Saturday, February 05, 2005
Oh, back to school, back to school, to prove to dad I'm not a fool
School is back in session. Some are happy. Most are not. I am one of those who are not. I took last semester off so that I could get all the testing I needed to do out of the way, and move, and get caught up on my life in general. So it was hard having to go back after several months off. What also made it hard was the fact that I had to sign up for French classes this semester. Not that I don't love me the french, don't get me wrong. But I was hoping not to be required to take any more and only have credential classes left. However, that is not the case.
You may have read a post a couple of months ago about all those tests I was taking - two of which were French. California required the passing of 3 different tests in order to fulfill "subject matter competency" in the area you want to teach. I had passed one of the three the year before. So the other two were the ones I had to pass in order to not have to fulfill competency through coursework (ie: a 2nd BA in French). I was all freaked out because I thought I had done so super crappy on the literature/culture test that there was a snowball's chance of me passing it. Well guess what folks? I passed that sucker. It was the speaking test that I missed by 3 points.
Now many ask, "can't you just re-take the speaking part?" And the answer is no. California has now implemented a new test - the CSET. For any of you kiddies wanting to teach elementary out there, you are probably familiar with how obnoxious the multiple subject CSET is. Well, now there's one for French, and even though I passed 2 of the 3 old tests, it doesn't mean sh** because the requirement as of 1/05 is the CSET for French. And it's obnoxious. But what sucks the most is coming so close. I'd rather have missed the test by a mile, than by 3 points. The funny thing is, I can teach in most states in America with the scores I got. In fact, most states don't even require a literature portion. But good ol' California, the state in which I reside, has the highest score requirement. So if I wanted to say, go get my credential and teach in Hawaii, I could because Hawaii recognizes that I am competent enough to teach French. California does not. I always though Hawaii was a cool ass state.
However, even though I am pissing and moaning about all of this, I do think that everything happens for a reason - so if I'm meant to keeping taking French then so be it. And I know it will only make me a better teacher. I was just hoping not to still be in school and working at Morgan Stanley when I'm 40, because it seems as if I've been in school continuously since I was 4, with the exception of the year off after my BA and the semester off last fall. Besides, tuition's pretty cheap, right? And I make an exorbitant (sp?) amount of money so it's really just pocket change. Heh.
You may have read a post a couple of months ago about all those tests I was taking - two of which were French. California required the passing of 3 different tests in order to fulfill "subject matter competency" in the area you want to teach. I had passed one of the three the year before. So the other two were the ones I had to pass in order to not have to fulfill competency through coursework (ie: a 2nd BA in French). I was all freaked out because I thought I had done so super crappy on the literature/culture test that there was a snowball's chance of me passing it. Well guess what folks? I passed that sucker. It was the speaking test that I missed by 3 points.
Now many ask, "can't you just re-take the speaking part?" And the answer is no. California has now implemented a new test - the CSET. For any of you kiddies wanting to teach elementary out there, you are probably familiar with how obnoxious the multiple subject CSET is. Well, now there's one for French, and even though I passed 2 of the 3 old tests, it doesn't mean sh** because the requirement as of 1/05 is the CSET for French. And it's obnoxious. But what sucks the most is coming so close. I'd rather have missed the test by a mile, than by 3 points. The funny thing is, I can teach in most states in America with the scores I got. In fact, most states don't even require a literature portion. But good ol' California, the state in which I reside, has the highest score requirement. So if I wanted to say, go get my credential and teach in Hawaii, I could because Hawaii recognizes that I am competent enough to teach French. California does not. I always though Hawaii was a cool ass state.
However, even though I am pissing and moaning about all of this, I do think that everything happens for a reason - so if I'm meant to keeping taking French then so be it. And I know it will only make me a better teacher. I was just hoping not to still be in school and working at Morgan Stanley when I'm 40, because it seems as if I've been in school continuously since I was 4, with the exception of the year off after my BA and the semester off last fall. Besides, tuition's pretty cheap, right? And I make an exorbitant (sp?) amount of money so it's really just pocket change. Heh.
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