teachers, should they have higher pay? Options

[kantoaznboi]

i believe that teachers are one the most underpaid jobs. if you honestly think, where would all the doctors be, or the surgeons be if there were no teachers? Teachers are one of the most important jobs u can have, so y do they have such low wages.

wat do u think bout this topic?

[dukesoccer07]

I believe teachers should have higher pay... think about it... they deal with us (im a pain in the butt)... plus they are teaching us... and you know how the saying goes "Kids are the future"... they should definetely be paid more for what they do... they put up with a lot

[*krnxswat*]

Some teachers also have degrees in other fields so they get a higher pay than an average teacher.
But what about teachers that just suck?

[WildGriffin]

Usually, but not always; a teacher is a teacher because they couldn't make it in whatever field they're teaching. Take for example, my programming teacher and physics teacher. Both could have taken more promising careers with higher pay, but both most likely couldn't cut it. In reality, alot of people can teach the same course once a year; the demand just isn't high enough for increased pay.

[rivendell]

Some teachers also have degrees in other fields so they get a higher pay than an average teacher.
But what about teachers that just suck?

teachers that suck should be dragged into the gym and beaten with reeds. j/k

I've been told before that I should look into teaching, but there's no way in hell I'd ever put up with other people's rugrats for the amount of money teachers are paid. Its really sad how little they're paid.

[tkproduce]

Quite a lot of teachers at my school are Cambridge and Oxford graduates with PhDs in very impressive areas such as Physics and Mathematics. These people could have easily got a job with high pay in a city earning 100,000 a year. But they chose to teach for a salary not even half of that. One guy quit his city job which was earning him 200,000 a year to teach at my school, quartering his annual salary. I think that shows his dedication and desire to teach.

I do think some teachers are underpaid, but I guess that's life. They get longer holidays than most people, so I guess that's one of the advantages of being a teacher.

[WildGriffin]

Quite a lot of teachers at my school are Cambridge and Oxford graduates with PhDs in very impressive areas such as Physics and Mathematics. These people could have easily got a job with high pay in a city earning 100,000 a year. But they chose to teach for a salary not even half of that. One guy quit his city job which was earning him 200,000 a year to teach at my school, quartering his annual salary. I think that shows his dedication and desire to teach.

I do think some teachers are underpaid, but I guess that's life. They get longer holidays than most people, so I guess that's one of the advantages of being a teacher.

Those teachers choose their own way of life then. I don't have any remorse for someone that would shut down there options in life like that, and hey, if they enjoy teaching whatever. that's cool.

[kantoaznboi]

Usually, but not always; a teacher is a teacher because they couldn't make it in whatever field they're teaching. Take for example, my programming teacher and physics teacher. Both could have taken more promising careers with higher pay, but both most likely couldn't cut it. In reality, alot of people can teach the same course once a year; the demand just isn't high enough for increased pay.

dude u totally off. most teachers teach because they enjoy the fact that they are making a difference in peoples lives, and also, helping kids grow into somethin 2 make our world better. My mom teachers cause she enjoys kids and the thrill of it. To say that they are teachers a teacher cause they cant make it into their field, is just false.

as 4 the bad teachers, they shouldnt be allowed 2 teach. if u honestly think about it, if theres a really bad teacher, u dont learn jack shit and its just pointless 2 have that teacher there.

i believe that teachers are one the most underpaid jobs. if you honestly think, where would all the doctors be, or the surgeons be if there were no teachers? Teachers are one of the most important jobs u can have, so y do they have such low wages.

wat do u think bout this topic?

^^those teachers actually get paid alot smarty!!
my teachers currently suck and dont teach anything.
the teachers union should be forced to change. no union should be able ot say that if a teacher works at a certain place for along enough time that they cant be fried. so then they stop teaching and get tons a money bull. stop the tu now!! what they are doing is worng!!

besides they only work for 180 days per year. why should they be paid more than someone who works 365 days a year??!!

