Teaching is a great profession, and the pay is OK in many places. But overall, champions of education have noticed that average teacher salaries donât quite reflect the jobâs importance in childrenâs lives, in our communities and ⊠you know ⊠in the life and vibrancy of a great democracy, which can use as many well-educated, thoughtful, happy citizens as it can find.
So we asked ourselves, what if teachers made bank? Some things would surely change:
If Teacher Paychecks Were Two Times as Much âŠ
- The $1.6 billion that public school Kâ12 teachers spend collectively per year out of their own pockets on classroom supplies and educational materials would probably just double to $3 billion. (Youâre welcome, taxpayers!)
- Teachers would buy instead of rent.
- Teachers would pay off their student loans faster.
- Teachers would quit their additional jobs.
- Teachers would totally hire someone to help keep up with housework.
- Theyâd know they could afford to send their kids to college.
- Theyâd feel better about working 70 hours per week.
If Teacher Paychecks Were Five Times as Much âŠ
- They would REALLY take the summers off.
- At least some of the 3.5 million teachers in the United States would give Lady Gaga a run for her money fashion-wise.
- Many families would be getting mysterious, anonymous checks in the mail, others would be getting the money in a more traditional way. âNow make sure your mom gets this brick of money from the front pocket of your backpack tonight, OK?â
- School administration would probably expect teachers to work more hours.
If Teacher Paychecks Were 10 Times as Much âŠ
- Pencil factories? Chalk manufacturers? Juice box, glue and whiteboard companies? Scholastic, Inc.? All 100 percent teacher owned.
- There would be a lot more media attention on teacher hiring.
- Teach to the test? Test to our teaching, baby.
