How to Become a High School Teacher
Do you want to make a difference in your community by guiding teenagers, in both their academic and personal lives? You might be interested in becoming a high school teacher.
As a high school teacher, you’ll be educating students in 9th to 12th grade in the classroom and beyond. While the main job of teachers is to expand their students’ academic knowledge, teachers often help students socially and emotionally as well, sometimes making a difference far beyond the classroom.
Ready to learn more about how to become a high school teacher? We have the details on the education and licensing you’ll need.
What Is a High School Teacher?
High school teachers provide classroom instruction at a public or private high school. They usually focus on a specific academic subject, in contrast to elementary and middle school teachers, who might teach a variety of subjects. Some high school teachers are also homeroom teachers, which means they’re the main teachers responsible for a group of students and their homeroom.
These are some subjects that you can specialize in as a high school teacher:
- History
- Social Science
- Mathematics
- English
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Physics
- Performing Arts
- Visual Arts
- Physical Education
- Foreign Languages
High school teachers can instruct students in general education, special ed, or mixed classroom settings. They take the lead role in delivering instruction, as opposed to paraprofessionals, such as teacher aides or teacher assistants, who work under the supervision of teachers.
What Does a High School Teacher Do?
High school teachers’ main responsibility is to plan and lead classroom instruction, but they have many related job tasks, for example:
- purchase and organize classroom supplies
- plan homework and other assignments
- correct exams and classwork
- evaluate student knowledge through exams, assessments, and more
- provide support to individual students as needed
- record student results as grades, progress reports, etc.
- manage student behavior and conflicts, with the help of others as needed (like counselors and aides)
- attend meetings with parents and school administrators
- record attendance and student incidents
Homeroom teachers have additional responsibilities, which could include:
- hold parent conferences
- organize contact information for students and parents
- organize class trips and other events
- be the primary contact teacher for parents and students
If the class has special need students, high school teachers collaborate with an individualized education plan (IEP) team that could include behavioral aides, speech therapists, occupational therapists, and resource teachers. This involves additional responsibilities such as attending IEP meetings and setting IEP goals.
To learn more about the requirements for how to become a high school teacher, read Monster’s job description for teachers.
How to Become a High School Teacher
To excel as a teacher you’ll need to have a leadership personality, be comfortable with public speaking, and have good communication skills. You’ll also need to have good organizational skills and attention to detail. Many who thrive in this field do so because they truly enjoy making a difference. If guiding high school students motivates you, you’re off to a good start on the road to becoming an inspiring teacher.
To teach in the public school system, you’ll need more than skill and a passion for educating the next generation—you’ll also need to check off all the requirements to be licensed as a teacher. The requirements getting a teaching license differ by state, but these are the typical steps:
- Complete a bachelor’s degree program. It’s common for high school teachers to have a B.A. in education with a focus on their subject area.
- Satisfy state educational requirements for a teacher license. This can be divided into additional steps (see an example below). These requirements may or may not have been satisfied in the previous step, depending on the program.
- Pass a licensing exam.
- Complete fingerprinting and a background check.
- Apply for a teaching license in your state.
How to Become a High School Teacher in California
While states have different requirements for how to get a high school teacher license, many will require similar credentials. As an example, this is how to satisfy the state requirements to become a high school teacher at a public school in California:
- Meet basic skills requirements by any of these options:
- Pass the California State University’s Early Assessment Program (EAP) or Placement Exams.
- Meet the score requirements set by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC) for the SAT or ACT.
- Get a score of 3 or higher on the College Board AP English and Calculus or Statistics.
- Pass a basic skill exam from another state.
- Pass the California Basic Educational Skills Tests (CBEST).
- Pass the California Subject Examination for Teachers (CSET).
- Get a grade of B or higher in eligible reading, writing, and mathematics classes.
- Meet the single-subject expertise requirement.
- Pass a class or a test on the U.S. Constitution offered by a regionally accredited college or university.
- Get a formal recommendation by the sponsor of your teacher preparation program.
- Take fingerprints and pass a background check.
- Complete 600 hours of student teaching.
