Teacher Pay

Yesterday I had a conversation with a person about public education and teacher pay; this person was grumbling that if teachers get raises, her taxes will go up, but this person makes many times my salary. Another person in the conversation chimed in that maybe teachers didn't need advanced degrees and that then they wouldn't want to be paid so much and that would solve the problem. In the same conversation, these folks said, "I could never do that!" and I thought, "You're right. You couldn't."

I pride myself on the fact that I did not go ballistic and tear those two apart verbally (or otherwise!), but I will say here what I said there: I have been in sales at Microsoft, I've been a non-profit Executive Director, and FAR AND AWAY teaching is the most challenging job I have ever done.

If you don't believe me, step in front of a room of 32 kids with a plan to teach them something, and make sure that they ALL understand, stay engaged, and leave the classroom with a better skill set than when they went in. Do this five times a day with different groups of kids, some of whom are gifted, some of whom are special ed, some of whom are gifted AND special ed, and all of whom are battling their own issues (social woes, problems with parents, anxiety, thinking about the big meet coming up, the test they have in the next period, ADD, boredom, confusion, hormones) and know that you need to hold their attention and their respect in order to keep them learning throughout the rest of the year. Then, grade the 150 papers that they turn in to you. Attend a department meeting to discuss curricular approaches, a staff meeting to discuss how to respond to suicidal students or active shooters or child abuse (all of which we've covered so far this year). Manage the kid who uses the n-word in class and then reach out to students who have been harmed by that word, the kid who is thinking about dropping out, and the kid who has a panic attack over a poor grade (literally), and do so in the break between classes and as another group of 34 students is walking in the door and asking you questions. Do not be short with your students, but kindly and firmly remind them that you will answer their questions one at a time, when they are in their seats. Anticipate their questions, and answer them before they ask. Be gracious, be thoughtful, be firm. Let them know that you care about them, that you won't let them get away with anything, and do so while focusing on content area.

Do all of this with a smile on your face and the patience of a saint, because these are just kids and they deserve your best self; explain that you'll answer their questions one at a time, point them to the instructions already posted on the board AND in OneNote. Console the kid whose father is in the hospital, the kid whose friend just died in an accident, and the kid suffering from bipolar; they are people deserving caring, and they will learn better in your class if they feel understood and acknowledged. Remember to look for signs in the three kids whom you know to be suicidal. Respond to parent emails. Spend a couple of hours each day seeking out ways to make the curriculum more engaging: read everything you can get your hands on about your subject matter, education, teaching practices. Comb the blogs of other teachers looking for engaging lessons, and then modify them to meet the needs of your students. Get ridiculously excited when a student walks in your room and says, "I made cookies - would you like one?"

Chaperone TOLO, Winter Ball, Homecoming, and Prom on Saturday nights because you could use the cash, and be grateful that in your wealthy district, you get paid to be there; try not to think about how close to minimum wage activity pay is and how long you were in grad school. Sit next to students in the gym for assemblies, shushing them. Create a bathroom policy for your classroom.

And while you do all that, focus on academic rigor. Make sure that your freshmen are ready for AP; make sure that your AP students have the skills to score well on AP and get into top colleges and succeed at those colleges. Write letters of recommendation for your students to go to college; do this on a Saturday. Agree to go over college essays with students one on one after school, because who else would they ask for help from except their English teacher for that task? Model to them a love of literature: teach them how to do a close and nuanced reading, and to write thesis statements, and to craft arguments with evidence and insightful analysis. Do not "murder to dissect" and make sure that the students have time within the rigor to just play with the ideas contained in literature, to feel passionately about the characters, to learn about human nature. Get their state test scores as high as you can. Give homework, but not too much. Support their in class work, but not too much. Provide them with information, but don't talk at them. Put them in seating arrangements where they are challenged, socially accepted but focused, non-disruptive, and where they do their best work. Pay attention to their romances, break ups, and petty feuds when you create those seating charts, in addition to which students have hearing loss, attention issues, need extra challenges to raise the course to their level, or do not understand any of your instructions.

Do all that, and succeed at it, and tell me how I can do it better, and in less time, and I'll listen joyfully. But until then? Pay your taxes. Support teachers. Demand reasonable pay for teachers, and support teachers when they say, "I can't afford to live near the school I teach in, and I spend my own money to buy tissues and supplies." Tell your kids to say "thank you" when a teacher helps them. Or, at worst, just BE QUIET. Please step aside and don't get in my way as I bend myself into a pretzel shape to meet the needs of our children. I do all of this with love, which is why I am glad to do the work, but it's hard work and I'm exhausted, and I do not have time for that kind of nonsense. I'm a professional, working with other talented professionals, and all of us are busting our rear ends to meet the needs of society and children.

I'm writing this from my desk at school, on a Sunday, and now I need to get back to grading.

Rant over.