Posted on 06/17/2006 5:15:15 AM PDT by wintertime
One of the ongoing controversies in the public schools is the issue of teacher salaries. Teachers largely claim they are too low while taxpayers are equally vehement that they are more than adequate.
(snip)
Then there are the actual salary levels. Statistics in 2005 showed the average teacher salary in the nation was $46,762, ranging from a low of $33,236 in South Dakota to $57,337 in Connecticut. Even this ignores the additional compensation teachers receive as fringe benefits, which may add an additional 33% or more to the costs, primarily for very good retirement and health coverage plans. Further, averages include starting teacher salaries, which may begin at $30,000 or less, which teachers gladly mention, but ignore the high salaries of career teachers at or near the maximum on their salary schedule, important because retirement pensions are often based on the best three or so years.
(snip)
Last year, the New York State Department of Education issued a study that reported maximum teacher salaries in that state of $100,000 or more and median salaries as high as $98,000 per year. That is, there were districts, in Westchester County for example, where half of the teachers earned more than $98,000 a year.
A novel approach a few years ago by Michael Antonucci, director of the Education Intelligence Agency in California, compared teachers average salaries to average salaries all workers state by state. First prize went to Pennsylvania where the teachers received 62.5% more than the average employee. That difference is even greater when it is further considered that teachers average a 185 day work year while most workers put in 235.
(snip) Women who had been educators were 7.4% of the total deceased that year but 20.6% of them, nearly three times the statistical expectation were among the affluent few. Former male educators didn't do quite as well but even they were represented among the wealthy decedents by a ratio nearly 1.5 times the anticipated numerical ratio.
Are you getting a $3,300 pay raise? Congress will.
"When I tell constituents that our workweek is 2 1/2 days at best, they shake their heads," said Rep. Brian Baird, D-Wash. "They wonder what we're doing, and I have to wonder, too." (According to this link, the House is scheduled to work 97 days this year.)
I think you have not been around public schools much.
The problem with public school is not the salary that teachres are making. The problem is with poor management by the school boards, and the school administration.
They make stupid policy changes.
They close schools without concern about the impact on students.
They'd rather have a shiny new school where kids are not learning than an older school where kids are learning.
They make curriculum changes every year, and waste money on new books.
They don't support discipline in (or out)of the classroom, so teachers have to deal with bad behavior and try to teach the good kids.
They are more concerned about getting bond money to build new schools than in teaching the kids in their schools.
There are way too many administrative jobs that do nothing, and they are way over paid.
I have not even begun to mention the impact of having children of illegal aliens in the classroom.
Lots of teachers are really trying to do a great job, but their work is impeded by incompentent and greedy administration.
I stand corrected. I guess teachers are the same as Congressmen.
Kind of a Pyhrric victory there, eh?
I just wish some of those who think teaching is such a cushy job would try it for a little bit....
No, no, no! Congressmen work half as much, get paid 3-4 times as much, plus they get all those cool trips and gifts from lobbyists!
Maybe I should be a Congressman in my next career! ;-)
Thanks, luckystarmom!
I don't know about your state, but we also have to deal with (hopefully well-meaning) legislation from the state and federal governments....
Come to Pennsylvania and teach. The teachers here go on strike if we even suggest that they pay for part of their health-care, whether through paying for insurance or paying a $10 copay to see a doctor. The NEA is bleeding rural Pennsylvania dry with their salary&benefit demands and their constant pushing for new buildings. Our schools are paid for on the backs of property owners, and the taxes are driving people out of their homes and out of the state.
A few weeks ago, a parent came into my class to give a talk on geology-mind you this is 2nd grade. He happens to be a college Geology professor. I saw him about 1 1/2 hours later after he had visited all of the 2nd grade classes--he strode up to me, hand extended and said, "You have my utmost respect-I have no idea how you do this everyday!!" Of course, his first mistake was to tell these 7 year olds, "You don't need to raise your hand, just yell out the answer!" :)
Are you in one of those counties in SC that has several different school districts, with school boards, school superintendents, and lots of administrators for each?
You *did* say teaching was looking better all the time, didn't you?
Sounds like your school district runs a more cost effective operation than mine.
First - There is never a teacher at the elementary school down the street from me before 8:15. They leave before the buses do so they don't get held up on their drive home. By 3:30 (school's out at 3) the only car in the lot is the janitors. The High School is pretty much the same except for the coaches, who get extra pay for that after school work.