[initial-seven]

Quite a lot of teachers at my school are Cambridge and Oxford graduates with PhDs in very impressive areas such as Physics and Mathematics. These people could have easily got a job with high pay in a city earning 100,000 a year. But they chose to teach for a salary not even half of that. One guy quit his city job which was earning him 200,000 a year to teach at my school, quartering his annual salary. I think that shows his dedication and desire to teach.

I do think some teachers are underpaid, but I guess that's life. They get longer holidays than most people, so I guess that's one of the advantages of being a teacher.

WOW, 100,000$, some teachers make that much? wow, I thought they only mad like 10 bucks a day

[xscore]

NO WAY>..teachers get paid plenty...they have good work hours, easy job, THE WHOLE SUMMER OFF!!! and while theyre sitting at home doing w/e theyre still getting paid in the summer..

[juliar]

Usually, but not always; a teacher is a teacher because they couldn't make it in whatever field they're teaching. Take for example, my programming teacher and physics teacher. Both could have taken more promising careers with higher pay, but both most likely couldn't cut it. In reality, alot of people can teach the same course once a year; the demand just isn't high enough for increased pay.

Heh. My core teacher used to work at AT&T.

Well, they shouldnt really because they are above minumum wage. Last time I checked, one of my teachers has a Mercedes.

[*Kathleen*]

I think the teachers get their fare share. The teachers at my school all have nice cars and gorgeous houses...haha. Granted, I don't know what their husbands make. Oh, and ours is just a normal, suburbian high school.

[divinity_star]

If it could be decided on teachers pay I would say they should get pay based on the grades of their students..But if there is a problem kid that never does his work then that would be different. So if the bad kid misses 10 or more assignments it wouldnt affect their pay...But ultimately it is their choice to become a teacher, they decided to get junk for wages...

[juliar]

If it could be decided on teachers pay I would say they should get pay based on the grades of their students..But if there is a problem kid that never does his work then that would be different. So if the bad kid misses 10 or more assignments it wouldnt affect their pay...But ultimately it is their choice to become a teacher, they decided to get junk for wages...

Yea, if it were that way a teacher's pay would be totally ruined by one kid's horrible work. And that may alos lead to false grades. Like the kid does horrible but she puts it as a B.

[*NatiMarie*]

I think teacher's should DEFINETLY have higher pay. They teach us what we learn to hopefully become professionals in a career. They influence us in many ways and should therefore be paid more. They deserve a lot of credit for a person's success. I don't know, they just don't get paid enough.

[*krnxswat*]

They influence us in many ways and should therefore be paid more.

So, more influence should result in more pay?

[*NatiMarie*]

I saw this coming
Well, okay, usually we adapt some of our beliefs and develop from learning new things and different opinions. We learn this in school and from teachers. My point is that teachers are paid too little. Singers are paid too much and what do we gain from what they sing? What can singers give us that will help us acquire a successful career? I just say that we do not give teachers enough credit, and should therefore give them more pay.

[LiNHy POO]

yesss they should!!!!!! they teach us about the world... and how to secede... the skills we need later in life... without out them.. most of us would not know how to read or write... i know sum kids take advantages of the education they have.. they say school is boring... well i agree too... *but juss do your damn work* and teacher have to put up with the bad behavior... they are part time baby-siters...

but i dont really understand how britney spears could get paid millions od dollars juss to show her belly and dance.. while teachers are teaching us the skills we need in the real world.. they only get paid i think about 30-40 thousand! do yall get that?

[*krnxswat*]

Singers are paid too much and what do we gain from what they sing? What can singers give us that will help us acquire a successful career?

Don't singers also influence and inspire us to be better singers as well?

