Jody Stallings is my hero. He's the only person who seems to understand why teachers leave the profession so often. It's not about the money, as he clarified earlier this week in his Moultrie News column:
"Many people think that offering higher salaries will help recruit better teachers. I’m not so sure. It might just attract greedier ones. The best teachers seem to have a unique passion for students that surpasses financial gain. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a man who will turn down a good raise, and everyone needs a living wage. But as much as it pains me to do so, I have to look at the issue critically."
[snip]
"And that, to me, is the real issue. It isn’t that teachers are outright underpaid. All things considered, we probably get compensated quite fairly. It’s that we are underpaid in proportion to the amount of sludge we have to endure. Personally, I’d take a pay cut if it meant I could simply teach. But that’s not how it works. Teachers have to struggle with out-of-control students daily; verbal and physical assaults; nasty, unsupportive parents; antagonistic administrators; mountains of paperwork; a clunky, inefficient, ineffective system; long days with high-stress and no breaks; and school boards who think all the burdens of society should be placed on teachers’ backs."
"I recognize that reasonable minds may disagree, but to the powers that be I say keep the money and give me sanity. Mandate that parents support their children’s educations. Hire principals who will back us up in our decisions. Empower teachers to restore order and discipline to the classroom. And make education about more than just test scores."
"For a teacher one of the warmest thoughts of all is being able to make a difference in the lives of students without having to fight those who should be our biggest supporters at each and every turn."
Amen and amen!
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