Teacher pay scale has been a subject of great debate recently.
The struggling of the US economy has caused many states and communities to cut spending across the board. Unfortunately, schools have been particularly hard hit by drastic budget measures. Teacher pay scale, which in many areas is already quite low, has seen more cuts. It is obvious that in the US, we do not value our teachers enough and that something needs to be done to correct the terrible injustice that our teachers suffer.
The American Federation of Teachers regularly releases a survey on teacher pay scale. The most recent survey found that the average teacher salary was around $47,000. Unfortunately, the survey also noted that in many communities teachers were experiencing difficulty finding affordable housing . This usually results in teachers being forced to take on additional work besides teaching and this means that the quality of the education that our children receive may be reduced.
The situation is more frustrating because many teachers seek additional education in order to climb up the teacher pay scale. In the pursuit of advanced degrees, many teachers make staggering student loans. Once they leave school to teach, payments on these student loans eat from the salary of many teachers. In the end the result is that even though they are being paid more, servicing their student loan debt is costing them more.
Some areas are experiencing a shortage of qualified teachers. In order to remedy this situation, there have been created programs that forgive student loan debt if a teacher agrees to spend a period of time teaching in these areas. This is certainly a step in the right direction for teachers. More programs that forgive student loan debt in exchange for years of service teaching would encourage more people to enter the career of teaching and help school districts get the most out of their straining budgets.
Another possible solution for the low teacher pay scale, would be to create a program that addresses the cost of housing for teachers. A program that provides down payment assistance or low interest mortgages to teachers would help teachers get the most out of their meager salaries. Another solution for the low teacher pay scale would be to provide a small housing subsidy to our nation’s teachers, much in the way that the military provides a housing allowance to enlisted men and women.
Teachers do not make enough money in our country and the teacher pay scale is really low. However, school districts often do not have the budgets to pay more. The best solutions include student loan forgiveness for teachers and housing subsidies to make teaching an affordable career.
