History Teacher Requirements - Prerequisites to a History Teaching Career

History is an important part of our society, and so arewhich can be taken before, during or after taking
the responsibilities of a History teacher. For those whoteacher training programs, are the most widely
aspire to be History teachers in the US, theaccepted standardized tests nationwide for aspiring
requirements are similar to other subjects; one needsteachers. One must get passing marks in PRAXIS II
to have at least a bachelor degree and a teachingHistory core exams, and then pass the PRAXIS III
license.observation exam. The PRAXIS III is a real teaching
For those who already have a bachelor degree andclass assessment where education officials assess an
wants to shift to a History teaching career, mostaspiring teacher's capability to handle the subject alone.
states require taking additional education units andThere are also accelerated programs for teaching
history core subjects, which leads to master's degree.licenses, which may accept foreign or interstate
Popular graduate courses are Masters of Art inteachers. This accelerated teacher training includes
History or in Teaching - Secondary History education.screening tests for subject proficiency, as well as
Graduates of Anthropology or Social Sciences haveEnglish communication proficiency. For example, foreign
an advantage when taking these graduate coursesteachers are required to get a valid working visa for
since most will have good background on History orthe state he or she will teaching, and may also be
Anthropology courses. Post baccalaureate programsrequired to get at least 84/120 score (like in Arizona) in
include subjects in Teaching in K through 12, USTOEFL or an equivalent passing mark in IELTS. Some
Civilization, World Civilizations and History, Researchstates also include critical thinking tests and at least 2.5
Methods, Secondary Level American History,GPA on bachelor's degree and in consequent History
Archaeology, Anthropology and Social Science survey.teaching preparation courses. After that, one can get a
For those who are still in college or planning to get atemporary approval to be a History teacher assistant,
second degree to be a History teacher, BS inwhich usually can be finished in a year's time.
Secondary Education in Social Studies is the bestThere are still other alternative teacher certification
choice. It provides all the pedagogical courses up to thepathways for aspiring History teachers. As the
K12 level, plus covers all the history subjects needed.demand for new History teachers grow every year,
Additionally, these programs include teaching internshipsnew alternative processes that speed up certification
or practicum hours.are being implemented state by state. Always check
After getting masters in education or BS in educationon the state education agencies, as requirements can
for history teaching, the next step is to pass thevary per state.
assessment processes for licensure. PRAXIS I,II, III,