Requirements for Private School Teachers in Alabama
Private school teachers in the state of Alabama must fulfill a number of requirements in order to start their career, such as getting a license. Learn more about private school teacher job requirements, salary, and other important information.
Information on Becoming a Private School Teacher in Alabama
A private school teacher will help to teach and guide students as they learn and develop. Teachers are responsible for a number of tasks, including creating their lesson plans, communicating with parents and students, creating and enforcing rules, grading student assignments, and monitoring the progress of students.
<table border="1"><tr><td> Education/Experience Required </td><td> A minimum of a bachelor's degree, License of certification to teach</td></tr>
<tr><td> Exams Required </td><td> Alabama Educator Certification Testing, Praxis II Exam*</td></tr>
<tr><td> Certification Renewal Period </td><td> Every 5 Years</td></tr>
<tr><td> CEU Credits Required for Renewal </td><td> 3 Semester Hours with 3 Years' Experience or 6 Semester Hours of Credit*</td></tr>
<tr><td> Median Salary Per Year (2018) </td><td> High School - $60,320, Middle School - $58,600, Elementary School - $57,980*</td></tr>
<tr><td> Estimated Job Growth (2016-2026) </td><td> High School - 8%, Middle School - 8%, Elementary School - 7%*</td></tr>
</table><p><i>*Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), TeacherCertificationDegrees.com, TeachingCertification.com</i>
</p><h3 id="section---JobDescription">Job Description</h3><p>Private school teacher's responsibilities differ depending on the grade level that they teach. An elementary school teacher will be responsible for helping children to learn and understand basic subjects and principles. Teachers in the middle school setting will need to help students learn and add to the knowledge that they gained in elementary school, and also prepare them to move to high school. Those that teach high school are responsible for teaching their students the skills and knowledge that they will need to succeed in life as they move on to college or the workforce.
</p><h3 id="section---EducationRequirements">Education Requirements</h3><p>To become a private school teacher in the state of Alabama, applicants are required to have a minimum of a bachelor's degree in the subject matter that they would like to teach. Having a higher degree, such as a master's degree, may help applicants get an extra edge when applying for jobs later. The degree courses the prospective teacher will take will depend on the classes they wish to teach; for example, a high school math teacher should expect to take algebra, statistics, or geometry classes.
</p><p>In addition to a degree, prospective teachers are required to complete an educator preparation program, which can be completed as part of the chosen degree, or separately after. This is a state certified program and is required to teach in the state of Alabama, and applicants will typically need a minimum of a 2.5 GPA to be accepted into the program.
</p><h3 id="section---ExamRequirements">Exam Requirements</h3><p>Potential teachers will need to take two tests to have met all of the requirements to become a private school teacher; The Alabama Educator Certification Test, which will cover a number of different topics, such as writing, reading, and math skills; and the appropriate grade-level Praxis II Exam, which will cover core academic skills, content knowledge and subject specific assessments.
</p><p>Further requirements can be found on the Educational Testing Service (ETS) website.
</p><h3 id="section---LicensingApplicationProcess">Licensing Application Process</h3><p>First time applicants are required to be fingerprinted in order to complete a full background check through both the Alabama Bureau of Investigation (ABI) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Applicants will then need to submit the application which will include exam scores, official transcripts and also a Recommendation for Certification which will be provided at the end of the educator preparation program.
</p><h3 id="section---RenewalRequirements">Renewal Requirements</h3><p>Teaching certificates must be renewed every five years and at least one of the following five criteria must be met in order to do this;
</p><p>•Three years of full-time teaching experience and 50 hours of professional experience
</p><p>•Three years of full-time teaching experience in combination with 3 semester hours of college credits
</p><p>•3 semester hours of college credit in combination with 50 hours of professional experience
</p><p>•6 semester hours of college credits,
</p><p>•Certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS).</p>