Dumb Kwestion #29

Been too long since we have done one of these.

This episodes querulous question will have many of you wishing you would have skipped this entry, but I'm going to post it anyway.

If you could teach any grade and subject what would it be? (I know we have at least one teacher here...so feel free to pick a different subject from what you already teach if you like)

I would want to teach music history to upper level high school students (11th & 12th grades).  I would say to teach college students but I don't want to have to do all the grant stuff that most professors do

I'd like to teach music on a High School Level.  Kids who take music in High School are usually taking it because they want to and not because they have to.

I'd like to teach business (my degree) or Sociology (my minor) to college level kids. I know there's a lot to professorship, so I'd be happy at St Louis Community College as a full time instructor - they make about 10 grand more than I do now and only teach 12 hours.

When I grad-yee-ated from kolige I didn't find a job right off the bat. So I became a substitute teacher. At first I told them only elementary school, no high school. Then I was talked into doing high school by someone who desperately needed a sub. I found out there really is no difference between 3rd graders and 9th graders other than they are bigger by the time the are in 9th grade. Other than that they are identical in behavioral skills.

I loved being a substitute and did it until I found a job but I enjoyed elementary school the most. So if I had to pick I would be a social studies teacher in 3rd to 5th grade. If I had to do high school I would pick American History. I love history but some of it is too in depth for elementary children. If a high school teacher I would teach History and start a broadcasting club since I have a degree in Communications and a major in broadcasting. 

Interestingly, my nephew (who is only 6 months younger than me) is a college professor at the University Of Hawaii and got his tenure a few months ago so it looks like he found a job for life. He is currently teaching "down under" in Sydney, Australia for 7 months and had to move the family there with him temporarily (or just not be able to see them for 7 months).

Very cool Mike. I've thought a long time about going back and getting a Master's to teach college (that's all you really need in Missouri) but it's so expensive and I'm always concerned I won't like it.

I think I would like to teach at the junior college level.  Something like algebra or physics or even entry-level engineering classes.

When I graduated from college I wanted to be a high school band director.  Now I'm enjoying teaching music history at the college level.  I'd also love to teach theory.

ishmael81 wrote:

Very cool Mike. I've thought a long time about going back and getting a Master's to teach college (that's all you really need in Missouri) but it's so expensive and I'm always concerned I won't like it.

A Master's is actually the teaching degree.  I know a couple of people who have a doctorate but couldn't get a teaching job because their degree program didn't require a Master's to get in.  That being said, because of professionalization requirements, a lot of colleges want to hire PhDs for full-time positions and forget tenure-track positions (with few exceptions) with a Master's only.

messiaen77 wrote:

When I graduated from college I wanted to be a high school band director.  Now I'm enjoying teaching music history at the college level.  I'd also love to teach theory.

Would you REALLY want to deal with the opera people?  They really are divas.

messiaen77 wrote:

ishmael81 wrote:

Very cool Mike. I've thought a long time about going back and getting a Master's to teach college (that's all you really need in Missouri) but it's so expensive and I'm always concerned I won't like it.

A Master's is actually the teaching degree.  I know a couple of people who have a doctorate but couldn't get a teaching job because their degree program didn't require a Master's to get in.  That being said, because of professionalization requirements, a lot of colleges want to hire PhDs for full-time positions and forget tenure-track positions (with few exceptions) with a Master's only.

Wow... My dad has a PhD but had to get a Master's and Specialist's first.

I've thought about an MBA and going to teach business but it's expensive. UMSL also has a DBA - Doctor of Business Administration... but again, it's expensive.

College math or science.

College level chemistry....or music.

Either way, I'd be happy.

To be honest, I never saw myself as a teacher and never wanted to be one.  When I applied for the teacher's aid position, I didn't really know if I would enjoy it or not.  However, teaching these special needs kids is awesome and I can't see myself doing anything else.  Even though it doesn't pay as much, I'll take being an aid over being a licensed teacher any day.

I would like to teach kids how to make flower arrangements.
The grade?
I think kids on a High School.

I'd teach religion, cults and philosophy.  Any grade I guess... idk. The older I get, the less I like kids, so I guess any grade would work. 

