Georgia Education Statistics
Avg. Elem. Teacher Salary* | $58,190 |
Avg. Sec. Teacher Salary* | $59,860 |
Avg. Admin. Salary* | $96,110 |
Teacher Retention (?) | 92% |
Vacation Wks/Yr | 15 |
Learn how to become a teacher in Georgia (or administrator). Choose the description of certification you are most interested in or situation that best describes you:
Avg. Elem. Teacher Salary* | $58,190 |
Avg. Sec. Teacher Salary* | $59,860 |
Avg. Admin. Salary* | $96,110 |
Teacher Retention (?) | 92% |
Vacation Wks/Yr | 15 |
Investing in our future is vitally important and strangely difficult. In order to fight oppression from the greedy and power-hungry elite, to better our ways of life with advancing technology, and to increase our country's overall views toward the concept of acceptance, we need education to be a priority. Learn how you can be a spoke in this terribly important wheel. See how Georgia measures up to the rest of the country by viewing the percentage of state revenue going toward education in each state. (see State Education Spending vs. Overall State Revenue).
According to the U.S. Department of Education and the National Center for Education Statistics, public school enrollment in grades K through 12 in Georgia increased by more than 175,000 students between 2000 and 2006, representing an increase of 12 percent. Student enrollment in Georgia is project to increase by an additional 13 percent by 2015. Find schools offering teaching certification programs in Georgia.
Grand Canyon University - Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral programs
For those seeking licensure or looking to enter the field of education for the first time, but with a degree in a field other than education, GCU has initial programs that lead to licensure and programs that do not lead to licensure.
USC Rossier Master of Arts in Teaching Online — No GRE *
Purdue Global University - offering Bachelors and Masters programs
From master’s degrees to teacher-certification pathways, Purdue Global University offers flexible online education programs to help you pursue a career in teaching, enhance your current skills, or advance in your education career.*
The Georgia Professional Standards Commission Educator Certification Section (404-232-2500) requires all prospective teachers to meet certain academic, ethical and assessment standards. These include:
Teacher certifications are available in a variety of fields, which are listed here. They include the Elementary Fields of Birth to Five, Early Childhood Education (P-5), Middle Grades (4-8) P-12 Subject Certifications, Secondary Fields (6-12) subject certifications, Foreign Languages, Special Education, and Leadership certifications.
If you attended school outside of Georgia, your credits will be accepted as long as the school is approved by an accepted accreditation agency and you meet the Georgia Special Requirements of content knowledge, standards of conduct, recency of study, and special education. You must also meet all additional requirements set by Georgia for teacher certification, or you may work in a Georgia school system and apply for a non-renewable teaching certificate until Georgia’s special requirements are met. (This certification track will be explained later).
If you attended a foreign college or university, a course-by-course credential report must be presented to the Georgia Professional Standards Commission. More information on this process is available here.
Visit the Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators (GACE) website for an overview of testing requirements for Georgia’s educators.
Basic skills testing:If you passed the Praxis II exam corresponding to your intended certification area prior to March 15, 2008, that score exempts you from the GACE Content Assessment, however, Praxis II scores for tests taken after March 15, 2008 are no longer accepted.
During your college teacher preparation program, you will be assigned to a student teaching experience corresponding to the grade level and/or subject area in which you wish to teach. This classroom field placement varies in length according to your college or university’s policies, and may be from a few weeks to a year in duration. A supervising teacher will act as your mentor, advising and assessing your classroom performance.
Included within your student teaching program will be lesson plan preparation, classroom leadership, and conducting assessments/evaluations of students. At the end of your student teaching experience, your mentor teacher will grade you on your performance and perhaps provide a written report to be given to your college advisor documenting your experience.
Georgia will not require a criminal history background check or fingerprinting for you teacher certification application unless you have been convicted of a misdemeanor or felony involving moral turpitude in another state. If this is the case, you must submit an FBI criminal history report with your application. Go to the nearest Cogent fingerprinting center and request a criminal history check. Submit the completed report with your certification application.
Once you are hired by a Georgia school system, however, you must submit to a criminal record background check. Depending upon your school’s policies, this may be an FBI/fingerprinting background check or a Georgia criminal history check. Information on how to fulfill this requirement will be provided to you by the school system. Usually your employing school system will pay all costs associated with this background check.
For more information on Georgia colleges and universities providing educator preparation programs, click here and select the school that interests you.
For information on Georgia’s teacher certification process, call the Georgia Professional Standards Commission Educator Certification Section at 404-232-2500.
* 2019 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data - Conditions in your area may vary.
**Teacher Retention Sources - U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education, Statistics Schools and Staffing Survey, 1999–2000 (“Public School Teacher Questionnaire,” “Private School Teacher Questionnaire,” and “Public Charter School Teacher Questionnaire”), and 2000–01 Teacher Follow-up Survey (“Questionnaire for Current Teachers” and “Questionnaire for Former Teachers,” Table 1.01). Washington, DC.
State estimations based on analysis by Richard Ingersoll, Professor of Education and Sociology, University of Pennsylvania, from the National Center for Education Statistics Student and Staffing Survey, and therefore include a slight margin of error.