They also want children to learn, which is the biggest thing that draws them to the job and gets them to accept shitty pay.
Teachers should get paid way more than they do.
just_change_it@lemmy.world 9 months ago
She got a job working in a corporate office for a big company. This is pretty typical of not-retail-worker-salary beating out public sector nine times out of ten.
Why would someone ever be a teacher for <50k? Anybody with an education background can move to Seattle, Washington (or other state close to big city pay) and be a corporate trainer and move up to a director level role and get paid many times what they would ever be paid as a teacher…
…except so many want to stay near family, not be near a big city, can’t move because of xyz, want a couple months off each year… etc etc etc.
To quote somebody: Schools should be palaces. The competition for the best teachers should be fierce. They should be making six-figure salaries. Schools should be incredibly expensive for government and absolutely free of charge to its citizens, just like national defense.
Just isn’t that way today and there is a big political and economic mess in the way of getting there.
snooggums@kbin.social 9 months ago
princessnorah@lemmy.blahaj.zone 9 months ago
The mess is allowing decades of union-busting to be effective. Teachers in my state of Victoria are heavily unionised, so US$50k is the starting salary. You would absolutely be making what she is now, $64k, if you’d worked for 8yrs like she had.
AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world 9 months ago
Those salaries still sound far too low for a teacher, especially since, as I understand it, your dollar doesn’t buy you guys as much as our dollar, or is that just in electronics and video games?
Either way, the vice principal in The Breakfast Club cites that he’s making $35,000 a year in 1985. I’ll assume that’s the higher end of the scale since he’s admin, and has been teaching for years at that point. The thing is that adjusted for inflation that $35,000 is closer to $87,000 today. It’s not just teachers either. No essential worker has had a raise since the early 1970s, in fact we’ve had pay cuts when you look at inflation, and expected productivity.
princessnorah@lemmy.blahaj.zone 9 months ago
It depends, some things are more expensive here. But for an example, Baldur’s Gate 3 retails at US$70 in the states, but US$57 (A$90) here. A brand new iPhone 15 Pro costs US$200 more here however.
The high end for a public school teacher is US$87k. But public school admin pays a lot more. The starting salary for an Assistant Principal is US$96k, and goes all the way up too US$147k on the high end for a Principal.
Finally, while we absolutely have a housing crisis going on, rent is still a lot cheaper here. I live in a three bedroom house in the suburbs of Melbourne. We have a backyard big enough for a few chooks, a dog and a cat. It’s a half hour’s train ride into the city centre. Our rental laws mean the landlord basically couldn’t say no to the animals. He also can’t terminate the lease without cause, and has limits on how much and how often the rent can be increased. We pay US$1260 (A$1955) a month. From what I’ve seen, it can cost $2000/month for a small apartment in a comparable city in the US.
Speaking of Unions actually, we have renter’s unions here that will help if you’re being fucked over and agitate for better rights. I pay A$12/year in dues and they’ve helped me out a few times when I’ve had a landlord trying to break the laws.
Sorry for the whole rant, I just have had people reply similarly before in a way that feels a bit dismissive. Thanks for the apology, and have a great day/night :)
AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world 9 months ago
Thanks for the breakdown. Sounds like you guys have it slightly better than we do, hopefully you can make some gains :)
FordPrefect@startrek.website 9 months ago
I think I agree… but I’m sorry, I’m not used to using those items as a commodity value scale…
Can you express that as 18650 cells, please?
_Mantissa@lemmy.world 9 months ago
[deleted]assassin_aragorn@lemmy.world 9 months ago
I see it as part of the contract between the government and the people. All citizens are asked to help plant trees they won’t get to enjoy the shade of.
ReluctantMuskrat@lemmy.world 9 months ago
It is a tough sell to place even more tax burden on people who will never realize the benefits.
But you will. We all benefit from a well-educated society. A poorly educated workforce isn’t competitive with one that is well-educated, and they attract employers with jobs that can take advantage of them. They provide the work for good-paying jobs and drive the economy we’re growing old in and hopefully retiring from someday.
Public education benefits everyone, not just the children.
Katana314@lemmy.world 9 months ago
So, expensive for me who is already completely priced out of ever responsibly having children. We all have a responsibility to the future generations so I’d still vote for it. But oof. It is a tough sell to place even more tax burden on people who will never realize the benefits.
It’s not a sell for the people who will have children. It’s a sell for the children who will grow up under that education and have their job prospects determined by it. Hey - weren’t you once a child?
brcl@lemmy.world 9 months ago
I would say we need to do a full assessment of where our tax dollars are going. I feel we could find a lot of money to put towards the items that matter by cutting out government ineptitude.
andros_rex@lemmy.world 9 months ago
You’re ignoring the massive amount of students on IEPs who require special services, as well as the fact that online education requires family support and motivation.
assassin_aragorn@lemmy.world 9 months ago
Teaching needs to be a cushy, highly competitive job with entry pay starting at 100k a year. It needs to attract the very best and brightest.
andros_rex@lemmy.world 9 months ago
I live in Oklahoma. I make $40k/year teaching. I can not afford the up front cost of moving to Seattle. Long term I’d love to end up in a corporate job, but because teaching is so shit and a lot of people are leaving, transitional jobs are difficult to find.
just_change_it@lemmy.world 9 months ago
Seattle was just TFA’s literal job location.
You could move to Oklahoma City or Tulsa or something. If you can’t save a few grand to move anywhere whatsoever i’d suggest getting a second job a couple nights a week or over the summer during break to make enough to do so. It’s your livelihood anyway.
Today: What do you do when you need a new car to get to work and yours stops working from age? give up? walk many miles to work? assume the fetal position until death? I promise there is a possible way in this world to have enough to relocate, the only question is what you’re willing to sacrifice to get it done. My wife lived on rice and beans for months while she saved up enough to afford tuition which ultimately made her income go from a few hundred dollars a month in another country to a little over a thousand. She learned English on her own and got a job that was a two hour commute from her home and made even more money. Now she makes over double what you do. I’m not saying it’s easy, i’m not saying it’s fair, i’m just saying it’s possible.
curiousaur@reddthat.com 9 months ago
Educated young people overthrow governments. You do the math.
HerbalGamer@lemm.ee 9 months ago
I would but there’s no teachers so I don’t know math
nehal3m@sh.itjust.works 9 months ago
Mission accomplished
Zorque@kbin.social 9 months ago
Uneducated people overthrow governments. Educated people involve themselves so they make a better, longer lasting, more stable and effective government in the long run.
There's this consistent delusion that if we just burn everything down and start anew that this time it will all work out for the best.
It hasn't worked for the past two millenia, it's not going to magically work now. All it does is give rise to new fascist states.
FordPrefect@startrek.website 9 months ago
The French revolution is far from the most well-regarded outcome, & yet, I think it was preferable to no revolution, at the time… I agree that having a knowledgeable populace is essential to social stability.
Zorque@kbin.social 9 months ago
The French Revolution led to Napoleon.
It was nice to get rid of one set of autocrats... but it just led directly into another. Its not like they traded up.
Wakmrow@lemmy.world 9 months ago
Castro was a lawyer as was Lenin. Che was a medical doctor.
PR3CiSiON@lemmy.world 9 months ago
But maybe educated young people will join the govt a well, and make it better, so that we will not want to overthrow the govt.
curiousaur@reddthat.com 9 months ago
That’s why we’re seeing the rise of private schools and an increase in cost. The forces that be want only the “right” people to be properly educated.