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Sorry, not a pun as the career change thread before, but I'm thinking about redirecting my career and try to start teaching at a college level. I've been developing for a number of years and am thinking a change might be in order. Does anyone have experience with this type of shift? Good or bad?
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Depends on what you expect, and what you want. The things I consider bad might be positive points in your book.
I was totally unprepared for a group of people who would write down what I said word for word, and recite it literally; but yes, it was fun.
Bastard Programmer from Hell 
If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]
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How could you be unprepared?[^]
The language is JavaScript. that of Mordor, which I will not utter here
This is Javascript. If you put big wheels and a racing stripe on a golf cart, it's still a f***ing golf cart.
"I don't know, extraterrestrial?"
"You mean like from space?"
"No, from Canada."
If software development were a circus, we would all be the clowns.
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That was nearly my initial reaction. Lots of staring people tend to spook me, regardless of setting 
Bastard Programmer from Hell 
If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]
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That's normal. Guess what it's like when you are not much more than 19 years old and are ordered to 'lead' a platoon of soldiers someplace. Loud and clear commands, please.
The language is JavaScript. that of Mordor, which I will not utter here
This is Javascript. If you put big wheels and a racing stripe on a golf cart, it's still a f***ing golf cart.
"I don't know, extraterrestrial?"
"You mean like from space?"
"No, from Canada."
If software development were a circus, we would all be the clowns.
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If teaching cadets how to not shoot themselves counts, Yes. If teaching cadets how to keep their room clean counts, Yes.
Ask me things.
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I don't know what the situation in the US is, but in the UK you would almost certainly need a education degree and a pretty clean police record (to pass the CRB check to work with children).
In the US, I'd suspect that a liking for wearing bullet-proof fabrics would be an advantage, judging by the news... 
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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In the UK they'll actually train you, especially if your degree is STEM related, and sometimes even offer bursaries if you want to teach in Math, Chemistry, or Computing. This is for secondary though, not university level. It's something I've been looking into myself.
https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/[^]
N
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I ran the Computer Science department at Coleman University for two years. It was a very enjoyable experience. You certainly learn a lot, and there's a lot of enjoyment in seeing student's eyes open when the learn something new.
Having said that, be prepared for the sticker shock. Teaching generally does not pay very well.
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Try it out ! It is the best way to know what it looks like -> There must be opportunities for employed people to come and teach something for one hour or two.
I've done it in an engineering school, several times, each time a very bad experience. There were about 30 students in a room fit for 500, all sat in the back of the room, watching youtube with headset on while I was speaking. Add that to the 75% salary cut, and I have two big No-Gos.
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Good shift, will give an opportunity to share your knowledge and experience with youngsters.
I am also considering this; have started in a small way; am teaching high-school math for free at a charity school for underprivileged children.
The challenge in college, IMO, is to hold the attention span of young adults for a full 50-55 minutes, consistently in every class for the full semester. And to keep them interested in the attractions coming up in the next class.
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I'm still employed full time as a developer (US) but 3.5 years ago began teaching as an adjunct for a career college. It has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my professional career. In this setting, the students range from newly high school graduates (or GEDs) to working adults with grandchildren. The instant respect you receive from most of the students is a high in and of itself but as you begin to realize you are aiding in shaping someone's future, it can be awe inspiring.
Yes, the pay is not good, hence my involvement as an adjunct while keeping my full time employment. In my situation, I also needed a Master's level degree in order to teach all BS level courses. I've taught java, javascript, C++, C#, html, css, SQL. I've taught Android development, database design as well as ASP.NET and php/MySQL development.
Not only has it been rewarding to me, it has made me a much better employee for my full-time employer. My skills are sharper and remain sharp and at the same time I relate better to my fellow employees/team members.
modified 5-Nov-15 13:12pm.
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I transitioned from development to teaching at a university in South Africa for a few semesters. It was challenging and exciting in that I got to teach some of the fundamentals of computer science to some first years.
I had two big frustrations which would cause me to think twice about doing it again. The first is that there was such a range of skill levels among the students - from not ever having turned on a computer to being proficient in scripting. It was very difficult to make the class stimulating to the experienced students while not leaving the inexperienced ones behind.
The other was that while some students try hard to succeed, others will give the impression that they're understanding but then hand in something they copied off the internet which is totally unrelated to what you've asked them to do.
Teaching does help you to have an even better grasp of the subject material and allows you to explore questions and ideas that are interesting but for which you do not have time to do if you're getting paid to develop.
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It probably depends on the University. I actually went the other way around from an university teaching job to co-found a start up very long time ago and I loved it.
it ain’t broke, it doesn’t have enough features yet.
modified 20-Oct-19 21:02pm.
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You should be commended on your plans. Taking your experience into the world of education could benefit a lot of young people.
However, in the United States, college level instructors are now being exploited to such a degree that a huge percentage are just "adjunct professors", which is a pleasant term for "contract worker". What used to be a rather secure career is now nothing more than another consulting gig with all the drawbacks and insecurity that such a position brings.
A friend of mine attempted to the same thing you are now considering, though he was coming from the accounting profession. With the US economy as it is he was only able to get substitute work in high-schools and some tutoring gigs. For tutoring he did a short sting at the Huntington Learning Centers until he found out how poorly he was being paid. On Long Island, NY he was getting $12 an hour while the centers were raking in 3 to 4 times that much.
It is a noble impulse on your part but it is one for another era unfortunately...
