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Need some advice, please.

Started by CoachF, January 12, 2015, 10:50:44 am

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CoachF

Hello everybody,

I am looking for some advice and could not think of a better place to seek it out. I am currently a sophomore at a local university and very interested in becoming a high school football coach. My question is about the teaching aspect. I am very fond of both science and history. The only problem I am facing right now is deciding at which level to teach. I am trying to decide between a degree in middle level education or secondary education. I know the coaching endorsement will work with either degree. Is it harder to become a high school coach with a degree in middle level ed? Has anybody had any experiences that would help me make an informed decision on this matter?

Thank you for all the help and advice.

Coach DePriest, Sheridan

I would suggest 7-12 vs 4-8 for 2 reasons: 1. You really want to be able to teach the kids you coach and 2. 7-12 includes that upper middle school level of 7 & 8. 

At Harrison, most of our coaches teach 7-9, and it was that way when I was at PA as well.  I enjoy teaching high school and being in the hallways and at lunch duty with the senior high football players. 

As for science vs history, more coaching positions seem to be paired up with history, but it seems more jobs are available for science.  If you enjoy science, you may opt to get the math certification.  There never seems to be a shortage of math jobs available.  I started out with physics, so the switch to math was easy because I was already taking so many math courses for that degree.

XFalkonz

If you are going to teach history do it at the high school level. I teach four AP classes and love it. If you are going to yeah AP history you better learn how to manage your time wisely and learn every thing you can learn about your subject areas.

arthurhawgerelli

My advice is close to what Coach DePriest has said, but I want to add something, and I hope all young coaches who frequent Fearless Friday will do the same.  Whatever you choose to get certified in, do it with pride.  I've sat around at ball games and listened to young coaches brag on not doing anything in class.  I've had to work with a few of those guys.  They kill the support your faculty and administration will give if they see you pulling your own weight. 

Before I got out of coaching and into administration, I taught 4 or 5 English classes along with 2 athletic periods.  Admittedly, during football season, my students didn't get a lot of writing assignments (because they had to be graded), but I focused on grammar and reading skills all fall, and then spent the rest of the year more balanced, and loaded up on writing.  I had tons of support from the rest of the faculty and especially the administration.

I've heard that one of the best math teachers in the state is Jerry Clay, head football coach at Lake Hamilton.  I also know that if you were in the Arkansas River Valley from the 60's to the early 90's, if you needed math help, you took your child to Coach George Jones from Pottsville/Atkins.  I could go on all day about outstanding coaches who also are excellent classroom teachers.

Honest to goodness, the X's and O's are very important, but if you choose to coach at the high school/jr. high level, what you do in the classroom is more important.  I've been in education over 30 years.  Taught at some pretty good places, with fine athletic traditions.  In that time, I've seen about 15 total full athletic scholarships get handed out.  I've seen hundreds and hundreds of academic and music scholarships.  Teach these kids life first.  If you teach them to be successful at life, most of the time, they'll excel on the court and on the field as well.

Good luck.

HorseFeathers

Quote from: arthurhawgerelli on January 13, 2015, 02:12:31 pm
My advice is close to what Coach DePriest has said, but I want to add something, and I hope all young coaches who frequent Fearless Friday will do the same.  Whatever you choose to get certified in, do it with pride.  I've sat around at ball games and listened to young coaches brag on not doing anything in class.  I've had to work with a few of those guys.  They kill the support your faculty and administration will give if they see you pulling your own weight. 

Before I got out of coaching and into administration, I taught 4 or 5 English classes along with 2 athletic periods.  Admittedly, during football season, my students didn't get a lot of writing assignments (because they had to be graded), but I focused on grammar and reading skills all fall, and then spent the rest of the year more balanced, and loaded up on writing.  I had tons of support from the rest of the faculty and especially the administration.

I've heard that one of the best math teachers in the state is Jerry Clay, head football coach at Lake Hamilton.  I also know that if you were in the Arkansas River Valley from the 60's to the early 90's, if you needed math help, you took your child to Coach George Jones from Pottsville/Atkins.  I could go on all day about outstanding coaches who also are excellent classroom teachers.

Honest to goodness, the X's and O's are very important, but if you choose to coach at the high school/jr. high level, what you do in the classroom is more important.  I've been in education over 30 years.  Taught at some pretty good places, with fine athletic traditions.  In that time, I've seen about 15 total full athletic scholarships get handed out.  I've seen hundreds and hundreds of academic and music scholarships.  Teach these kids life first.  If you teach them to be successful at life, most of the time, they'll excel on the court and on the field as well.

Good luck.

It's outside of coaching....But I wish more fans would understand this portion of the coaches job as well...

WPWells

I'll add to what y'all said by saying that Coach Randy Terry's Chemistry class at Charleston High School was the whole reason I succeeded in Chem I in college. He was a fantastic Chemistry teacher

CoachF

Thank you for all of the advice. I have done some observations for my education classes already and was surprised at how much I enjoyed being in the classroom. I observed at the high school level in history courses and really liked the idea of teaching that subject. I also enjoy biology a lot but never got to observe a high school class for that subject. The reason for the lean towards biology is based off of what I have heard others say about the availability of jobs with that subject area. If that doesn't necessarily hold true, I may need to reevaluate and look more in depth at history. This also ties into the question on 4-8 vs 7-12 as I know at the 4-8 level you focus on two areas of study. I have also heard there is a shoshortage of male teachers at that level thus creating an even larger availability of possible jobs. Is this true and/or even make a noticeable difference?

OB11

I would go for the 7-12 in my opinion.  If you plan on coaching it is nice to be around the kids you coach in the hallways and in the classroom.  If you go 4-8 there's always the chance that you will be teaching the lower grades and never come into contact with your student athletes outside of the sport.  It helps building that relationship outside of practice and game times.  Just my opinion.

GotInfo?

Math and science certifications are the route you need to really look into. Coach DePriest is right, there are many more jobs available in those teaching fields than history and pe. Not to mention, an added perk is that many districts give math and seine stipends to those teachers because of the high demand and need to keep them.
Also, in cases of good districts, they might be willing to create a coaching spot that wasn't there in the first place if they are in need for a teacher certified in those subjects.
I've been out of coaching last serveral years and in private business, but you can't go wrong with math or science.

toejammer

This is Coach Buchan at Maumelle. My high school coach, Bill Reed at Jacksonville, gave me the best advice when he encouraged me to minor in math. I have since went on to get a Masters degree in Math and teach AB and BC Calculus. I can tell you that what I do in math class every day is lot more important than anything I have ever done on the football field. We had a great year in football this year and I had 5 great kids earn scholarships which is the most we've ever had. By comparison my math classes will generate 4-5 times that many.
I love football and have made many cherished memorie over the past 31 years, but I would rather be called a great math teacher than a great coach.

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