[*NatiMarie*]

Not really, some singers out there aren't really good and don't give out great messages. But why should get they get paid a lot more. Do they teach us the basics of mathematics? Do they help us gain confidence to reach our goal in life? I mean, yeah they can sometimes inspire us to be better singers, but sometimes that's not the great path to go because not everybody will be able to become rich and famous. Teachers in general (elementary-->college), we can gain knowledge. What can we gain from songs? They're just lyrical cliches and yeah, they can have meanings, but they won't teach us the logarithmic equations or the factorial equations? We can use this stuff in our life, I'm just saying. Teachers should get paid more -and- singers should be paid less. Why are they being paid more than teachers?

[*krnxswat*]

Well, more than half of the stuff we learn throughout school, we don't even use later on in our lives.

but sometimes that's not the great path to go because not everybody will be able to become rich and famous.

But that also can be applied to the students, no? Not all of us will be able to become successful, rich, or whatever.

Teachers should get paid more -and- singers should be paid less. Why are they being paid more than teachers?

Entertainment. Look at athletes, too.

[waccoon]

^^those teachers actually get paid alot smarty!!
my teachers currently suck and dont teach anything.
the teachers union should be forced to change. no union should be able ot say that if a teacher works at a certain place for along enough time that they cant be fried. so then they stop teaching and get tons a money bull. stop the tu now!! what they are doing is worng!!

besides they only work for 180 days per year. why should they be paid more than someone who works 365 days a year??!!

who actually works every day of the week?
weekends, days off, vacations?

[*NatiMarie*]

Same with athletes, athletes should be paid so much more than teachers. Teachers just don't get the credit that they deserve. It's not their fault that not everybody will become successful or rich. They teach us so we can gain knowledge and use it for the future. It's our choice if we choose to use it or not. That's why they deserve more money. Look at how much they get paid. It's so little and especially with budget cuts (in California) they are getting paid even less. So much money go to these careers that are so insignificant to our lives, that it's ridiculous. A lot of money is going to the war too. Not only are teachers getting paid less, but public schools are losing money. Like my chemistry teacher, since the budget cuts have made the school less able to afford experiment supplies, he has had to pay some of it with his own money. The sad thing is, he isn't paid that much so how can he always be using his own money. He's trying to teach us for the best of us, so we can learn with visuals, but since teachers aren't paid a lot, it's hard to accomplish this task.

[iheartsimba]

^ yah, teachers work about the same amount as most people....weekdays, about 9-4. THat's like average work time for many other jobs also...

I think that what they get now is fine.
It's not like minimum wage.
The governmetns are trying to focus on getting better updated textbooks, and take away trailers, add classrooms, add teachers, ect. I think giving every teacher in the country a raise would not be the best thing to do right now. I mean, most of them deserve it.

I think they should get like raises (maybe they already do?) for teaching good, so that they are determined to teach the students. If they already know that they will make a certain amount no matter what, whats the point in even trying? It's kind of like communism. i think?

[*krnxswat*]

I think they should get like raises (maybe they already do?) for teaching good, so that they are determined to teach the students. If they already know that they will make a certain amount no matter what, whats the point in even trying? It's kind of like communism. i think?

What if the students are just plain stupid? Just because the teachers are determined to teach the students doesn't necessarily mean the students will get "smarter." If they don't try, they'll eventually get fired.

[*NatiMarie*]

Oh well, it's not the teachers fault. It's the student's fault. Teachers are just doing their job. I mean, some students don't give a hoot about school, but does that just because they don't do well, teachers don't deserve the good pay that they deserve?

[kantoaznboi]

teachers just dont work the 9-4, but they have other stuff that they have to take home and work on for hours. their job doesnt end rite when school ends

as 4 the the ppl who say that their teachers have nice cars and stuff, not all teachers everywhere are as well paid as other schools. you have to be a school in a good area if your teachers has nice cars. also like someone said, u have to factor in thier spouses income. their spouse might be the reason y they have nice cars.

