Teachers’ hefty salaries are driving up taxes, and they only work 9 or 10 months a year. It’s time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do – babysit. We can get that for less than minimum wage.
That’s right. Let’s give them $3 an hour and only the hours they worked; not any of that silly planning time, or any time they spend before or after school. That would be $19.50 a day (7:45 to 3:00 PM with 45 min. off for lunch and plan– that equals 6 1/2 hours).
Each parent should pay $19.50 a day for these teachers to baby-sit their children. Now how many students do they teach in a day…maybe 30? So that’s $19.50 x 30 = $585.00 a day.
However, remember they only work 180 days a year. I am not going to pay them for any vacations.
LET’S SEE…That’s $585 X 180= $105,300 per year. (Hold on. My calculator needs new batteries.)
What about those special education teachers and the ones with master’s degrees? Well, we could pay them minimum wage ($7.75), and just to be fair, round it off to $8.00 an hour. That would be $8 X 6 1/2 hours X 30 children X 180 days = $280,800 per year.
Wait a minute — there’s something wrong here. There sure is.
The average teacher’s salary (nationwide) is $50,000. $50,000/180 days = $277.77/per day/30 students=$9.25/6.5 hours = $1.42 per hour per student– a very inexpensive baby-sitter and they even EDUCATE your kids!)
WHAT A DEAL!
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
Sometimes I feel an overwhelming urge to scream at our legislators, "TEACHERS DID NOT GET US INTO THIS MESS." It was not our schools that have placed us in uncharted economic, political, social and environmental waters. And really, what is it besides schools, besides education that will get us out of this mess?
I am currently student-teaching, the capstone experience of my studies at Northern Michigan University. As a young person entering into the world of K-12 education, the deterioration of our collective discussion about our teachers saddens me. I decided in the third grade that I wanted to become a teacher because I respected, loved, admired the profession. And now, here we stand: admonishing and berating a group of people who overwhelmingly have altruistic intentions. In a moment when I should be celebrating and grateful that I have stayed true to myself, I am instead wary of going into our schools. Not because of the students, not because of the standards - I am wary because of the awful treatment of what is, and ought to be considered, one of the noblest and most important professions.
Are there bad teachers out there? Absolutely. Just as there are bad policemen, bad firefighters, bad doctors, bad policymakers, there are bad teachers. Should we strive to have the best at all of these positions? Yes, and we should also remember that for as long as these positions are filled by humans so too comes the inevitable: human fallibility. Teachers, even the best, are not perfect. Doctors, even the best, are not perfect. More than anything, I want this discussion to be better: more evolved, less about attacking, more about kids.
As I finished the article, frustrated, I scrolled down to the comments section, expecting to find a litany of posts bashing the art and science of teaching; the blogosphere did not disappoint. One major topic of discussion: summer vacation. I found this hilarious because people were "blaming" teachers for the school policy of having summer break. Since when did teachers decide this? They didn't. I did a little perusing on the web and found two articles that explain what takes place during this time when teachers get to be really lazy. One is from a student-centered perspective and the other, from a teacher-centered perspective.
If I decide the enter the crocodile-infested waters, I am going to need my summer break. During the school year, I will be teaching and coaching, which will consume 60-70 hours per week. Additionally, I will have to prepare lessons for 2-3 different classes, with each lesson taking 3-4 hours to complete. I will need to differentiate my instruction, and therefore my lesson plans, for the needs of my students from class to class and year to year. I will also be expected to do well as a coach and we will spend weekends in the summer traveling to participate in scrimmages and tournaments - not to mention all the mid-week open gyms. Maybe outside of all of this, I will want a family, which - unlike the other commitments I have briefly mentioned - is something non-educators can visualize and appreciate.
Don't tell me teachers are overpaid.
Addendum: read this.
No comments:
Post a Comment