

A Tale of Two $100,000 Jobs — A Tale of Two Americas - cwan
http://blog.american.com/?p=4335

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dvvarf
Well first off, everyone should read the New Yorker article referenced.
[http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/08/31/090831fa_fact_...](http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/08/31/090831fa_fact_brill?printable=true)

The issue at hand is not teacher compensation, but the fact that no mechanism
exists to weed out ineffective teachers from the pack. I don't think $100,000
a year (after 20 years of service) is too high a price to pay for a competent
professional who can have a positive impact on hundreds of lives over the
course of his/her career.

In fact, the argument could be made that it is not enough, and that is why
traditionally those working in education are not as talented those in other,
more well funded fields like finance and medicine.

The scariest part of Steven Brill's article is many teachers' aversion to
quality metrics that could actually measure performance and hold them
accountable for their work.

Two quotes: 1\. _Our schools are indifferent to instructional
effectiveness,"the study declared. Under the subhead “All teachers are rated
good or great," it examined teacher rating processes, and found that in
districts that have a binary, satisfactory-unsatisfactory system, ninety-nine
per cent of teachers receive a satisfactory rating, and that even in the few
school districts that attempt a broader range of rating options ninety-four
per cent get one of the top two ratings._

2\. _I asked the woman for her reaction to the following statement: "If a
teacher is given a chance or two chances or three chances to improve but still
does not improve, there’s no excuse for that person to continue teaching. I
reject a system that rewards failure and protects a person from its
consequences."

"That sounds like Klein and his accountability bullshit,"she responded. "We
can tell if we’re doing our jobs. We love these children." After I told her
that this was taken from a speech that President Obama made last March, she
replied, "Obama wouldn’t say that if he knew the real story._

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cschneid
There's a similar article that ran a few years ago (I think) about LA, in the
LA Times. It talked both about how hard it is to fire teachers, and also how
hard it is to know ahead of time which teachers are any good.

I wish I could find it again, but it's remained elusive in the few minutes
I've spent looking.

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mmt
Indeed, here in California, the reality of what public school teachers make
is, on the surface, shocking.

Considering that they're unionized, it's no surprised. I've never understood
how it's legal, or, especially, ethical, that _public_ employees may form a
union.

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p_h
I can't believe a teacher can make more than 100k a year plus pension for
working 8:15-3:15 9 months a year.

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sophacles
In nyc 100K is a modest salary. Judging by cost of living calculators, it is
roughly the same as teachers make where I live.

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anamax
I don't have a problem with NYC paying teachers whatever it wants, as long as
it's NYC paying the NYC differential.

After all, it's NYC folks who get the benefit of living in NYC and they're
also the folks who drive up NYC prices.

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teeja
"When Newt says ..."

Then I reply (especially with apocryphal stories): [citation needed]