i dont have as much of a problem wit actors or singers having so much money, cause they put in their time 4 it, and they're getting wat they worked 4. its mostly about athletes getting payed these rediculous amounts 2 play a sport. I'm not against sports or anything cause i'm in sports, but its just so rediculous that they get so much for playing. how can they improve our society? they really dont, they jsut entertain. As for teachers, they teach us the very basic things of life. Most of the good teachers dont teach u just from the book, but about life and broaden your horizon, getting you to think outside of the box. teachers are the very basis for much of our society and yet they dont get the respect that they do.

and if the child is mentally challenged, then the special ed teacher should be taking care of that student, not the other teachers. Education is a 2 way street. it requires both the students willing to learn and the ability of the teacher the get the student interested.

wat i dotn get it, y students in a good skoo dont take advantage of their education. i mean, many ppl would kill to be in the position that you are in, yet u squader your education, jsut cause u dont want 2 learn.

like i said b4, without teachers, where would the high paying jobs be?

[WildGriffin]

Teachers should get paid more -and- singers should be paid less. Why are they being paid more than teachers?

They make more money for other people as well. They can be captialized on to the point were giving them a couple million is chump change compared to whoever is parading them around. (record labels and movie buisnesses)

wat i dotn get it, y students in a good skoo dont take advantage of their education. i mean, many ppl would kill to be in the position that you are in, yet u squader your education, jsut cause u dont want 2 learn.

Cause not everyone has lived their manadatory 3 years in a 3rd world country and completed their "now you lived in a sh!t whole for a little while, learn to appriciate your life you dumbsh!t" training.

[kantoaznboi]

Cause not everyone has lived their manadatory 3 years in a 3rd world country and completed their "now you lived in a sh!t whole for a little while, learn to appriciate your life you dumbsh!t" training.

haha 2 bad we dont have that. lol

[angel-roh]

well i guess so... i agree with u. but still that means college fee have to go up...and i dont like that. 10,000??!?!?!?!! man..... thats too much.

[bird_of_prey]

teachers should totally get paid more! they work so hard (well, some of them)

[Got Shibby?]

Some teachers really don't deserve higher pay. I.E, my science teacher. He gives out worksheets 24/7, tells us to find the answers in the textbook. Then we get to watch Bill Nye the Science G, or one of those nifty Magic Schoolbus episodes. Come on, he's lucky he even gets pay.

Other teachers, however, do deserve more pay, but then again, teacher salary has always been pretty low. If they wanted to roll in more bucks, they should've re-thought their carreers.

[LatinaLady]

they should get paid more. they eduate us. we need teachers to help us if not there wont be no doctors or lawyers and such

[maztaodizasta]

i agree teachers should have higher pay since there the once whoteahc us the things that we apply to our lfes

[SupraS15]

College professors can make $80k-$100k+ ... =) Pay isn't that bad... haha. I used to wanna be a teacher... I still do kinda... Teachers are bad @$$. haha I would be one of the cool ones. And teachers aren't as badly paid as some peeps mite think...

[angel-roh]

N0T MANY TEACHERS D0NT TEACH WELL, BUT STILL GET PAID.. I THINK THATS GAY... S0ME TEACHERS AND PARENTS THINK THIS 0NE TEACHER IS A G00D TEACHER, BUT N0T REALLY...BUT NEWAIS D0ES THAT MEAN WE HAVE T0 PAY M0RE...WELL HEY IM N0T DUMB...ND` N0T MY FAULT THAT THE TEACHERS ARE TEACHING ME WELL...THERE ARE TEACHERS THAT I USED TO BE IN WH0 DIDNT TEACH THAT WELL... GIVE US S0 MANY H0MEW0RKS...GIVE US STRESS MAKE US ST0P D0ING IT...IS THAT 0UR FAULT??? N0....THE TEACHER IS JUS GIVING THE STUDENTS WAY T00 MUCH STRESS.... 0K I THINK I D0NT MAKE SENSE RIGHT N0W... WELL I THINK THE TEACHERS SH0ULD GET WAT THEY GET...I D0NT THINK THEY SH0ULD GET M0RE M0NEY CUS THEY D0 A L0T 0F W0RK... I D0NT THINK THAT SH0ULD HAPPENED.
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[darkcoldplace]

What if the students are just plain stupid? Just because the teachers are determined to teach the students doesn't necessarily mean the students will get "smarter." If they don't try, they'll eventually get fired.

true i see what ya mean seon ho good point, are you one of those stupid kids? ...

