I can’t help thinking that if the State of Illinois and the City of Chicago would re-examine some existing policies about people getting certified to work in the public school system, there might be a decrease in the critical shortage of school personnel.
My own recent pursuit of becoming certified in either teaching or guidance counseling has shown me that, in spite of the shortage of teachers, counselors, social workers and administrators, officials aren’t addressing the problem.
I am 51 years old and have bachelor’s and master’s degrees. I have been a nursing instructor and have consulted for a North Suburban school district. I have more life skills, given my age and experience, than this years’ graduating class of education majors, but in Illinois, this does not matter. There are requirements that often mean taking useless undergraduate courses and spending two to three years in college and/or graduate school (again) before becoming certified. Previous employment experience and life skills are not taken into consideration at all. And, for many people, Illinois public universities leave limited opportunities to take advantage of a certification programs cheaply.
I also tried to pursue a job in guidance counseling. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that to be a guidance counselor, you must have a teaching certificate, even though counselors do not spend their time in the classroom. I also found that my graduate coursework in human services would not count and I would have to repeat all of it because of state rules.
Oh, and I don’t live in the city, so I wouldn’t be able to work there, anyway.
So I have given up. There are probably hundreds of other people like me who would love to work in a school and have skills worth contributing. I certainly understand that people cannot walk into a school and simply teach or provide services, but many of us have been to college and in the workforce, and have useful life skills. I fail to understand why Illinois is so reluctant to change certification requirements. It would not only help alleviate the shortage, but would also provide schools with teachers and personnel that have some measure of maturity.
