Please Talk to a Teacher

"It must be nice to be a teacher," I've had people tell me with a bit of sarcasm in their voice, "You get the summers off!" Yes, many would like to be a teacher in the months of July and August! If they only knew what we have to do the rest of the year!

I believe there are MANY misconceptions about the teaching profession. And in recent times, public disdain for the teaching profession has risen in our province. And it frustrates me because many of the complainers have no clue what it is really like to be a teacher.

First, let me set the record straight for those of you who do not know. Teachers do NOT get paid for summer (which means all the hours I put in during the month in August to get ready for the school year was gratis!). We get remunerated for the days we teach. Thus, if you are a beginning teacher, with a family and a mortgage, saving for the summer can be a challenge.

Second, we do not get paid, for the most part, for the extra-curricular work we do. Thus, activities such as coaching teams, tutoring students after school, grading papers outside of school hours, serving breakfast to underprivileged kids, and even graduation ceremonies are ALL voluntary. Contractually, we are not obligated to do ANY of it! But we do, because we care about kids and desire for them to excel in all facets of their lives.

Third, Canadian teachers are NOT currently overpaid. If you believe that, just take a moment  of your time and search a few of the scholarly articles that show the relationship between teacher salary and teacher quality. There is evidence in research that indicates the quality of education is affected by teacher salary. School boards that offer excellent salaries tend to attract excellent candidates. I believe this is one of the reasons why Canada has one of the finest education systems in the world, in spite of all its inherent problems (for more details, check out The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2009 results).

On a related note, we ALL know of that one awful teacher who was undeserving of the salary that he or she received. Just like we ALL know of that pathetic doctor or nurse that gave their profession a bad name. But that does not mean the entire profession is terrible based on the behaviour of a few!

In conclusion, if you are tempted to complain about teachers and the teaching profession, please take the time to actually TALK to a few teachers to gain their perspective BEFORE you make rash judgements. I am sure you will be enlightened as to the demands the teaching profession faces in the new millennium. After all, parents/guardians entrust their school-aged children to teachers for more waking hours of the day that any other caregiver. That's worth something significant.

(Comments are back on to allow feedback, if desired by the reader.)

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