From Teaching to SLP- how did it go?

[kharkins]

Hey all,

 

I'm currently an ESL teacher at a private high school, and although I do love it, I'm already experiencing teacher burnout.  I love actually being in the classroom with the kids, but the extra responsibilities (lesson plans, departments meetings, coaching, dorm duties) are making the job much less enjoyable and completely overloading me.

 

I was wondering if there are any other teacher-to-SLP people out there that would be able to answer a few questions.  Why did you choose to change to SLP, and what was your process like? Are there any similarities or differences that are especially notable? And, most importantly, are you happy with your decision?

[Crimson Wife]

If you go into SLP and work in schools, you will have a lot of the same kind of stuff (not the extracurriculars or dorm duties though). Every student will have an Individual Education Plan and you'll need to write goals, progress reports, participate in IEP meetings, etc. You will get paid better, however. SLP's in my district get paid in the high $70k's to low $80k's (they do work summers because of Extended School Year) while teachers make in the $50k's to low $60's.

 

One advantage to SLP vs. classroom teaching is that you won't face pressure regarding standardized test scores. A lot of teachers I know have retired recently because they're so sick of the "all test prep, all the time" that teaching has become in our district.

[SLP2B111]

You might get more responses if you post this in either Reddit's SLP forum or on the FaceBook forum called IMAGES (Insight, Mentoring, And Guidance for Aspiring SLPs) or the Facebook SLP school forum. Also, chat with the SLPs at the school/district where you work because then you'll know what is common for the district/area where you live and work.

 

One thing I will say is that if you are a teacher you'll have some very relevant experience to write about in your grad school applications.

 

Good luck!

[kharkins]

 You will get paid better, however. SLP's in my district get paid in the high $70k's to low $80k's (they do work summers because of Extended School Year) while teachers make in the $50k's to low $60's.

 

Thank you for your reply! This is also something I was wondering about-- I have to say, having the summers free to do what I want (which actually results in either teaching summer school or PD courses) is definitely a huge perk to the teaching life.  What are summers mostly like for SLPs in schools? Is it the same work as the regular school year, but a lighter caseload?

[SLPsara]

Thank you for your reply! This is also something I was wondering about-- I have to say, having the summers free to do what I want (which actually results in either teaching summer school or PD courses) is definitely a huge perk to the teaching life. What are summers mostly like for SLPs in schools? Is it the same work as the regular school year, but a lighter caseload?

I'm not one yet, but I'm a nanny and the babies mom is an SLP. Her school is "year round" so the breaks are a little different, but she gets that time off. She works a couple extra days once everyone goes on the longer summer and fall break and goes back a couple days early, but besides that she gets the same breaks, holidays, etc.

[Crimson Wife]

Thank you for your reply! This is also something I was wondering about-- I have to say, having the summers free to do what I want (which actually results in either teaching summer school or PD courses) is definitely a huge perk to the teaching life.  What are summers mostly like for SLPs in schools? Is it the same work as the regular school year, but a lighter caseload?

 

My special needs child sees the SLP at her school the same frequency during the summer term but sessions are shorter (20 min each instead of 30 min). Not every child qualifies for Extended School Year so there are fewer sites in the district. So now that I think about it, some of the SLP's might get the summer off if they're not at a site that has an ESY program.

 

There is a 1 week break in our district between the end of the spring term and the beginning of ESY. Then there is a 3 week break between the end of ESY and the beginning of the fall term. Enough so that families and staff can take vacations but not too long so that the kids start regressing.

[ahirsh7]

I taught 2nd grade for the Chicago Public Schools and I was just accepted to graduate school. Although I haven't started as an SLP (not even close!), I observed a lot of SLPs in the public schools. From what I saw, there is less "paperwork." Although you do IEPs as a classroom teacher, you obviously have to do A LOT more IEPs, but at least in Illinois they only need to be reviewed every three years, earlier if they're being dismissed from services. Lesson plans are far less extensive from what I could tell and I'm not sure they even have to be submitted and no grading of course, but you do need to complete assessments and create your schedule, which seemed complicated to me! Best of all, NO pressure from testing, which is a big reason I left teaching. Finally, you're paid more and from what I saw there is less work outside of the "classroom." I plan to fill this time with private clients once I get my Cs.

[Magpie J]

Hey all,

 

I'm currently an ESL teacher at a private high school, and although I do love it, I'm already experiencing teacher burnout.  I love actually being in the classroom with the kids, but the extra responsibilities (lesson plans, departments meetings, coaching, dorm duties) are making the job much less enjoyable and completely overloading me.

 

I was wondering if there are any other teacher-to-SLP people out there that would be able to answer a few questions.  Why did you choose to change to SLP, and what was your process like? Are there any similarities or differences that are especially notable? And, most importantly, are you happy with your decision?

Hi there, 

 

I can totally relate to your situation! 

