Are you a current or prospective high school teacher looking for any sort of information relating to the field of education? If so, this is the guide for you. We’ve gathered together some of the best information on the Web for current or prospective educators with questions that need answers.
In this guide, you can find information from resources including teaching blogs, professional organizations, conferences, accreditation agencies, databases, journals and twitter accounts from notable educators — all organized neatly by format. Look through our links below to find the answers to any of your questions relating to high school teaching.
Popular High School Teacher Blogs
Want some insight into the everyday life of a high school teacher? These blogs show the humorous side of things, the serious side of things and everything else in between.
The Nerdy Teacher This blog provides product reviews, inspiration, humor, and great resources for project-based learning in the high school English classroom. Great for any teacher looking to implement project-based learning in their classroom.
World History Educators This blog is a cooperative effort from many different history and social studies teachers. They often update twice daily with commentary on the state of modern education and resources for the history classroom. Great for history teachers who want to connect with their colleagues and share resources.
Math Notations Math teachers will appreciate this blog’s focus on providing a plethora of problems to use in the classroom — especially the SAT preparatory questions. Great for readers who want to incorporate daily SAT math practice into their lesson plans.
Coach In and Out This science teacher focuses on sharing lesson plans and learning objectives he has found particularly helpful in boosting student performance. Great for readers looking for resources for a science classroom.
An Urban Teacher’s Education Looking for more of a general overview of current issues in education? This Seattle-based blogger tackles the tricky questions confronting today’s educators. Great for readers interested in current issues in education policy and reform.
Teach for Us Corps members from the Teach for America program share honest accounts of daily life in the trenches as a teacher in a high-needs school. Great for readers working with at-risk populations in education or readers considering applying to Teach for America.
Integrating Tech In this blog, Scott Snyder chronicles his successes at integrating technology into his daily practice as an educator. Great for readers looking to use more technology in their own classrooms.
The Jose Vilson This math teacher and data analyst combines classroom issues with philosophical musings on the value of education and the steps necessary to empower students. Great for readers looking for a more philosophical view of education.
Teaching Associations and Professional Organizations
Joining one of these organizations is a good way for current and aspiring teachers to gain content-area knowledge, boost their resume and gain access to new professional development opportunities.
The National Council of Teachers of English This is one of the oldest and largest subject matter associations in the United States. They focus on providing professional opportunities that allow teachers to continue their professional growth. This organization is great for current or prospective educators interested in teaching language arts, English, public speaking or creative writing.
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics This organization provides the same resource for math teachers as the NCTE does for English teachers. They organize professional conferences, publish articles from members, and provide resources for classroom teachers. This organization is great for current or prospective educators interested in teaching algebra, geometry, calculus, trigonometry or statistics.
The National Science Teacher Association This organization strives to improve science education from preschool through the college classroom by providing up-to-date research and professional certifications for Science teachers. This organization is great for current or prospective educators interested in teaching general science, biology, chemistry and physics.
The National Staff Development council This organization focuses on providing multi-disciplinary support to educators by focusing on issues of professional development and school improvment. This organization is great for current or prospective educators interested in teaching any subject at the high school level.
The National Council for the Social Studies This group focuses exclusively on all things related to teaching social studies. Here you’ll find best practices, current issues, and resources for the social studies classroom. This organization is great for current or prospective educators interested in teaching U.S. history, world history, government or social studies.
The NEA One of the largest education organizations in the country, the NEA provides research, resources, and advocacy to today’s educators. This organization is great for current or prospective educators interested in teaching any subject at the high school level.
Databases and Journals
Need resources for your classroom or academic journals to polish up your pedagogy? Check out these websites to get all the research and information you could ever need about the field of education.
The National Science Digital Library This archive provides digital resources for math and science education. This resource is perfect for current and prospective science and math teachers.
Scholastic These folks don’t just publish the books, they also publish a teaching magazine and provide classroom resources as well. This website is perfect for current and prospective English teachers.