[T00000]

they should if they're good teachers

[onenonly101]

Heh. My core teacher used to work at AT&T.

Well, they shouldnt really because they are above minumum wage. Last time I checked, one of my teachers has a Mercedes.

you don't know what they do on the side. I alot of teachers have other jobs, shoot one teacher at my school is a stock broker. Also their husbands might have good jobs.

They should get paid more. Many people want to focus on well their are some bad teachers. there are people in a lot of professions that are bad at what they do but that doesn't mean you overlook the good ones and always want to focus on the bad ones. teachers should get paid more because if it weren't for teachers we wouldn't have the government we have now. All government officala went to school they all had someone to teach them.

If they wanted to roll in more bucks, they should've re-thought their carreers.

So we all could be uneducated?

[BeyondElite]

I think teachers should have higher pays, because they teache children on their life, they wake up early like when they are child, they wake up early because of school, and now they are teaching us, which make them early, again to wake.....

[rabidsquirrels99]

Teachers should definitely get higher pay. No matter what you think about them, they're one of the biggest determining factors of how our generation is going to turn out. I know I've gotten a few amazing teachers that have completely changed the way I look at the world and have made a huge difference in my life.

Usually, but not always; a teacher is a teacher because they couldn't make it in whatever field they're teaching. Take for example, my programming teacher and physics teacher. Both could have taken more promising careers with higher pay, but both most likely couldn't cut it. In reality, alot of people can teach the same course once a year; the demand just isn't high enough for increased pay.

Actually, that's not usually true. My mom is a spanish teacher, but she got into law school. She got the best grades in her class, but she didn't enjoy it. She teaches because she wants to make a difference in people's lives, and teaching is one of the best ways to do that. I don't think it's fair for you to decide how valued jobs are.. it seems like you think teaching is for people who are stupid. Did you ever consider that maybe they just didn't have enough money growing up to get into great colleges?

NO WAY>..teachers get paid plenty...they have good work hours, easy job, THE WHOLE SUMMER OFF!!! and while theyre sitting at home doing w/e theyre still getting paid in the summer..

I'm sorry, but that's totally false. They don't get paid plenty at all- hardly enough to support a family. They have BAD work hours. My mom wakes up at 5 in the morning and doesn't come home until 7 at night. They do have to work in the summer, and have meetings all summer long. Most teachers schedules are similar to this. And most of them don't get paid in the summer.. no teachers I know. As for it being an easy job, it's not. You have no idea what sort of people they have to deal with-- not just the kids, but the administrators as well. Sometimes it's a downright nightmare.

[m@dcow]

i believe substitute teachers need higher pay... they're the ones that are the victim of the taunting and ribbing...

[ComradeRed]

its mostly about athletes getting payed these rediculous amounts 2 play a sport.

We like watching sports, so we are willing to pay a high price for people who are good at it. What is wrong with that... exactly? All it proves is that we as a society have a lot of extra money to spend and a lot of leisure time to spend it on.

[m@dcow]

But what about all those people who work so hard in their jobs, or the teachers who are the ones who help atheletes get past college... they deserve the money... and i dont think they have enough... not saying that sports is bad or anything... it's technically unecessary

[topsyturvy]

TEACHERS SHOULD GET HIGHER PAY!! [and i'm not saying that just cuz my mom's a teacher] without teachers, where would the laywers and doctors be? would they even exist?

[ComradeRed]

Abe Lincoln and Clarnece Darrow are two of our history's best lawyers, and neither of them had official teachers.

