Nicholas,
Please re-read Deb's post about teacher hours. The oft-repeated canard that
teachers only work 180 days per year is patently false. I come from a
family of teachers and have worked with teachers very often in my museum
career, and I can tell you that a great deal of that off-time is spent on
professional development, curriculum writing, tutoring, grading papers, etc.
Teachers also don't get down time as many of us do in our jobs. They are on
the go the entire time they are in the building, not even having time to go
to the bathroom.
However, if you want to insist that teachers only work 180 days, then I
would look more closely at your analogy of minor league baseball players.
Their season is even shorter than a school year. Ah, you'd say, they need
to spend the off season perfecting their skills, weight training, etc.
Well, so do teachers.
Yes, some teachers do make more than we underpaid museum professionals, and
typically have more job security, thanks to a good union. And we can spend
a lot of time debating exactly how much more they do make. But to counter
your example you can give of a teacher making $90K in Westchester County
(not a cheap place to live, BTW), let me tell you about my father. My
father taught for over 30 years and never cracked $60K in his school system
in stereotypically affluent Connecticut. He spent many of his weekends and
summers doing tours for the National Guard so that I could go to college and
grad school without taking out huge student loans.
I also wanted to address this quote: "In some communities, such as inner
cities, teachers earn so much more than the folks whose kids they teach that
a strong class and perceptual gap helps to detract from effective teaching."
Couldn't you say that about many professions? Couldn't you say that about
people who work in the medical field? Or social work? Couldn't you even say
that about the museum field? Do you really believe we should cut teacher
pay so they can relate to their students better?
I refuse to begrudge teachers any of the money we pay them. These teachers
are educating our children -- our future -- and many of them work damn hard
to do it.
I apologize for getting on my soapbox, but teacher bashing really gets me
angry.
Best,
Suzi
---
Suzi Fonda
Project Coordinator, Teaching American History Grant
Maxwell Library, Room 312
Bridgewater State College
Bridgewater, MA 02325
508.531.2166
[log in to unmask]
-----Original Message-----
From: Nicholas Burlakoff [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, April 30, 2003 10:04 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Happy Tuesday!
Didn't realize that factual information is now considered BS. That being
said, the average American works 240-260 days per year. The average US
family income is around $48,00. Small retailers work 320 to 350 days per
year. Average income of small retailers is $35,000-$45,000 per year (East
Coast). 40 million American have no health insurance at all, and except for
jobs with very strong unions the health insurance coverage of workers is
decreasing, while co-pays and worker contributions are rising. In most
industry jobs two weeks vacation at a time is getting to be a luxury. And
while taking leave during the school term is difficult and often has
negative consequences, in some school systems one can accumulate leave and
sick days. A school teacher friend retired last year at 58 and had so much
accumulated time that he reported for work for a total of 4 days in his
final year.
The average salary of a minor league baseball player is in the $25,000 to
$35,000 range. The vast bulk of "professional" players are in the minors.
Yes, there are multimillion dollar players in the major leagues, but there
are also multimillion dollar professors at major institutions. If one takes
the life-long earning of an average player (the average NFL player plays for
3 years before injury or competition knocks him out [this is after a
fourteen to sixteen year apprenticeship]) and compares it with lifetime
earnings of teachers, many more teachers make more money than players.
Obviously, this does not apply to Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, or the
Williams sisters
Yes, starting salaries in most systems are not generous, and in some markets
the annual pay is not large, but anywhere in the US teachers are not poorly
paid when you compare their salaries with other normal members of their
community. In some communities, such as inner cities, teachers earn so much
more than the folks whose kids they teach that a strong class and perceptual
gap helps to detract from effective teaching.
No normal teacher gets rich teaching, but most teachers lead quite
comfortable and financially secure lives-and that was my point. Last point,
teachers are also better paid and have more security than most museum
workers.
Nicholas Burlakoff
-----Original Message-----
From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf
Of Deb Fuller
Sent: Tuesday, April 29, 2003 7:45 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Happy Tuesday!
Okay, I have to throw the BS flag on this one.
--- Nicholas Burlakoff <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Certified Teachers in Yonkers NY, with an MA and three years of experience
> earn $85,000. In Scarsdale, NY the median salary for teachers is $95,000.
> This is for an average of 180 days work per year, with excellent benefits
> and pension.
A) No teacher works just 180 days per year. Most are taking classes over the
summer to get recertification points, moving their classrooms or packing
them
up and unpacking them again because of maintenance work, and getting into
the
classrooms early because there just isn't enough time in the week before the
kids start to get everything done. Teachers take work home with them. When I
student taught, I graded papers and did lesson plans at least 2 hours a
night.
My cooperating teacher who had taught for 30 years was often up until 11pm
doing work. If I did that at my government contractor job, I could start to
demand major comp time and overtime.
B) Excellent benefits - sure, but they can't really use them. Try taking a
2-week vacation in the middle of the school year. You might have the leave
time
but your class will be a wreck when you come back because good subs are hard
to
find - not to mention all that extra time you'll spend planning for 2 weeks
of
a sub and then playing catch up once you return. Sick time? Good luck. If
there
aren't subs to cover you, which is a problem in most places, you pretty much
have to come in. Heck, I was lucky to get a bathroom break when I taught. I
spent most of my student teaching with a horrid cold, no voice and raw
throat.
My grandmother died while I was teaching and I was told if I really had to
take
off, they couldn't stop me but I was strongly encouraged not to.
As for pensions, maybe. They aren't as good as they used to be.
>Most teachers are married, and if their spouse is also an
> educator the income reaches the 5% highest in income for the US. There are
> also a number of profs who receive over $2,000,000 per year (mostly
surgery
> MD's). The point, salaries for teachers and profs depend on location not
> profession. The sheer number of teachers who earn substantially more than
> most sports players is also overwhelming.
Show me the numbers Nick. According to the AP in December 2002: The average
major league baseball salary rose to nearly $2.3 million this year, a 7.3
percent increase that was the smallest since 1998.
I know school districts that are fighting for a 2% cost of living increase
and
haven't gotten them in a few years. Show me one teacher - not a surgery,
MD -
who is making $2.3 million. I guy I dated in college was a teacher in
Shenandoah Co., VA and made about $20k/year with 5 years of experience. His
father, a preacher at a small church in Rome, NY made more than he did.
Starting salaries where I am - Alexandria, VA are in the mid-high 30s,
depending on education level. Average rent for a decent one-bedroom
apartment
is $1000/month. Fixed-rent apartments are for salaries of about $35K and
below
so teachers are just shy of getting into a $700/month fixed-rent apartment.
Given that $35K/year amounts to about $2200 a month net, spending half of
that
on rent makes things really tight.
A quick look on most public school web sites will quickly dispell the myth
of
highly-paid teachers.
Deb
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