 

I spent two years teaching English to children in Taiwan and two years as an ESL program coordinator for adults in the US. I loved studying and teaching language, and I became fascinated by the human communication system. I considered pursuing graduate education in TESOL, but I was afraid of being pigeonholed into a career without a lot of mobility or earning power. About two years ago, I met an SLP at an ESL teaching conference. She gave a fantastic workshop on accent modification, which she did as part of her work as an SLP. I picked her brain extensively, and we discussed the vast overlap in skills between SLP and ESL professionals. SLP seemed like the a great career for me to use my teaching skills, knowledge of language, and passion for working with multicultural populations, so I enrolled in my first SLP prerequisite course a few weeks later! (post-bac online program). 

 

I am beginning a graduate program in the fall, so I can not speak to how the careers compare, but I can say that my ESL teaching experience has been very helpful in the 10 SLP prerequisite courses I have taken. I have been able to relate a lot of the concepts to my real-world experiences with students. Through ESL teaching, you have most likely gained a solid understanding of the phonetic and grammatical structure of English as well as strong skills in teaching pronunciation and language.  You undoubtedly have lots of creative tricks up your sleeve to engage students and achieve successful learning outcomes. These skills should help you become a great SLP! 

 

Lastly, I can assure you that your experience as an ESL teacher will strengthen your graduate school application. Cultural competence is is a priority within the profession, and there are many SLP grad programs that have a multicultural or bilingual emphasis. Read more about that here: http://www.asha.org/Practice-Portal/Professional-Issues/Cultural-Competence/

 

For me, the transition seemed logical. I was able to complete the prereqs online while working full time, and even after two years of classes, I still love it.  I have not regretted this decision and I am looking forward a fulfilling career. 

 

Hope this helped:) Good luck to you! 

[kharkins]

 

 

 

For me, the transition seemed logical. I was able to complete the prereqs online while working full time, and even after two years of classes, I still love it.  I have not regretted this decision and I am looking forward a fulfilling career. 

 

Hope this helped:) Good luck to you! 

Hi Magpie,

 

This definitely helped me; thank you so much for your thoughtful response!  I definitely hope that my ESL teaching skills transfer over, and I'm excited to delve more into the scientific aspect of communication rather than just teaching grammar and pronunciation.

 

Would you say that working full-time while taking the prereqs was stressful?  I don't know if I'm going to be able to handle it or not, but my plan is to take a 7-class online prerequisite program with the University of Hawaii as well as teaching full-time at my boarding school.  I'm taking one class during the summer and doing 3 weeks of summer school, so hopefully it'll be a good litmus test to my fall and spring of taking 3 classes and teaching.  I'm also nervous about observation hours, but I'll hopefully figure that out when I need to.

 

I want to start my new career as soon as possible!  I hope your first year of grad school is successful

[SLP2B111]

ahirsh7,

 

I just messaged you! 

[Magpie J]

Hi Magpie,

 

This definitely helped me; thank you so much for your thoughtful response!  I definitely hope that my ESL teaching skills transfer over, and I'm excited to delve more into the scientific aspect of communication rather than just teaching grammar and pronunciation.

 

Would you say that working full-time while taking the prereqs was stressful?  I don't know if I'm going to be able to handle it or not, but my plan is to take a 7-class online prerequisite program with the University of Hawaii as well as teaching full-time at my boarding school.  I'm taking one class during the summer and doing 3 weeks of summer school, so hopefully it'll be a good litmus test to my fall and spring of taking 3 classes and teaching.  I'm also nervous about observation hours, but I'll hopefully figure that out when I need to.

 

I want to start my new career as soon as possible!  I hope your first year of grad school is successful

I did an online leveling program through Eastern New Mexico University. You can complete it in 1 or 2 years. After this summer I will have completed 12 courses, including a preclinical observation course.  (7 classes sounds like a pretty short list compared to most other leveling programs. I would recommend checking the prereq list any grad programs you are considering to make sure you will have enough credits).

 

I chose the ENMU program and took two years to complete it for a few reasons reasons: Firstly, I wanted to keep working full time. This program allows you to take either 8-week courses or 16-week courses. I preferred to take one 8-week course, then another 8-week course within a semester to really focus on one subject at a time. Secondly, if you take 2 or less courses within a semester (either two 8 week classes or two 16 week classes), you get in-state tuition which brings each course to around $650. This is one of the most affordable leveling programs I could find. Lastly, the scheduling flexibility is very nice  -- one semester when I knew I would be moving across the country I took two 8 week courses at once so that I would have a long break to move. Taking two classes at once and working full time was very stressful and ate up all of my free time. Could I have powered through an entire year of that workload? Maybe. But it was critical for me to get a 4.0 to balance my less-than-stellar undergrad GPA, so I didn't want to risk that either. 

 

My only complaints about the program are probably common with most online classes. Some courses were much better than others. I missed the classroom interaction and accessibility of professors. They were usually very good about responding to questions, and I even received a letter of rec from one. My other gripe about the program is that many of the classes do not have a lecture component. I prefer auditory learning, so it was challenging to master some of the more scientific concepts strictly through reading. (Hooray for YouTube!) Some courses did have recorded lectures that could be accessed anytime. 

 

I think that continuing to teach will really compliment your learning. Congrats on this decision!! Let me know if you have any other questions. 

 

J