How to Become a High School Teacher With Subject Expertise
Many states offer several options for you to satisfy a single-subject expertise requirement. Often, these include:
- Completing a bachelor degree program in education, focused on the specific subject you want to teach. This is also called a subject-preparation program and is ideal if you know before college that you want to become a high school teacher.
- Getting a bachelor’s degree in another topic, then taking an exam to prove your knowledge of the topic you want to teach. This is a common option if you decide to become a teacher after you already have a college degree.
- Competing a post-bachelor, subject-preparation program. This is also a common route for those who already have a college degree.
How to Become a High School History Teacher
To become a high school history teacher, you’ll want to study a subject preparation program focused on social science or history, depending on the state where you’ll teach. It’s wise to also focus some of your elective courses on history and social science.
When teaching social science classes, it’s extra valuable to educate yourself on culturally responsive education. You can learn more about this in our article on how to answer teacher interview questions.
How to Become a High School Math Teacher
To become a high school mathematics teacher, you’ll need to be skilled in math, including algebra, pre-calc, calculus, and statistics. While you don’t need to be an expert, you should have enough knowledge to teach confidently at the grade level. You’ll also need to satisfy the single-subject requirement in your state, typically by completing a math single-subject preparation program.
Once you have your license and are ready to search for a job, it’s wise to practice common math concepts just in case you get a “pop quiz” during your job interview.
How to Become a High School Art Teacher
To become an art teacher, you’ll need to follow a similar educational path as other single subject teachers. Depending on the state, you might specialize in art or a specific field of art (music, drama, dance, visual arts, etc.) if you’ll be teaching a hands-on topic (as opposed to art history or music theory, for example), you’ll be at an advantage if you also are a practicing artist.
How to Become a High School English Teacher
If you want to become a high school English teacher, you’ll need to have excellent writing and reading skills. A true interest in literature and language will also take you far. For example, when you interview for an English teacher job, make sure to have answers to relevant questions such as your favorite authors and books. Be sure to include both books within the Western canon and more modern or culturally diverse books.
How to Become a High School Teacher if You Already Have a College Degree
If you’ve already graduated college with a degree in something other than education, you may be able to take an alternative educational path to speed up the process to becoming a high school teacher, depending on your state. These are some examples:
- The American Board offers a teacher preparation program.
- Several organizations offer trainee programs where you can work in an underperforming school while earning your license, for example The Academy for Urban School Leadership and the New Teacher Project.
How to Become a High School Teacher Without a License
If you want to teach but don’t have a license, you may be able to find jobs at a private school. Private schools have more leeway in who they hire but have to follow state requirements. For example, in California, private schools must prove that teachers must be “capable of teaching.”
While state law has fewer requirements for private school teachers, schools still usually require that teachers have a bachelor’s degree.
How Much Does a High School Teacher Make?
The median high school teacher salary is $44,584 nationally. Public school teachers typically make more than private school teachers since there are more hiring requirements for teaching in public schools.
How much does a high school teacher make in your city? To compare the median high school teacher salary in different cities, use Monster’s salary tools.
How to Become a High School Teacher Once You Have Your License
Once you have your teaching license, you’re ready to apply for teacher jobs. Most applications will ask for a cover letter and resume. Learn how your job application can make the grade by looking through our teacher resume sample and teacher cover letter sample.
Once you’re ready to apply, use Monster to find high school teaching jobs based on region or subject, for example:
- art teacher jobs
- high school math teacher jobs
- high school history teacher jobs
- high school English teacher jobs
- high school biology teacher jobs
You can also search for jobs on Monster by state or narrow it down to a city. Here are job postings in some of the top states for teaching jobs:
And here are some of the popular cities for teaching jobs:
Learn the ABC’s of Job Searching on Monster
Now that you know how to become a high school teacher, it’s time for the next step in your job search: create a Monster profile. Start by uploading your resume so that you can apply to jobs you find here. Your job search doesn’t have to be a test of your patience—we’ll send you the Spark Notes version of our job board by emailing you whenever new high school teacher jobs open up in your area.