From Stay-At-Home Mom to Teacher
Transitioning from Stay-At-Home Mom to Teacher
After 15 years of stay-at-home parenting, Malia decided to reenter the workforce. She knew she was good at working with children, so she took a job as a paraprofessional at a local school. Her children attend the same school, so the decision made sense for her family. Soon, her skills with children became obvious to others, including the school administration. When Malia realized she wanted to transition from stay-at-home mom to teacher, she had a full-time teaching position waiting for her.
Malia has been an elementary special education teacher for 3 years now. Her lessons most often focus on math and reading skills. Malia said she knows that teaching in a special education class isn’t for everyone, but American Board’s program really prepared her. “It’s the kids and staff that make the difficult job really worth it.” Additionally, using American Board’s pathway to teacher certification, she received special education training at no additional cost when pursing her elementary certificate.
According to Malia, “Of course the best part of teaching is working with the kids. You can get a lot of material things in life, but nothing beats the relationships you’ll always form with your students.”
Why Use American Board
American Board’s price point really set it apart from other certification options in her state, said Malia. Additionally, learning that exam fees are already included in the program costs was a bonus. This meant she that wouldn’t have to pay extra to take the certification tests.
Malia says that, to be honest, she was a bit worried that she would be judged harshly for not using a traditional university pathway to earn her certificate. But she soon realized that school administrators want to hire excellent teachers, no matter how they earn their certificate. For Malia, online teacher certification worked best as she transitioned from stay-at-home mom to teacher.
“As I went through the study material, I saw that it was so rigorous. The tests weren’t easy and I liked that.” Malia said the depth of the program material really helped her learn and gave her confidence that she picked the right program.
Like a lot of people transitioning to a new career, Malia had some concerns. Specifically, she was nervous about the writing portion of her certification exam. Consequently, she found the personal determination she needed when watching the writing webinar. She said, “I was really worried about the writing portion, and having that webinar really helped me.”
Learn More
Malia transitioned from stay-at-home parent to full-time teacher in Utah. Unfortunately, online teacher certification in Utah through American Board’s program is currently unavailable for new career-changers. If you live in Utah and would like to learn more about American Board’s program for teacher certification, click here.
To learn about the other 14 states American Board serves, visit our website.
Malia is currently teaching from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Click here to listen to her experience.To hear from dozens of American Board graduates, visit our Youtube page, which has new testimonials added each day.
