If you are interested in music and want to become a music teacher in Texas, you can start by becoming an elementary or secondary-level music teacher. You can teach vocal or instrumental music depending on your interests and current skill set. So, how to do that?

Here is more on the pathway to becoming a Texas music teacher.

Step 1: Get a bachelor’s degree

The minimum qualification for becoming a music teacher in Texas is a bachelor’s degree from a reputed and accredited college or university. You should preferably major in music education to lay a solid foundation. You can major in one of the courses like music history, ear training, music theory, instrumental techniques, or music performance.

Step 2: Complete the Educator Preparation program

The Educator Preparation Program (EPP) should be completed immediately after getting your bachelor’s degree. If your college is one of the Texas-approved EPPs, you can enroll in the EPP easily. You can find the list of approved EPPs on the TEA official website.

87 EPPs in Texas provide for the EPPs in the music category. An EPP, or Education Preparation Program, is mandatory for all those seeking to pursue a career in teaching in Texas. The program prepares the aspirant to become a teacher through on-field experience, assignments, training, and coursework completion.

As per education standard updates, all EPP university students must also receive instructions for teaching dyslexia students. The course is free and includes four modules. The free course can be accessed through TEA Learn and by typing ‘dyslexia’ in the search bar. Choose your desired free ‘dyslexia’ course from the listings and click on Enroll. One of the courses is self-paced and requires six credits.

After clicking on enroll, fill out the user registration form. Since you don’t have an educator certificate yet, choose ‘I don’t have one’ under the TEA Uniq-ID and District/Charter category. Under the Current Assignment/Role, choose ‘Certificate Program Candidate’ and submit.

Step 3: Enroll for the TExES certification exam

The next step in the process is to enroll in the TExES certification exam in your subject area. To register for a TExES certification exam, visit the site here. But before that, you should know the mandatory tests you need to apply for:

The mandatory educator certification exams to become a music teacher in Texas are:

• Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities (PPR) EC-12: It is one of the mandatory tests for all first-time applicants seeking Texas classroom teaching certification.

Content pedagogy test required:

• Music EC-12 (177): This computer-administered test (CAT) contains 100 questions. The exam equips with a headset for listening to questions. It’s a total 5-hour test with a passing score of 240. The exam fee is $116, excluding the additional fees.

To prepare for the TExES educator certification test, you can find the study material on the TExES website. You can also find a step-by-step guide to applying for the exam and how to find the test scores once the results are out.

Step 5: Apply for educator certification via TEA.

Once the TExES certification results are in your favor, you can finally apply for your educator certificate via the TEA website. At this stage, you are just one step away from receiving your Texas educator certificate.

To apply, you need to create a TEA account. Register yourself as a new user through the TEAL login link. Fill in the application by entering your full name, email address, birthday date, phone number, and address. Make sure to select ‘Educator’ under the Organization Type option.

Click on Submit and follow the on-screen prompts after that. You also have to pay the application fee to get the certificate. To do so, visit the ECOS portal (you may be directed to the portal automatically after the form submission). Fill out the educator profile, make any changes required, and pay the application fee.

Step 6: Set up a fingerprinting appointment

Before getting your Texas educator certificate, you must pass the background check. This is enabled through a fingerprinting appointment.

After successfully paying the application fee through the ECOS portal, you will receive an email to set the fingerprinting appointment date at your registered email address. Once the appointment is scheduled, you will be asked to pay the fingerprinting process fee. The fee is $50, of which $40 goes to the ECOS portal and $10 to the fingerprinting-approved vendor.

The results of the fingerprinting check are sent to your email after 5 to 7 days of the appointment. You will also receive your educator certificate, accessed through your TEA account.

Step 6: Search for positions

The final step is to look for jobs in Texas public and private schools. You can get help from the Texas educator job site links available on the TEA website for vacancies in your state.

You can also directly approach your area’s public and private schools for vacant teacher positions. You can also take the help of LinkedIn and other popular job search sites in your city.

Renewal of Educator Certificate

In Texas, your educator certificate will not be valid for a lifetime. You need to get it renewed every five years to keep it valid.

To renew your music teacher educator certificate, complete the Continuing Professional Education (CPE) hours before expiration. Certificate Renewal involves completing 150 CPE hours within five years. You also need to pay your renewal certificate fee before it is about to expire.

Music Teacher Salary in Texas

According to the latest data, a Texas high school music teacher can earn between $47,000 and $62,600. If you are an elementary-level or middle-level music teacher, you can expect to earn an average of around $56,500.

The average salary as a music teacher may vary depending on the city, certification, experience, education, and other additional skills.

Summary

The process of becoming a music teacher in Texas is the same as that of becoming any other subject teacher in Texas. The main aim is to get the Texas Standard Educator certificate.

To claim the certificate, you should first have a bachelor’s degree. Thereafter, you complete an EPP and take the TExES certification exam in your subject area. Once you have cleared the exam, all you have to do is apply for the educator certificate via the TEA website. This involves payment of the application fee and payment of a fingerprinting fee.

Once everything is fulfilled, you receive your educator certificate, which officially makes you a Texas educator or Texas teacher. To ensure your skills are on par with the changing education trends, you have to complete the CPE hours to keep your certificate valid.

So, all set to become a music teacher in Texas? Feeling stuck and needing direction? Contact Teacher Builder today.