A+ Texas Teachers Org texasteachers.org Steer clear of Texas Teachers and avoid wasted time and money Dallas, Texas
Please consider other available programs than this private organization because as one of their previous students, I can say this one was terrible. I can't express the frustration I and many other students felt at the mostly inept instructors this organization had leading the learning seminars. The instruction barely skimmed the surface of what a teacher needs to know to be successful in a classroom. The "field education" consisted of watching 15 hours of videotaped classrooms, with no narrative, no study guide or examples to look for. Just basically surveillance. Classroom management consists clapping, raising your hand, or turning lights on and off.
After completing the two weeks of training, I walked away from my initial $400 investment and transferred to a Master of Education program at a state university. The program I'm in now is excellent and I'm confident that it's preparing me to teach effectively. After comparing the two paths first hand, Texas Teachers or full 2-year graduate program, I can honestly say that there's no way a person can prepare themselves for teaching through Texas Teachers.
I hope you'll consider my review before making the same mistake I did. Not all alternative certification programs are equal. Please look carefully at other programs. Some public school districts such as DISD offer a quality alternative teaching certification program that will prepare you adequately for teaching. I personally recommend a graduate certification program at a university.
2 Updates & Rebuttals
Mitchell
Howe,United States
A Plus Texas Teachers was Amazing for Me!
#3Consumer Comment
Mon, January 01, 2018
I have gone through and read EVERY Complaint through this site regarding this progrTam. Not one complained that they couldn't reach their goal through their program. Their program is NOT designed to make you a teacher. That is YOUR job! This program is designed to make you legally certified to teach in the State of Texas, not make you an excellent and intuitive teacher. Which by the way, I know many teachers that have gone through the traditional route and are not good teachers. This program is also specificially designed for those who chose a different career path in their life and changed it while realizing that they cannot afford or give their time for more education through means of a University. I already had a degree and it is a requirement that you already have a degree in something with this program. I had the most amazing experience and I am a teacher that is happy with my mentor and has been the easiest career change I have ever had.
John
Houston,Texas,
USA
All teacher preparation programs are useless.
#3General Comment
Wed, January 18, 2012
I filed the complaint on the same organization at:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/teachers/texas-teachers-org/texas-teachers-org-a-texas-te-afaaf.htm
You talk about a 2 year training course? This sounds like another scam to me. There is absolutely no way any teacher preparation course should last longer than 6 months. San Jose State University Secondary Education also has a 2 year program which is in my opinion just another money making scheme not worth the time, money or effort. I met the chair of the secondary education department at this university and he is a complete idiot.
Anyway, I managed to teach full time for 18 months in Asia. Of course I still don't have a standard certificate because although I completed all the requirements, I did not complete a 1 year internship. This means Texas Teachers did not get their $400 per month for 11 months for doing absolutely nothing.
Surprisingly enough, if Texas Teachers and these other ACPs knew what they were doing, they could actually accomplish much in two weeks, but they hire poor teachers and fools with PhDs in primary education to present worthless seminars. However, there is no way any preparation program can prepare a teacher for the classroom. Even a 1 year internship does not mean you know how to teach. In fact, a teacher can never be fully prepared for the classroom - especially the changing classrooms and different environments of today.
Classroom management is something you can only learn on the job. No amount of theory will help you master it and not everything you learn in theory is true or still applicable. I substituted for two years in Houston before I took up a full time position in Asia. The classrooms in public schools are zoos. Nothing you are told in classroom management will work in these classrooms devoid of discipline and control that has been wrested from the educator. See, the sad truth is that classroom management would be a non-issue once discipline is restored to US classrooms. The fools in US education either don't know this or simply ignore it. Texas Teachers is not necessarily worse than other ACPs, but it is no better than others. They are all bad. The longer programs at university are a scam whichever way one chooses to look at it. There is something terribly wrong when a course covering not more than 10 topics takes longer than 6 months.
It's too bad the federal government does not take over this function and have one standard department for all states.