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Teaching Profession Opinion

Part-time, flex-schedule, and work-from-home jobs

By AAEE — April 30, 2011 3 min read
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Question from a reader: “What are the top K-12-related part-time, flexible-schedule, and work-from-home job opportunities teachers can explore to stay current in their careers while staying home with children?”

The response to your question may be helpful to new teacher candidates trying to gain experience related to the K-12 realm, as well as experienced teachers seeking to stay current while staying home with children.

Below is a list of potential options for K-12 related part-time, flexible schedule and work-from-home job opportunities, which was developed with input from members of the Illinois Association for Employment in Education (IAEE) and the American Association for Employment in Education (AAEE).

You asked about the “top” jobs, but the top jobs for you likely depend on your availability, skills, interests, and proximity to potential job locations.

Part-time opportunities within K-12 school districts:
Depending on your certification/endorsements and changing school district needs, there may be part-time professional teaching positions available. I have seen quite a few part-time teaching positions in various subject areas posted on individual district web-site job lists.
Extra-curricular programs, including sports and clubs, provide opportunities for part-time coaching and other supervisory roles.
After-school care or learning enrichment programs hire supervisors/teachers.

Part-time positions in other settings:
Independent learning centers hire teachers and tend to focus on reading and mathematics.
Tutoring can be scheduled at various times and locations.
Pre-school teaching or teacher aiding is often part-time. Although course credit requirements vary greatly according to the setting, some preschool settings require that teachers earn only 6 credits in early childhood-related course work.
Park districts and YMCA’s hire part-time workers to offer a variety of programming for children at various times.
There are guest teaching positions, workshops, and classes at zoos, museums, etc.
Some universities run weekend, spring break or summer learning camps.
Special recreation associations hire part-time staff to run or supervise sports, arts, social and entertainment programming for adults and children with developmental disabilities.

A common flexible-schedule option is substitute teaching, which can be arranged to be predictable.

At certain times of the year, there are short-term temporary positions in standardized test scoring.

Part-time opportunities teaching adults:
Many community colleges hire part-time professors. A master’s degree may be required to teach general studies courses, whereas a bachelor’s degree may be sufficient to teach some continuing education courses.
English as a Second Language (ESL) teaching is offered in a variety of settings, including charitable organizations, community colleges and for-profit organizations.
Organizations serving adults with developmental disabilities often hire instructors/trainers, and the positions can be part-time, weekends, or evening.

Work-from-home options include online teaching (a potentially growing opportunity), in-home day care (which can include academic-readiness components), and writing/reviewing of standardized tests, textbooks and curriculum.

Of course, in addition to the employment options listed above, staying current in your field would also include reading professional publications and attendance at professional development workshops and conferences offered through professional associations, regional offices of education, and higher education institutions.

--Sara Dahms
Career Counselor
Concordia University Chicago

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