Steve Naidamast
Black Falcon Software, Inc.
blackfalconsoftware@ix.netcom.com
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In the early 1990's I taught "Intro to micro-computers" at Tulane University College in New Orleans, for a couple of years. It was an enjoyable experience. I quit the gig to move to Charlotte, NC to work with an old business partner.
This might be an excellent way of getting your "feet wet". to teach on a part time basis to find out if reality matches up with expectations.
Warning... I also worked for a couple of years, in a non-teaching capacity, at LSU Medical School. Academia is a closed and viciously competitive and mostly stagnant environment. So be prepared for that aspect of the job, if you decide to pursue it full-time.
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I taught VB6 to career changing Russian immigrants in the evenings back in the late 90's. Three nights a week and three hours a night.
I had fun teaching it because I wasn't there to test them, I was there to teach them to be colleagues. So it was open book tests and I didn't mind them talking to each other. The primary criteria was "Did it work?"
One lesson was teaching them how to write a four function calculator using infix notation. Since it required deferred execution of the operations, this was the class that separated the programmers from the non-programmers. It was interesting to see the light of inspiration come over some of their faces and for others to see the light go out. I'd then know which were the ones I would have to spend extra time with to get them to understand that you had to be able to look into the future to see the consequence of the instructions they were assembling.
Some just could not grasp that concept.
I tried to make sure the instructional books I choose for the class could overcome any failings I had as an instructor.
Psychosis at 10
Film at 11
Those who do not remember the past, are doomed to repeat it.
Those who do not remember the past, cannot build upon it.
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A very important part of teaching is explaining something to people in a way that it makes them interested and that motivates them to learn more about it.
Also, you will find many indifferent and distant people who never involve themselves in what you teach no matter what you do.
Source: I was a teacher first, then a developer. 
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First of all, you are going to need a Masters degree to teach at a college level. If you don't already have one, you might be able to teach as an assistant while getting one. Private industry mostly counts on your ability. Academia mostly depends on degrees and certificates.
I taught mainframe diagnosis and programming for Itel/National Advanced Systems/Hitachi Data Systems for 20 years, then C++ for Computer Learning Centers in the evenings for a few months. For the most part, it was satisfying work, and I learned a lot about teaching and learning. Here are a few things I learned:
When I taught the same class repeatedly, I first learned how much I didn't know, then became an expert and quickly became bored to death until I learned it so well that it was easy and I could simply concentrate on getting along with the students.
You should expect to spend a significant amount of time preparing your lessons, even if there is a textbook. In my first job, I was given a few months to write my own objectives, textbook and lab exercises from what I could learn from the design engineers and reference manuals. In the second job, I was given a textbook and expected to start teaching immediately. I thought I could wing it, but found that the textbook did not have enough examples, so I programmed my own examples on the spot, changing them on the fly to illustrate concepts. Most of the students did not like that. They wanted to simply copy down what I wrote, to try to understand later. Making changes only messed up their notes. The best thing to do is to have all of the examples preprinted and passed out, then the students will have less pressure and you can discuss the concepts with them.
People have different learning styles, but most people learn by doing, not listening. So, long lectures are not advisable. Short examples and coding exercises done on the spot are best. Because both I and my students had other lives, we didn't have much time for homework, so I tried to have all the work done in class or lab.
Patience and empathy are absolute requirements. About 15% to 20% of my students were able to understand what I told them and program and invent unique solutions immediately. They were fun to work with. Most of the rest would work slowly through the exercises and could probably perform OK in well structured jobs afterwards. A few at the bottom may wrench your heart and take up most of your time. If it weren't for previously agreed upon contracts or job assignments, you might like to just tell them to go do something else with their lives, but can't.
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As a full time job? Do you have a PhD? If not, the best you can expect is a low level assistant or adjunct job. Doesn't pay much. I've been doing it for a few years since retiring from my "real" job. A lot of frustration. Very few success stories.
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I've taught in 2 small community colleges for 9 years. The first 5 years were great. The last 3 years were bad. Students are now the Millennium Generation. They come into your class, sit down and don't study, read the text or take notes. They then fail. The dean of science then says that you can't fail so many students, you must give them a 'C".
So do you homework first and go to the school you want to teach at and talk to the Adjuncts (not full time teachers - mostly at night)
Many of the colleges where I am are like that - you must give them a C 
The Irishman
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Well, I have the equivalent of about 20 years' teaching experience in a tremendously diverse array of settings. I could write an essay, nay a book, aimed at answering your question. Some of my experience was really painful, some of it was fun. It depends first of all on where you work: sector (the higher the better), college and country. Countries like the UK have, what I would call, damaging institutions like Ofsted and the QAA with nonsensical legislation that tends to clog things up until you can't do your job. HE escapes some of the toxic red-tape, though the QAA is apparently campaigning to change all of that. Administrators can make your job worthless, so try to find a college which really lets you get on with your job. Teaching is a very difficult job and is certainly no easy option. Maybe do a training course first and get some experience as a part-time teacher before you commit. I am self-employed, I decided long ago that I didn't want to get too entwined in red-tape by becoming an official college employee. This also gives me some control over workload, which if left to administrators escalates exponentially.
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I'm thinking of leaving my job and going into the construction industry. At least at the end of the day I'll have something concrete to show for my effort.
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I said something similar to my boss yesterday. without having any puns in mind.
The language is JavaScript. that of Mordor, which I will not utter here
This is Javascript. If you put big wheels and a racing stripe on a golf cart, it's still a f***ing golf cart.
"I don't know, extraterrestrial?"
"You mean like from space?"
"No, from Canada."
If software development were a circus, we would all be the clowns.
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If I changed job and became a driving test examiner, would I be failing to protect the public?
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