by Alias

Created on: October 11, 2008

Although I believe that our childrens education should be one of our country's main priorities, I do not believe that we should compensate our teachers "if they work harder". If thats the case, every profession should fall under those stipulations. No longer would you be making the same amount of money as the slacker that sits next to you!

At one point in life we all decide what it is we want to be when we grow up. You still may not know, but your doing something that pays the bills until that job or career comes along. If money is what has motivated your decision, most likely, your not a teacher. Hopefully you've looked into what the career your pursuing actually pays, and teachers are not at the top of the list. Their modest wages are surely a trade off for the personal satisfaction they must feel. Every day they are put in the position to touch hundreds of lives. Their guidance, patience, durability, and grace are what guide our children to become who they want to be. Teachers spend more time with our children than we do! They're getting paid not only to teach our children, but babysit them as well.

Bottom line, you should decide what it is that you want to do in life for the personal gain rather than the financial gain. Chasing happiness and contentment through money is a race you'll never win. I've yet to meet someone that has told me that they have enough money. I have met people that were so thrilled with their job, their ability to be part of a solution rather than a problem, that they wouldn't trade it for the world.

I think if we were to all look back at all of the teachers that were in our life we probably could remember just a few that their words still ring loud and true in our minds. For some reason this person impacted your life, whether it was then or now, and you'll always remember how they went above and beyond. These are the people that are in it for personal gain not financial gain. They weren't standing in the front of a picket line looking for more money, they were in a classroom somewhere after school spending extra time with their students that needed them. They were doing what it took to make ALL of their students winners, not just concentrating on the advanced students scores.

If our students are tested on a national level, shouldn't our teachers be as well? We have 20 something year old kids in charge of our children. Surely we don't expect the same from these "fresh" teachers that we do from the experienced do we? Teaching is not all about the knowledge that one possesses. Some of the greatest teachers in life couldn't teach a dog to do tricks. Its not always about the material, sometimes it the delivery. Should a new teacher, fresh out of college, make what a teacher does thats been at it for 10 years? Should a teacher from the inner city make more than the teacher that teaches in a small town?

We must remember that THEY signed up for this. Furthuring your education and acquiring a degree isn't a forced concept in the US- well, not yet anyways. If your looking for money to equal production, you'd better become a salesperson.

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