If you want to become a teacher, chances are you’ve begun to think about the different degree options available, namely a Masters in Teaching and a Masters in Education. But what’s the difference? The difference, actually, is quite large.

Masters in Teaching
Do you want to teach, but don’t have experience? The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) is the way to go. The Master degree in teaching requires a minimum of 30 post-graduate semester hours and relies heavily on advanced coursework in a specific subject. For example, if you love calculus, the Master of Arts in Teaching will make you an expert calculus teacher. Even more exciting is that, with the Masters in Teaching, you actually get to teach. MAT students typically spend a full semester as student teachers (a program also known as guided practice), teaching alongside certified teachers.

Masters in Education
The Masters in Education is a degree with actual majors within itself and allows you to do a number of things. To become a teacher, one can have a Masters in Education with a focus on Curriculum Instruction or Curriculum Teaching. A Masters in Education with a focus Counselor Education can certify you to become a mental health counselor, and a Masters in Education with a focus on School Counseling is the path you would pursue to become a guidance counselor. There’s also Higher Education and Student Affairs, if you’re looking to teach college students, and Adult Education to (you guessed it) teach adults who are returning to school. You can even use a Masters in Education to prep for your PhD. The most important difference between this and the Master in Teaching is that the Masters in Education is commonly (but not exclusively) aimed towards professional teachers hoping to advance their knowledge in their particular field.
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Now that you know the difference between the two, it’s probably pretty noticeable how different they are. Knowing the difference between a Master in Teaching and a Masters in Education, you can ask the right questions, save time and get the degree you need.

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Effective July 15, new rules in Georgia will require teachers seeking an increase in salary pegged to continuing education to complete their masters degrees or doctorates at an accredited college or university. Previously, teacher salaries in Georgia increased at an average of $6,000 per year for teachers with an advanced degree from any university, whether or not it was an accredited school. Now, only degrees from colleges accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) or the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC) will qualify teachers for those salary increase.

According to Kelly Henson, head of the Georgia Professional Standards Commission that oversees teacher certification, “The rules in Georgia prior to the policy change essentially allowed — with a few exceptions — an educator to get a degree in virtually any subject or field from virtually any institution and qualify for a compensation upgrade… We believe in the value of advanced degrees and we believe that educators should be compensated for the completion of meaningful, relevant and rigorous advanced degrees.”

The new rule is designed to increase the quality of education in Georgia, ensure that instructors have the proper teacher certification and prevent educators from pursuing a graduate degree at a college with an inadequate curriculum. In addition to this, teachers will also be required to complete their degree in a subject related to the one they teach.

This teacher certification overhaul in Georgia coincides with new federal regulations implemented by the Obama administration to prevent students from taking on too much debt to attend for-profit, non-accredited colleges. These “gainful employment” regulations are designed to ensure that students will enroll in a school that can actually increase their job prospects and prevents for-profit schools from accessing federal financial aid if too many of their graduates are unable to find jobs that pay enough to allow them to pay back their student loans.

As of now, Georgia ranks third in the country for their compensation of advanced degrees, but in terms of the quality of those degrees, they are at the bottom. Tim Callahan, spokesman for the Professional Association of Georgia Educators, says, “We don’t want people going to fly-by-night educational institutions to get degrees… I think teacher quality is a big issue, and that includes teacher education and professional education.” The state hopes that requiring their teachers to pursue degrees from accredited colleges or universities will improve the quality of their teaching certification and therefore improve the quality of education in Georgia.

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Interested in becoming a teacher in Georgia? Check out our page on Georgia teacher certification and salaries.

When faced with an economic recession as enormous and widespread as the one in which we currently still stand, many facets of daily life can be cut back, downsized, or given up altogether. We can eat out less, walk more, and generally repair the hole that had been burned through our wallets and purses. One aspect of American life that is absolutely indispensible is the ability to give our children a proper education, with the proper number of teachers and the proper facilities. Unfortunately, a recession often takes local education programs into its vice grip along with the new televisions or clothes we can agree to give up. This one was no different, and many states found themselves facing massive budget deficits, forcing large cutbacks that would leave the public school system in shambles.

In response to this, the White House launched the renowned American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, with more than $100 billion targeted at preventing suffering at the hands of the public school system. Fortunately, the results were nearly immediate. A rapidly approaching October 30th release of the first quarterly public accounting of all expenditures to date will be posted by the Recovery, Accountability, and Transparency Board, posts Jesse Lee on the White House blog. Amongst many positive signs of the recession dwindling is the figure of at least 250,000 teaching jobs being created or salvaged directly from the Obama initiated stimulus package.

The St. Louis public school system was attempting to recover from the reality of the ever looming $53 million budget shortfall carrying over from 2008. At risk were more than 85 teachers jobs, and with that the veracity of over-crowded classrooms and under-educated children. Thanks to the stimulus, these jobs were saved and the public school crisis was averted. This video released by the Department of Education provides the story of three young women who were directly affected by this aid. This city serves as a positive exemplification for many other American school systems, and this release brings new reason to believe that teaching will be a profession closely protected by its government.

The fact that teaching jobs are being created in large numbers is a good sign for the fortitude of our country. With strong education programs comes an even stronger generation of future leaders and contributors. The government clearly recognizes this and will do what it takes to invest in maintaining the roots of the economy. Obama spent much of Monday visiting with the students in Viers Mill, MD encouraging the hard work necessary to achieve goals. Lee blogs that Obama had the following message to relay: “I am hoping that you guys will continue to read, read, read, and that all of you are going to be really working hard not just this year but all the way through high school and then all the way through college…”

With a government supporting our teachers, we find encouragement for the future. Children will continue receiving the education they need and education professionals will have an increasing number of jobs. Experts remain optimistic that many other areas of the economy and country will look as bright as education does. Search Jesse Lee’s White House blog for more information on how the stimulus act is influencing education.