Expert: James J. Kovalcin - 7/2/2003

Question
Almost as soon as I started teaching math about eight years ago I ran into trouble, mostly, when I think of it, because I made poor decisions about where I would work, and that out of a wariness of being offered a good job.  I have a decent understanding of and appreciation for math, and a  desire to use my intellect to work on challenging (for me) problems, so one that thing I did while teaching was write much of my own material.  With kids who value learning, and some administrative support, I would likely be a good teacher, as I believe I am dedicated to helping kids learn.  It's hard for me to start looking for work, though, as my experiences (and references) were (and would be) negative.  For the past five years I've subbed, but would rather teach, again, though, in the right situation.  I've thought about Catholic schools, despite being an atheist, because of their reputations as places where learning is paramount. I'm willing to leave the U.S.  Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks.

Answer
I am sorry to say that I do not have all of the answers. Teaching, however, is more art than science in my opinion. You really need to be able communicate your thoughts to your students. This is not as easy as it sounds. Many of the words that we as teachers use do not always communicate the ideas we intend them to. It is surprising how often we mis-comminicate with our students and don't even realize. it. I mention all this because you indicate that you would not expect to get good recomendations from those aroundf you. How3 would your clientele, your students, rate your performance. I know that many educators would argue that student opinions [i.e. popularity] is not relevant, but I believe that they are not entirely correct in this matter. Given a grain of salt it is still to dertive useful information from student opinions of your teaching abilities. As far as private schools are concerned, do NOT assume that things will be better. It all depends on where in the country you are teaching. I teach in a public school in New Jersey which I would clearly place among the top schools, public or private, in the country. On the other hand, I have heard that in certain areas of the country the public schools are markedly inferrior to the private schools. There isn;t a magic solution here.