Reuters, May 9 2006, published an article with the heading, Half of Teachers Quit in 5 Years, Working Conditions, Low Salaries Cited".

Perhaps there is a connection with poor working conditions, low salary and student performance? 

As a Public School teacher of nearly 10 years, I will not speak for my profession, but I will speak for myself.

To me, I could tolerate lower pay or poor working conditions - it is the combination of both (not at my school, but from the locker room stories I hear, Nationwide) that drives people away. 

I witness and hear of Teacher Evaluation methodology that flies in the face of the Scientific Method, a Grade Expectation mandate for later Elementary grades here in Vermont.  If the Scientific Method is so important, then why don't Teacher Evaluations adhere to it?

Rating teachers based upon student grades for Standardized Testing (latitudinal data) scores is a sign of the acknowledgement of ignorance of the Scientific Method.  One cannot have 25, or 50, or 75, or even more variables in a single experiment, which is precisely what this evaluative method does.  Any district which subscribes to this method of evaluation to determine if their teachers are skilled is openly acknowledging that the Scientific Method really doesn't matter. 

Thus, many teachers feel unprotected and unsupported, as Unions aren't succeeding at conveying arguments such as this.

If the Scientific Method really does not matter, then why is it a mandate to teach it?

Clearly, there is a severe disconnect between Education Professionals trying to teach in an unhealthy and underpaid environment, and Legislators writing laws they do not understand, and thus, exacerbate the situation.  Younger teachers get frustrated and leave because of the apparently hopeless cycle of ignorance to facts such as this which hobble the profession so.

Witness Michelle Rhee, or the DuFours, for that matter.  Eash purports themselces as an "Education Expert" - yet none of them has taught for a period exceeding five (5) consecutive years, in the last three decades.  That's alot of expertise, without alot of current Professional Teaching experience. 

It is easy to write about education, but if none of them walk the walk, I would personally (and professionally, for that matter)  appreciate it if they would be silent. 

Maybe more teachers might stay the course, if they could just see and expliain it.

* Last updated by: backbencher on 9/16/2011 @ 5:30 PM *

* Last updated by: backbencher on 9/16/2011 @ 5:34 PM *

a teacher aid is every class room that have a shop and over 50 kids and a class room while subingg

I also think that a lot of teacher retention issues has to due with the lack of mentoring new teachers and training them.They have the schooling behind them but still lack the experience .

 Teachers endure pressures from all directions.  They have adminstrators who evaluate them but do not always back them up when they need support.  The current "helicopter" parents pressure the teachers about everything from how they organize their classrooms to how they assess the students' progress.  Because grades are now often posted on line, parents will actually email and question every grade that is posted and when today's quiz will be graded.  (So much for posting grades so that parents will share accountability with their students.) The students often treat teachers with no respect, and yet teachers must "respect their students."  And finally, even our state legislatures are trying to take what little we do have, away from us.

Is is any wonder that we cannot retain good teachers?  They know that their skills will be appreciated elsewhere.

 In my area salaries have actually been cut slightly in the last four years. When I decided to take on the challenge of teaching I did so with expectations of the pay scale that I was presented with at the time. Each year there was a slight increase. I never expected to get rich from teaching but I did expect to be valued and not become the working poor.

The year that I began was the first year that our state decided there would be no raises. They said this was a short term fix. I am now in year four and I have never received a raise. This year they decided to further cut our health benefits and if we still chose the higher plan, we have to pay a portion each month. Effecively cutting our pay further.  

We receive a small local supplement but this is based on taxes in our county. I am in a county with a lot of rural areas. In addition, our county has a portion of military families and "transplants" from other states that do not pay local taxes on vehicles that still have their previous states tags. Some people do not realize that when you are in the military you can put down your state of residency as one that does not tax wages. This further reduces the local tax base that counties depend on.

These are not the only sources for school funding but it hurts when a part of a teachers salary are based on the taxes paid in the community. The kids still need to be educated just as well as students in surrounding counties. The counties surrounding ours pay their teachers several thousand dollars more a year. I do not see how this is any way to retain qualified teachers.

Salary is NOT the only issue. We have classroom safety issues for teachers. We have administration that "talks the talk" but does not "walk the walk". We are undervalued. We are working over 60 hours a week and then told by our Superintendent that we are "an abomination if you do not attend the out of school activities of your students". Our workdays are almost all scheduled for professional development. We are being required to do several activities late into the evening and on Saturday's with promised time compensation that will NEVER happen. 

Teachers are frustrated, exhausted, feeling hopeless and guilty for needing to ask for anything because all we want to do is teach our students!

Perhaps show more respect to veteran teachers who have devoted many years of commitment to their school communities, who have dedicated a great deal of time furthering their education through continual professional development, and who have given of themselves over the years to educate children. Many of these teachers are being laid off or nudged (forced?) out in favor of younger, less expensive replacements. Why should these young teachers hang around when they know that in spite of all their hard work and dedication, they can be discarded at an administrator's whim?

I believe that good teachers should be retained and offered higher salaries. However, tenure is a bad idea. Some educators who are not performing up to standard are retained because of the length of time in the school system. Today you see more lead teachers sitting around doing nothing  or surfing the internet while the assistant takes on the responsibility of teaching the class. Lead teachers should be just that "LEAD TEACHERS".