I'll Be A Teacher in No Time!
Written: May 05 '03 (Updated Oct 19 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Can attend class at any time, Easy to understand, great tech support
Cons: You MUST have MS Office to excel; Learning teams unreliable
The Bottom Line: Great for working adults. A bit expensive, but they offer a variety of payment options.
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| Candice923's Full Review: University of Phoenix |
I'm an actress. Everyone knows it. I've been acting for 18 years-- since I was 8 years old. I love getting up in front of people and getting some sort of response. It's my thing.
As an actress, it's a bit unreliable in the money department. Plus, I don't have health benefits. I don't want to be flat broke, or anywhere near there, so I needed to find a career with stability.
I decided to become a teacher. After all, my mother is a teacher. My Aunt Jean is a teacher. My Aunt Elisa was a teacher before she died. I come from a long line of teachers. Plus, I only work from 7:30am - 3:00pm, which gives me the evenings for rehearsal if I do theatre. AND I have the summer for television and theatre. Most importantly, I will get medical benefits.
But, I faced a problem. I was injured in June of 2001 and unable to attend classes. (I can't sit for long, carry books, etc.) My friend Deborah (ddward) told me that I should look into University of Phoenix. She was going there to get her BS in Business, and told me that they have a Masters of Education program.
So, I took a look. I nearly fainted when I found out that each CREDIT was $410 each, and you had to pay 2 weeks before each class started. PLUS, there's a $48 resource fee. So, a 3 credit course would run me $1,278. Just a little out of my price range. (Bachelor Degrees, by the way, are a little less.)
Then I found out that I was eligible for Vocational Rehabilitation through Worker's Compensation. That means that they would pay for my retraining up to a certain point. I was thrilled. I found out more about UoP and decided to get my teaching degree from them.
One credit takes two weeks to complete. Weeks run Thursday to Wednesday. Each class has between 10 and 14 people. I have been quite happy with the three classes that I have taken. My first class had 14 people. My second one had 10. The one I am in right now has 12. This is unlike the college classes I was used to when I attended The George Washington University. For example, my Chemistry class had over 150 people in it.
In the class, students are broken into learning teams. These teams consist of 3-5 students each. Depending on the course instructor, there are team assignments required to hand in per week. For example, the class I am in right now, Models, Theories and Instructional Strategies, requires every team to do a reflection paper each week. Depending on certain teammates is very frustrating, because it's difficult to "read" their personality through the online posts. It's hard to depend on someone you don't know.
There are five different areas of each online classroom. When you enter the classroom, you are brought to the class discussion thread. This is where the majority of the class interaction takes place. In a toolbar is a list of other areas of the classroom that you can access. First on the list is Assignments Only. This is where you post your writing assignments, but can't read what the other students have posted. Second is the Course Materials thread. This is where the instructor posts the weekly lectures, writing assignments, examples and anything else that may pertain to your coursework. Third is the Chatroom. This is where students can post friendly chat, concerns, etc. without being graded on it. Finally, there are the different team threads. They are labeled Team A through Team D. You access your team by clicking on the team you have been assigned to. You can look at the other teams' progress through the course, but you're not supposed to post.
You can access your classroom in two different ways. First of all, access it through UoP's website: http://mycampus.phoenix.edu. There's a button you can choose that says "Go To Class" after you've logged in. This will bring you to your UoP inbox, then to a list of different classes. The second way you can access your class is through MicroSoft Outlook. You have to subscribe to the newsgroups, then you'll be brought to your class everytime you open Outlook. I prefer the latter of the two ways to access it because you have different choices in font.
For my MAED program, I have an ePortfolio. This is something I have to access in every class in order to finish my program. I must post different writing assignments there that will help me achieve my degree. I still don't fully understand how I actually get credit for it, and no instructor has been able to tell me. So, I just do what I'm told. Whatever. As long as I can get my degree.
I was pretty ticked off in my first class. I worked my butt off, and received a well-deserved (if I do say so myself) 100% in the class. Then, I found out that EVERYONE in the class received 100%. Even the girl that didn't do any work on our team. Yeah, I was angry. My second class was the opposite extreme. We were deducted for things we didn't even know we did incorrectly. I got a 95% in the class, and my teammate got a 97%. I am fully aware of some 70%s and 80%s. Okay, that proved to me it's a "real" school.
It's best for ALL of your assignments - both to class and to ePortfolio - to be posted using MicroSoft Word. I, unfortunately, do not have Word on my computer in NY. I have had to rely on people to post everything for me. I had no choice but to post to my ePortfolio using Works, but I plan to correct that while I've got my mother's computer with Word on it.
It's very convenient for those of us that travel a lot. For example, I usually reside in Palmdale, CA. Right now, I'm in Brookhaven, NY, and I can still access my class with no problems. I'm heading to New Zealand at the end of the month, and I will be able to access it from down there, too. Even though I'm traveling, I won't miss any classes and can maintain an A average.
Speaking of averages... Students are not allowed to double up in classes until the prove that they can handle the courseload with flying colors. That means having an A average for the first four classes. I've got 2 down and have two to go. I really want to double up so that I can get my degree sooner, and start teaching!
Another thing... The MAED program isn't accepted in New York. I don't know why-- something to do with the student teaching part. So, I need to finish my degree before I move to NY. Otherwise, only 6 credits will transfer. I don't know if this is going to happen, but it's very frustrating. I've tried to do the math to see if I can get at least 18 credits before we move... This class will make 8 credits for me. Ten more before we move, and Lord only knows when that is.
My program is 33 credits long. It is supposed to take students 2 years to complete it. I'm not kosher with waiting 2 years before I can start to teach, so I'm going to try to get it done sooner. I hope I succeed. Unfortunately, students can't take more than 2 classes at one time. Grr.
Tech support is fantastic. I've called them several times and have spent less than 10 minutes on every call. Each support person has been so incredibly friendly. I'm never worried about calling them.
My student advisor is great, too. They really try to work with you when it comes to getting your classes done and attaining your degree. I just want to get my degree so badly! Becky (my advisor) knows that I'm pushing hard, and she's doing her best to get me into classes as soon as she can.
UoP Online is designed for working adults. Before being admitted, you must prove that you're a working adult and have been working for at least 2 years without any breaks.
It's expensive, but I know it's going to be worth it. I do feel as though I have learned a lot in my classes. I just hope I finish in time...
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
Candice923
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 - Top 500 |
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Location: Brookhaven, NY
Reviews written: 707
Trusted by: 200 members
About Me:
Is it true? Do I have my own TV show??? Stay tuned!
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