The comment about having to stab myself to know what it feels like is like you saying I should be a teacher to know what goes on.
I don't know how many schools are year-round but I don't think it's the majority. Do you know? I know for sure several really large states (States that matter...not big square ones in the middle of nowhere) do not have year-round. So that's a 2-3 month vacation combined.
Maybe it's not 45K where you live because the cost of living is lower. I'm sure a banker would get paid less in Colorado. Here is a sampling of salaries from 1995 in Chicago with low costs of living:
Average Salary for Various Occupations
(Including benefits. Figures for 1995.)
Illinois Teachers
Average salary without benefits $36,874
Salary adjusted for hours worked 56,948
Adjusted salary plus benefits 68,338
Accounting
Accountant, small firm 36,500
Accountant, Big Six firm 38,625
Senior auditor 42,500
Senior tax accountant 55,300
Architecture
Architect 35,000
Architect, principal/partner 50,000
Engineering
Civil engineer 62,000
Electrical engineer 65,876
Mechanical engineer 65,160
Financial Services
Actuary 36,914
Loan officer, mortgage 54,600
Loan officer, commercial 71,000
Health Care
Registered nurse 39,800
Licensed physical therapist 45,400
Information Services
Systems analyst 44,026
Database specialist 45,193
Software engineer 54,470
Hardware engineer 54,704
Manufacturing
Foreman 40,300
Purchasing agent 52,800
Warehouse manager 53,600
Director of engineering 74,400
Media
Newspaper reporter 24,127
TV news reporter 30,400
Magazine senior editor 41,900
Source: Justin Martin, "How Does Your Pay Really Stack Up?" Fortune, June 26, 1995, pp. 82-86.
When it comes to those lesson plans, a lot of it follows books, a lot is reused from year to year. When it comes to exams, if it really takes you a million hours to grade simple exams then you shouldn't be a teacher in my opinion. Many exams were actually multiple choice and graded easily with scantron machines.
Too bad teachers are ruined by a few bad apples. Tenure usually comes as a result of unions that fight for them so I'm not sure why you said it's tenure and not unions. Oh and hey, Sam Peltzman (brilliant professor from Chicago) did a state-by-state study "of the period of greatest decline in student test scores, 1972 - 1981, and found that the decline in student performance was deepest in those states whose legislatures were most responsive to teachers unions and in which the American Federation of Teachers scored its earliest success". In the 1980s, Peltzman found "an unambiguously negative association of union growth and school performance."
-Rudey
Quote:
Originally posted by DeltAlum
Regarding the kidney...Huh?
Regarding the second, around here that $45K would probably require a Masters and a lot of experience. If fact, I think I'll look that up. I'll let you know if I'm off base.
Teaching is not a 9-5 job. Unless you never give homework or tests and don't do lesson plans.
Our elementary and some middle schools are year-round these days. About the same amount of time off, but not all at once.
I think it's tenure more than unions that make it difficult to get rid of "bad" teachers -- and I will readily admit there are some of those. Thankfully, a lot of school systems have gotten rid of the tenure system.
Finally, there isn't enough money to make me put up with what teachers in some schools do today.
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