Friday 30 September 2011

The price you pay.................

Are you sick of highly paid teachers? Teachers' hefty salaries are driving up taxes, and they only work 9 or 10 months a year! It's time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do - babysit! We can get that for less than minimum wage. That's right. Let's give them £5.93 an hour and only the hours they work; not any of that silly planning time, or any time they spend before or after......... school. That would be £ 41.51 a day (8.30 am to 3:30 PM with 60 min. off for lunch and play -- that equals 7 1/2 hours). Each parent could pay £ 41.51 a day for these teachers to babysit their children. Now how many children do they teach in a day...32? So that's £ 41.51 x 32 = £ 1328.32 a day. However, remember they only work 180 days a year!!! I am not going to pay them for any holidays . LET'S SEE.... That's £1328.32 X 180= £239,097.60 per year. (Hold on! My calculator needs new batteries). What about those special education teachers and the ones with Master's degrees? Well, we could pay them minimum wage (£ 6.90), and just to be fair, round it off to £ 7.00 an hour. That would be £ 7.00 X 71/2 hours X 32 children X 180 days = £ 302,400.00 per year. Wait a minute -- there's something wrong here! There sure is! The average teacher's salary (nationwide) is £ 25,000.00/180 days = £ 138.90 per day/ 32 children = £ 4.34 / 7 1/2 hours = £ 0.58 per hour per student--a very inexpensive babysitter and they even EDUCATE your kids!) WHAT A DEAL!!!!


I love this quote - it puts into perspective just how undervalued teachers really are. I absolutely love my job but we DO get a bad press all the time - smart comments about holidays and the hours we work in a day. I've heard from more than one person, " What a great job you have" to which I reply, "Well if it's THAT great a job, why are YOU not doing it?!!!" - SILENCE from the dissenter - yeah I thought so! 
Stand in a class of 32 kids every day from 9-3pm and you'll realise how much it takes out of you. My voice is now subject to "vocal abuse" as my doctor has diagnosed. It could cut short my teaching career - it's definitely cut short my singing career because I don't have the same vocal range any longer -  and I LOVE to sing. But preserving my voice is now my top priority to allow me to see out the years till my retirement, still being able to do the job I love.


So, before you comment, come try out my profession. Try it for a week. The teaching, the planning, the pastoral care as well as the educational commitment. Sort out the fights, mop up the tears, find friends for the lonely and allay the fears of the nervous. All in a day's work...... but it's the price you pay.

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