Tomorrow’s Teacher A journal published by the National Education Association, this periodical focuses specifically on new and prospective teachers. This journal is perfect for prospective teachers in any subject area.
The Journal of Effective Teaching This journal is published by the University of North Carolina Wilmington. It’s focus, as evidenced by its name, is to promote effective classroom practices. This journal is perfect for current and prospective teachers in any subject area.
Read Write Think This Web site is run by the National Council of Teachers of English to provide resources and professional development opportunities to English and language arts teachers. It’s a good resource for current or prospective teachers of English.
Conferences
Interested in meeting with a group of colleagues to learn about the latest and greatest advances in your field of education? Check out these conferences put on by different teaching associations.
The AP Annual Conference This conference gathers together educators and administrators who teach Advanced Placement courses at the high school level. The conference focuses on building and maintaining excellent Advanced Placement programs in a high school. This conference would be attended by current and prospective teachers interested in building or improving Advanced Placement programs at their school.
The NCSS Annual Conference This conference focuses on helping educators integrate common core learning standards into their Social Studies curriculum. They emphasize cross-curricular studies and standards for the Social Studies educator. This conference would be attended by current and prospective teachers interested in teaching history or social studies.
The National Council of Teachers of English Annual Conference This conference is a time for high school English teachers to refresh outdated ideas, connect with colleagues, and collaborate on exciting new ideas for the classroom. This conference would be attended by current and prospective teachers interested in collaborating with other English teachers.
The National Science Teacher Association’s New Science Teacher Academy This conference is for educators in their first or second year teaching science classes. Their goal is to keep new teacher retention rates high by providing support in the difficult first few years of teaching. This conference would be attended by current and prospective teachers interested in teaching science and gaining valuable resources for their first few years in the classroom.
Accrediting Agencies
Trying to figure out what sets your university’s education program apart? Look into these agencies responsible for accrediting college and university programs.
Teacher Education Accreditation Council This program is responsible for providing accredited status to over 170 teacher education programs across the country. Check to see if your program is one of them.
National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education This program accredits over 600 teacher education programs in colleges and universities across the United States.
Teacher Certification Information
Want to figure out the best path to your perfect teaching job? Check out these links on how to become a certified teacher in any state.
Certification Map This Web site links to state-specific standards for new teacher certification across the United States. This link should be used by anyone looking for information on certification.
Teach Now Considering a non-traditional route to the classroom? Most states have alternate routes to get you teaching in no time. This Web site provides information on alternate routes to classroom teaching.
The Teacher Center provides links to information on alternative routes to teaching in the Southwest region of the country. This Web site can help anyone considering an alternative route to certification get information specific to their state.
Teach for America This is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing highly qualified teachers into classrooms all over the country. Check out their Web site to see how recent college graduates can get into the classroom with just a few months training. This organization is perfect for recent college graduates who would like to teach for at least two years.
College of Education at the University of Kentucky This Web site has links to certification requirements for all 50 states. Interested in learning whether your certificate will transfer to another state? You can check out reciprocity between states here as well.
Popular High School Teacher Twitter Accounts
Looking for education humor, philosophy or tips in 140 characters or less? Check out these popular teachers and educators on Twitter.
@webenglishteach This lady is a career teacher who writes humorous, reflective tweets peppered with classroom resources like posters, handouts, and reading suggestions.
@blakeplock Veteran educator Shelly Blake Plock shares his views on technology in the classroom, the future of professional development, and the future of education.
@teachhub This account is run by the Web site of the same name, a k-12 resource site run by teachers, for teachers. Their tweets highlight the best resources from their website.
@weareteachers This is the twitter feed for the social media site We Are Teachers, an online community for teachers of all types. Their tweets cover everything from member achievements to deals on resources commonly used in the classroom.
@NMHS_Principal This New Jersey Administrator emphasizes project-based learning and technology in the classroom in his twitter account.
@TLC_edu This one is run by the Teacher Learning Community of simplek12.com. They focus on tech tips, discounts, and online resources that will help any teacher save time and money.