I was a guest speaker at my daughter's 5th grade class* and in one hour I covered all religions, cults and philosophies in a simplistic way. On the dry erase board, I drew Stu from the Rugrats and had a whole story of him questioning life and it's origins and purposes.  So I threw Stu in a Super market of beliefs. Each aisle was a category of beliefs (ie Mono and polytheism, atheism, Eastern, etc... with sub-beliefs). I told a story of how he did a comparison shopping in this "religion" store - the reasons he rejected each "product" and how he ultimately chose Biblical Christianity based on it's historical, geographical, and manuscript evidence. All using cartoons and simplifications of each belief.

It was a huge success and not only did I enjoy myself, I got some feedback that the kids loved it as well. It was a good feeling - and hopefully planted some healthy seeds in those little minds.


*We had her at a Christian School at the time... this was a LONG time ago

Cool story G/F.

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

I was a guest speaker at my daughter's 5th grade class* and in one hour I covered all religions, cults and philosophies in a simplistic way. On the dry erase board, I drew Stu from the Rugrats and had a whole story of him questioning life and it's origins and purposes.  So I threw Stu in a Super market of beliefs. Each aisle was a category of beliefs (ie Mono and polytheism, atheism, Eastern, etc... with sub-beliefs). I told a story of how he did a comparison shopping in this "religion" store - the reasons he rejected each "product" and how he ultimately chose Biblical Christianity based on it's historical, geographical, and manuscript evidence. All using cartoons and simplifications of each belief.

It was a huge success and not only did I enjoy myself, I got some feedback that the kids loved it as well. It was a good feeling - and hopefully planted some healthy seeds in those little minds.

Very cool!

rockerVu2 wrote:

I would like to teach kids how to make flower arrangements.
The grade?
I think kids on a High School.

That sounds like a fun class. 

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

I'd teach religion, cults and philosophy.  Any grade I guess... idk. The older I get, the less I like kids, so I guess any grade would work. 

I was a guest speaker at my daughter's 5th grade class* and in one hour I covered all religions, cults and philosophies in a simplistic way. On the dry erase board, I drew Stu from the Rugrats and had a whole story of him questioning life and it's origins and purposes.  So I threw Stu in a Super market of beliefs. Each aisle was a category of beliefs (ie Mono and polytheism, atheism, Eastern, etc... with sub-beliefs). I told a story of how he did a comparison shopping in this "religion" store - the reasons he rejected each "product" and how he ultimately chose Biblical Christianity based on it's historical, geographical, and manuscript evidence. All using cartoons and simplifications of each belief.

It was a huge success and not only did I enjoy myself, I got some feedback that the kids loved it as well. It was a good feeling - and hopefully planted some healthy seeds in those little minds.


*We had her at a Christian School at the time... this was a LONG time ago

I'm pretty sure that they now have a religion section at both Sam's Club and Costco.  It's usually by the tires, if I remember correctly.

Quote :

I'm pretty sure that they now have a religion section at both Sam's Club and Costco.  It's usually by the tires, if I remember correctly.

Through The Dark Radio wrote:

I'm pretty sure that they now have a religion section at both Sam's Club and Costco.  It's usually by the tires, if I remember correctly.

Through The Dark Radio wrote:

messiaen77 wrote:

When I graduated from college I wanted to be a high school band director.  Now I'm enjoying teaching music history at the college level.  I'd also love to teach theory.

Would you REALLY want to deal with the opera people?  They really are divas.

I know!  It amazes me how many people want to be professional classically-trained musicians, but don't actually want to learn about the music they are performing.  I had to take an opera lit class.  Out of 30 people in the class, there were 26 vocal majors and 4 musicologists (3 saxophonists and a guitarist).  Some of them were unbearable and couldn't believe they had to sit through a history of opera.  They were going to star in Puccini and Verdi, why did they need to know about Cavalli and Monteverdi.  We musicology folks had a lot of fun baiting them by asking all kinds of questions about manuscripts and performance practice.  There were a couple of pretty cool ones.  One (this is my other brush with fame besides getting called up on stage to sing backup for Kim Boyce) now stars as Divya Katdare on the show Royal Pains.  She was very nice not a total diva.

That's pretty cool.  But at UH, I had two music classes with several different music majors (opera/vocal performance, classical musicians and jazz musicians) but you could definitely tell the opera peeps   Very cliquish.