[sheepy]

yeah i guess dey should. but den again dey picked dere own jobs dey didnt really have to b a teacher if dey didnt wanna.

[redsoxbaby87]

it depends on the teacher. some teachers suck. they teach nothing. they just sit there. oh by the way. ten year should totally be eliminated. there should be no job security just because they have taught at certain place for ten years. most teachers just slack off after they get to their ten year. they cant be fired. that is just wrong.

[xHalf nHalf]

i duno its difficult to say...cause yes teachers do get crap pay, but then again like plenty of ppl have said, some dont deserve more pay cause they arent good educators....

but personally i think teachers have it kinda hard. i mean, the whole pay thing of course but also like, back in the day teachers you know, had the ok to discipline students if they were acting up...but nowa days, if a teacher as much as touches a student they get sued and some even put in jail cause of all these hellion students trying to get buck with them. i seriously think teachers deserve alot more respect...they have to put up with alot

[rnrn897]

well theres so many.. itd make economy go bad..

[sadolakced acid]

yes, for if there are not teachers, who will teach the presidents, the Picassos, the Sulks? where will the geniuses of tommorrow learn?

we need good teachers. we need to pay them more, to ensure only the best are teaching.

[islandkiss]

I'll have to agree with you on this one.

QUOTE- rnrn897 " there's too many.. it'll make the economy go bad"

that's a bit over exaggerated. even if it did happen, so what? they helped the society..

[kantoaznboi]

well theres so many.. itd make economy go bad..

exactly how would it make the economy go down? cause i do not understand ur thinking

[JlIaTMK]

u no wat.... i agree with u.... they r underpaid.... but it would make the economy go down in the sense that extra money is being used to be given to them

[redsoxbaby87]

i will just say that teachers arent poor. okay, they arent usually living in mcmansions but still. they own homes or very nice apartments and they dont go without food. i think that people over exagerate the fact that they are so called underpaid when they are really getting a fair salary.

[SasukeNaru]

not neccesarily, teachers sometimes get decent pay more than u know.. But mostly yea u correct.. with the whole enron thingy.. its not lookin to good for my school.. since they invested highly in it.. >.< o well

[toria66622]

yea I think they should get paid more cause kids these dayz are horrible

[WHOngos144]

nah, they get paid a fair wage and they have good hours like 8-2 5 days a week

[piney]

teaching must be a hard job. theres always students who dont like you, dont listen, dont pay attention, theres so much grading to do, and you have to plan all those lessons, so yeah, i think they should get higher pay.

[*mipadi*]

nah, they get paid a fair wage and they have good hours like 8-2 5 days a week

Teachers work far more than just school hours. They come in 1-2 hours early, and often stay many hours into the evening. Some even do work until 8 or 9 at night. Their day doesn't end when the final bell rings, nor does it begin when the starting bell rings.

[KissMe2408]

Teachers get paid a decent amount. My best friend's mom is a kindergarden teacher and still manages to be a single mom owning a house and supporting two crazy teenagers.
However, Teaching is hard. You get paid when you are at the school during classroom hours, but they aren't paid for the times they stay late or come in early, they aren't paid for the hours and hours of grading they have to do at home, or the time they spend on the computer answering their students emails about a certain assignement. They have to plan their lessons and re-plan their lessons because something went wrong. With all this said, I think teachers should get payed a higher salary, they certainly deserve it.

[The_AZN_Godfathe...]

I do think teachers are underpaid.
In fact, I think many jobs are underpaid.
I also think a lot of jobs are overpaid.

I think the salery of jobs needs to be reorganized.

...But I don't think this place would be exactly the place to talk about it.

Anywayz:

Yeah, I think teachers are underpaid. Think about what they do for you. They have to memorize everyones name, and be responsible for them, at a certain extent.
And obviously they educate you. Educate you for your dream job, or whatever job, which may even pay better than they're job.

