Electrical Teaching Qualifications
Why would I want to teach?
A very good question. Maybe you don't want to spend the rest of your life on the tools, maybe you want to put something back or maybe you simply want to try something different. Whatever the reason, here are some things to consider when thinking about starting to teach:
The Good
- Holiday is not too bad, averaging about 35 days a year
- In FE colleges, the final salary pension is currently very good
- Excellent job satisfaction
- Stable work, stable wage
The Bad
- Paperwork, paperwork, paperwork...
- You get paid for 37 hours; you do anything up to 70 hours
- Students do not always want to learn, it can be a hard process
- Politics and poor management
The Ugly
- Pay!
The pay when teaching, particularly when starting out, is very poor and rarely does anything to attract people into teaching. It improves when you have experience and qualifications but for many, especially when some colleges are offering as low as £20k (2007) as a starting salary, it is a pay cut.
How do I go about teaching?
So, you've done your time at college, you've gone on and got your current Wiring Regs qualifications and done your Inspection and Testing. You've got experience all over the electrical industry and decide you want to put something back. How do you go about it?
The answer in most cases is simple, go for that job you have seen advertised. Lecturers, like fully qualified electricians, are thin on the ground and are always highly sought after. To enter the teaching game all most people need is enthusiasm and patience and the rest falls into place.
Do I need a teaching qualification to teach?
The answer is simply no. A teaching qualification, just like an electrical qualification, should be completed on the job. There is little point in gaining a qualification without the experience. You WILL need a teaching qualification to continue teaching, do not enter the profession if you are not willing to learn or gain qualifications, you will not last very long.
Here are the qualifications you will gain while teaching:
Assessors Award A1
The A1 Assessors Award is designed for those who would be NVQ Assessors. It is a professional qualification and if delivered properly should teach you how to assess NVQs (as well as other courses) and improve your assessment techniques. It can be completed in as little as 2 days although this is considered extreme and is preferable to learn the ropes first.
City and Guilds 7407
The 7407 is the first teaching qualification you should undertake when having started teaching. It is split into 3 stages and starts off at the very basics of teaching practises and works up to an excellent foundation for the the final qualification.
PGCE/Cert Ed
The final qualification will give you fully qualified teaching status within FE. The course is usually studied over a 2 year period and involves some strong study skills and advanced techniques in the areas of research and teaching styles.