Second - Our teachers don't work all day. In the middle school/high school the day is 7 periods long; my friends who are teachers complain if they are scheduled to teach 4 periods a day.
Third - Every classroom has at least one aide. They do the things like collecting papers, hanging things on the bulletin boards, cover the coffee breaks, etc. If there are any "mainstreamed" kids in the class there are generally 2 aides.
Fourth - you clearly haven't mastered the art of having the kids grade each others papers. My children started public school in third grade (after starting out in a private school), and began this quaint practice immediately. The downside to the kids is that if your fellow student marks things wrong that are right, it's up to the student to get the teachers attention to make it right. The teachers don't review this grading process.
Finally - you need to get a clearer understanding of how much your workload will be reduced by group projects. If you have 25 students, and have them do math problems, english papers, or spelling tests as a group of 5, you'll only have 5 papers to grade instead of 25.
You may think I'm being facetious, but in my school district, which touts itself as a "world class school district" (and ranks high in the state for academic quality) this is the norm. Last I heard (a couple years ago) average teacher salaries were $65,000/year.
Is there a shortage somewhere? Here, when they had to hire a couple dozen teachers a few years ago )because of changes in the State Retirement plan that gave some an incentive to get out) 3,000 people applied for those 30 positions. Sounds like a glut to me.
Maybe, maybe not. Please don't think that all the teachers in my district are in that early, they are not. My coming in that early is because I want things to go as smoothly as possible in the classroom. Therefore, I do my best to prepare, prepare, and then prepare.
Also, this was my first year to teach, and I had six different class to prep for each day. My number of preps for this year is down (4), and I have a little experience under my belt. However, I will still go in that early in the morning because I have been getting up that early to go to work for the past 20 years regardless of what position I have held.
"California budgets 50% of the entire budget on education, unfortunately 75% of that amount does not reach the classrooms, goes for administrative salaries and etc. I favor a huge trim at the top."
If you go to
http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/StateAgencyBudgets/6010/agency.html
you will see that 32% of the budget goes to education, not 50%.
Also, where did you find that 75% of California's education budget does not reach the classroom? Thanks.
I am frankly offended at your comments.
Some teachers are whiners, but to say the degree is easy is ridiculous.
Not at my school. I may not end up teaching; I am considering going into journalism instead, both low-paying professions.
But, the idea that teachers are raking in the dough is absolutely insane. They DO have good retirement since they are a state employee. But, good salary?
Maybe in New York, but not HERE. I would be lucky to start at 24,000 bucks and it would take 10 years to crack 40 grand. At that point, the most a teacher outside of the high cost of living areas could hope to make would be maybe 65 grand at retirement. And even that is stretching it frankly....I don't know anybody around here who makes that much or even close. Maybe 50 grand.
It isn't bad, certainly, at the upper levels. But, starting out, and even for most of the career, unless you marry a rich person, it is not going to be easy.
Plus, teachers put in long hours in the evenings planning and grading papers. Workers in other professions do have to do this often, such as book editors. But, they generally get better compensated for it than teachers do.
And, thank you very much, I got a real degree at my school. I will receive a BA in history, with a concentration in education. If I go on to get a master's, it will be in history, not in education. I personally would rather gouge my eyes out than go through more education courses. But, I probably will in order to stay certified. Teachers are required to continually get more education, and guess what...they do that in the summer probably when you say they are off scot-free. No, they aren't. Teachers have to plan for the next year and sometimes take second jobs to pay the bills. And, on top of that, due to government regulations, when they are in the classroom, it is not exactly easy to punish kids or kick them out if they don't want to be there. You have to get them to learn, even if they don't want to learn.
You have to go through an education program, and you can't do that in community college, contrary to your statements. You also must get a real degree in the subject you will teach in order to be highly qualified according to NCLB.
Teaching programs are not competitive? You had to have a high ACT score to get in at my school. I had no problem since I have a 3.9 GPA, but some simply can't make it. You also had to maintain a B-average in all education coursework and major coursework. Again, not difficult for me, but for some even fairly smart people, it can be if they are not good test-takers or have some sort of learning disability.
I am not saying teachers have it as bad as many teachers act. No, they don't. Despite having to often work in the summer or take more classes (which eats into the salary), teachers still do have more time off than people in other professions.
They get longer holidays etc. But, to say that teaching is easy, as you presume to do, is a punch in the mouth to hard-working teachers, including those on FR.
It is illegal in Kansas for teachers to strike.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.