And if the teacher sucks? Then you are probably a pain to the teacher. Just another thing teachers have to go through. Heck, the teachers that "suck" might even deserve get paid more, having to put up with misbehaving kids. (or... maybe not... if they're not good at educating you, and making you learn.)

If paying the teachers more would lower the economy... then that goes back to my point of some jobs being overpaid, and maybe lowering the salary of some jobs.

Voila, my opinion.

[sharpandcuddly]

Teachers should be paid more. Without the, there would be no doctors, lawyers, politicians, surgeons, priests..
I mean, they are the basis of every other career, almost.

[innovation]

Ha, yes, teachers should definitely get higher pay. There's been a sort of American mindset that places teaching as "a last resort," which creates poorer schools. I also believe that teachers should be offered stipends to actively sponsor teams, such as high school debate teams and academic teams, since my sponsors often sit in the back grading papers while we practice on our own.

[jEllyBeaNs]

well i say it really depends, because some of the teachers i have they do not help any of the students that do not understand what is being taught. they are too busy trying to go through their lesson soo quickly. to me it seems like now a days teachers dont really care about a child's grade, they just teach. i think that teachers should be paid based on how students are doing academically in the class.

but the only bad side to that is that kids could fail on purpose so that it would affect the teachers pay. and i think that teachers should get a higher pay because some of them really work their butts off trying to help students even tho they aren't gettin paid a good price and two, well im think about being a teacher, so i would really like to see teachers ger paid a lil bit more lol :-D

[Chii]

i thought about this awile ago. i think it should be based on a rating system. like the students rate the teacher and their pay depends on the rating. sure some students will probably rate low because they failed but if the teacher truly is good, high ratings could cancel the low ratings out. it's not really fool proof but it seems like a good idea...

some teachers just teach because that's what they're stuck with it or something. some barely teach and just give us the answers so their day goes by faster.

one of my teachers basically has no life. all she does is think about what to do to us and stress us out. she yelled at us for stupid sh*t and for our final, we had to write 3 actual essays, 2 outlines, answer short answer questions, and answer multiple choice questions. and by the way, this is one period and she's an art teacher!

[emazing]

I DO think some teachers deserve a higher salary, especially if the teacher is a good one who puts a lot of time and effort into what they do. The least they could get is a higher pay, you know? It honestly depends on the quality of the teacher before they get the higher paycheck. It's definitely not fair if the teachers work hard & there's barely anything left for them at the end.

[omgah_itsmaggiex]

yes..isnt it teachers who teach us EVERYTHING?

[ComradeRed]

Teachers are probably underpaid.

This is because the government acts as a monopoly hirer (not really, but close enough since there aren't that many private schools). In a market with a monopoly employer the wages of employees will be lower than where they should be. They did a study about this with nurses--nurses in cities with only one major hospital only made 50-70% of what nurses in cities with ten major hospitals made and it makes sense in theory because a monopoly seller results in higher prices, so a monopoly buyer ought to result in lower prices (the "price" of labor is the wage rate).

The teachers have a union in the form of the AFT, and in many cases, a strong enough union is enough to increase the wage in a monopoly to where it should be, but the AFT is weak due to their lack of striking power, the ease with which substitutes can be brought in, and the fact that the government, unlike a monopoly business, is always on a stronger field than a union because the government gets its revenue no matter what, whereas the manager of a monopoly firm might have to negotiate to protect some of his own profits.

http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos069.htm

"The estimated average salary of all public elementary and secondary school teachers in the 2003–04 school year was $46,597. Private school teachers generally earn less than public school teachers, but may be given other benefits, such as free or subsidized housing."

The net pay (including benefits) of teachers at private schools (excluding Catholic schools, where religion and not wages are the main influence) is probably about the same as teachers at public schools--that's because the government puts downward pressure on wages... if private school wages were a lot higher than public school wages, too many qualified teachers would want to teach at private schools, thus allowing the private schools to lower their wages in turn.

