General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsYes, American Teachers Are Underpaid
American teacher pay is always politicized, not the least of which is because teachers' unions are part of the bedrock of the Democratic party's political base.
But America's chalk-dusted corps of educators doesnt look especially over-paid by international standards. In fact, according to this dataset from the OECD, U.S. teachers make less than a comparably educated peers in the private sector:
""
For the sake of fairness, we'll note that a right-leaning think tank, the American Enterprise Institute, recently argued that U.S. teachers are overpaid, if compared with people who do just as well on "standardized tests that measure cognitive skill." That sounds like cherry picking a benchmark to usand to others
http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2014/04/yes-american-teachers-are-underpaid/8834/
daleanime
(17,796 posts)SheilaT
(23,156 posts)It's the total lack of respect.
Jesus Malverde
(10,274 posts)There are many college professors making much more that the market would dictate. Easy financial aid allows some deans to make 300 thousand or more a year. The university of California system is full of these very well paid teacher/administrators subsidized by student debt that lasts a lifetime. The united states has a broader spectrum of school types than many of the countries cited, if you throw in ivy league schools with community colleges and average their wages you might get these results. I have a feeling it's a more apple and oranges and one needs to drill down on private vs. public schools etc.
Nanjing to Seoul
(2,088 posts)In Arizona, the average for two Master's Degrees and nine years of teaching is $48,000. And for that money, they can hire two teachers fresh out of college.
American teachers are the most brutalized employees in the country. . .and no one cares.
Stuart G
(38,439 posts)callous taoboy
(4,585 posts)I work about 55 hours per week teaching second grade, and I've been driving limousine tours every Saturday for the past 3 years. I make $51,000 per year teaching, and this is my 20th year.