the requirements to be considered for a job. Trust me, as any teacher can tell you, Spec. Ed, Billingual, math and science are suffering from HUGE shortages so you may be able to walk right in and get hired on the spot. Good luck and let me know if you have any questions.

MeezDiscreet I am going to PM you. :)

All of the above have given you great advice.

I am currently an Education major in the Atlanta area. Atlanta Public Schools start out with 39k a year with a BA or BS. The surrounding counties/suburbs are close starting from 32k to 37 depending on what type of degree you have.

You probably won't be able to teach until you become certified here in Georgia. So check out this site: http://www.gapsc.com/TeacherCertification.asp