Teachers should be paid what they would be paid if the US had no public schools and all independent private schools which set prices and wages independent of each other. That would result in the optimal number and quality of teachers. Sadly, our current near-monopoly system doesn't offer that.

[abstracted]

I think teachers should be paid more.

I kept reading this question: what about the bad teachers?
Well, come on. You get people in every profession who are horrible. Just today I had to deal with a orthodontist who screwed up several of her patients' crowns (including mine). You can't avoid this. It sucks, but there'll be bad teachers, and I had/have my fair share of them.

There's the simple argument: without teachers, there's no one to build a better labor force.

My mom is a teacher. Her working hours go beyond the literal 8 to 4 each day. There's grading, school meetings, and planning--LOTS of planning. And stress. Plus, it's practically a high school drama among her coworkers at her elementary school. There's one teacher who randomly yelled at my mom for ten minutes, putting her to tears, about something she had nothing to do with. You get the bad bosses too. Or, worse, your team leader requires you to put in extra hours that you don't need, spend some of your salary on silly little gifts that cost more than they should for all teachers of one grade who don't give a damn about you, or make up OCD systems...anything.
My point--teaching is NOT an easy job. Yet, they get paid comparatively little.

About the athletes and singers...I agree that they get paid more than they should. Yes, they worked very hard to get to their level of skill, but they're job is to entertain! Without them, society would still function, even if it ends up being boring. They play games, they sing, they dance, whatever--isn't that what you do for fun? Because they're especially good at it, they get paid a lot. They use that money to look the way they want, buy the clothes they want, etc., so that more people like them. Then, when they're rich, they have the excess money to give to charities and such, and then the media goes on to say how they're wonderful people who helped so much.
Um, not to say that they aren't wonderful or that they don't deserve the fame, but they had the money to do it. I bet it didn't pinch their pockets. I give, but it costs me more to give the same amount of money or time than it costs that rich singer.

Teachers do wonderful deeds of giving as well, but just because it doesn't involve donating half a million to some major fundraiser, they don't get the appreciation. They teach us. They could suck like those teachers who are horrible, and they could just put on educational videos and hand out busywork. But for those teachers who really do teach--and I've had my fair share of brilliant teachers--they deserve more. But they don't get it.

[acid_high]

Teachers put up with shit form badass kids and low pay the should get more than just a raise. They should get thanks foor trying to save me and teach me things that'll need in the real world that's what they need

[The_AZN_Godfathe...]

Raising the salary of every teacher would lower the economy huh...

I keep finding people saying that, and I have few comments on that.

Teachers educate people. Educated people make money. If more people were educated, perhaps there would be more money... or something like that. Either way, the more people educated, the better.

In a sense, the world has plenty of money... it's just not distributed very well.

[vash1530]

teachers need to suck it up. they make a good amount of money and they know it.they decided to go into that profession knowing the salaries that they would be earning.

[ComradeRed]

Well the point is, if teacher's salaries went up, there would be MORE teachers and as it is right now the economy has a shortage of teachers thanks to the government's virtual monopoly on education.

[sadolakced acid]

forget privatizing social security.

privatize education.

i'm sure IBM, microsoft, etc. would pay to have people educated well, in return for 4 years or so of them working for them as wage slaves.

think, if you could go to a private school for free, have access to a lot of resources, and good teachers, and have a scholarship for college, in return for a garunteed job with microsoft for four years.

[*kryogenix*]

forget privatizing social security.

privatize education.

i'm sure IBM, microsoft, etc.  would pay to have people educated well, in return for 4 years or so of them working for them as wage slaves. 

think, if you could go to a private school for free, have access to a lot of resources, and good teachers, and have a scholarship for college, in return for a garunteed job with microsoft for four years.

College?

[sadolakced acid]

well, all of it.

k-12 as well.


Education is a state-controlled manufactory of echoes.
- Norman Douglas

[illumineering]

Here's a link to a Rand report on the effectiveness of Edison schools.