I used to be an English teacher in AZ about 10 years ago. Even when I had a Masters in English, I struggled to make $40k a year. At that salary, I could not qualify to buy a house at median value which was pushing $200k at the time here. Health care was a big chunk of my paycheck as well. I eventually achieved a 92% pass rate for the state AIMS test for HS graduation.
I dont want to defend crappy teachers by any means. I couldnt afford to live on that amount. In AZ the teacher union doesnt really amount to anything (right to work state). We legally were not allowed to strike here either. A strike did happen a few years ago, and the legislature did raise salaries slightly. With California moving in, the cost of everything went up, houses in my neighborhood are now 400k minimum, gas is the same price as CA, and we had some of the worst inflation in the nation here.
Honestly, if I could afford to, I would love to teach still, but probably wouldnt be. I was the only conservative teacher at my school. And yes, I had to pass multiple tests to get my teaching license, literacy and professional exams. Math had math and professional to meet standards.
I guess my point is, that how do you afford to live on some of the state prescribed salaries in places like NY, California, and even Phoenix when the cost of living is driven out of proportion? Im just being real about that part. Shouldnt I have a chance to buy my own house? Or do I have to take a vow of poverty to be a teacher?
Salary schedule for PHX HS District: https://www.pxu.org/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=44613&dataid=64036&FileName=NEW%20Certified%20Salary%20Schedule%2022%2023%20SY.pdf
Plank #10 of the Communist Manifesto: Free education for all children in government schools. (https://laissez-fairerepublic.com/TenPlanks.html)
People value things at exactly what they cost them.
They value free government-school education at zero because that's what it costs them.
That's why public education eventually devolves into Communist indoctrination centers and chaos.
The school system we have is derived from the Prussians, who invented it so that they could train farm boys to obey and become good soldiers after Napolean Bonaparte cut through them like a hot knife through butter.
Education does not have to take place in sterile education factories/prisons.
Proof is that home-schoolers are some of the highest performing students in the country.
Abolish government schools and there will be a demand for private schools, where teachers can be paid what their services command on the open private-school market.
I repeat: There should be no such thing as "public" education or government schools.