Tally: Online Education Online Teacher - June 2010

A common myth out there is that online courses require less mental rigor than traditional courses, and there are those who assume that becoming an online teacher is also less demanding. Not so; a master's degree is the baseline for most post-secondary online teaching jobs. Requirements vary from school to school, so if you're wondering what a particular online school requires of its teachers, you'll have to look at that school's job listings. Another important point is that most online teaching jobs require real-world experience. So if you want to become an online teacher, make sure to look into jobs or internships that give you real-life experience in your field in addition to academic training in that field.

Benefits and Job Security in Online Teaching Jobs

One of the most important questions for many job-seekers these days is job security and benefits. A recent trend for most colleges and universities, whether online or traditional, is to hire part-time faculty, keeping the institution from having to pay full-time salary and benefits packages. Since online teaching jobs emphasize real-world career experience, most online teaching jobs are staffed by professionals in their field who also work a full-time job. While online education is growing, which means jobs should be increasing and the job security outlook is promising, full-time online teaching jobs with benefits are, unfortunately, not the norm.

A Day in the Life: Real-World Online Teaching Jobs

June's top five posts offer real-life insight into the day-to-day mechanics of online teaching. While online teachers must still create assignments, post discussion questions, grade homework, and constantly evaluate and communicate with students, the fact that most online courses do not require direct instruction means that there are no lectures to write, saving teachers a bit of time. As with any new job, getting started can be difficult because of the adjustment to new technologies and an online format, but once teachers have adjusted, most classes become much smoother sailing and require less time.

The growing popularity of hybrid courses has led some teachers to ask: how does one create a hybrid course? Our online teaching expert answers with great real-life examples of how to combine a traditional class with online coursework, including creating online writing workshops, posting discussion questions online, and using online tools to conduct research. Thanks to the increasing use of technology in all types of classrooms, keeping up with new techniques and online methods is a necessity for anyone who teaches, whether online or in the classroom.

Online Degrees in (Online) Teaching

For K-12 teaching jobs, it is possible to earn a bachelor's degree in teaching mostly via the Internet. However, since most states require hands-on experience, usually known as student teaching, there may be portions of a bachelor's degree in education that cannot be completed online. For online K-12 teaching jobs, a bachelor's degree in teaching plus student teaching experience is necessary. While many of the basic principles of teaching are the same whether in a classroom or online, completing online teaching certification courses or school-specific training programs can help give you an edge in your job search.

For post-secondary teaching positions, a master's degree is typically the basic requirement, and often teaching experience is suggested for campus-based schools. Online schools also prefer that job candidates have real-world experience, since many online degree programs emphasize practical job training.