About two weeks ago, I got this question on my Facebook page:
Hi everyone. Has anybody switched from secondary teaching (upper years) to primary teaching? Pros and cons?
Since I have not had this experience myself, I thought I would throw it out to my readers and see what you can do to help this teacher make her decision. In the past, you have been a fabulous resource for helping parents decide whether to have their child skip kindergarten or have their child take on extra math practice, so I’m hoping you’ll come through again here.
I did my own research and found some excellent resources that could also help this reader and anyone else trying to make the decision to switch or not to switch grade levels.
5 Tips for Changing Grade Levels
Autumn Bell, Teaching Channel
Where Should I Teach? Comparing Elementary, Middle, and High Schools
Brian P. Gatens, Concordia Online
Making the Transition to Primary Teaching
TES (read the comments on this one, too)
Have You Been Teaching the Same Grade Too Long?
Peter DeWitt, Education Week
Making the Switch: How I Moved from Sixth Form to Primary Teaching
Richard Palmer, The Guardian
So what do you think? Have you made a significant switch from one age group to another? What were the pros and cons of each age group? What advice would you give to someone thinking about making the switch? Please add your thoughts in the comments below, and thank you!! ♥
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