A lot of people have made good points, and some stupid ones. I think Dogface is making all teachers out to as important as cops and firemen and that they are the second coming of christ, when in fact, that's just not the case. By the way, Im not a teacher, but have a good friend who just went into the field.
First off, Of course there are some good and some bad/lazy teachers who don't care, flirt with the female students, etc, and of course some exceptional ones, who go over the top to help kids, be influential part of their lives and such. I just have a very very hard time believing some of the crap Dogface is saying. First off, It is NONSENSE how every teacher makes the same. Im not saying in quality of teachers, but Im saying, in how gym teachers make the same as science teachers, as long as have been there the same amount of years, thats absurd, and elementary school teachers making the same as a high school math teacher, when they only essentially babysit.
Secondly, It is ABSURD saying 35+hrs a week in the summer for most teachers, Maybe you are the exception, you love your job and you love the kids, which is great, more power to you. How bout the PE Teachers, gotta work 35 hrs a week in the summer working up kickball lesson plans, and dodgeball lesson plans? I know its tough for high school kids to figure it out, and literally at my school, the fat a$$ gym teacher would sit and flirt with girls, or eat his lunch, while everyone played volleyball, kickball, etc. Of course coaching takes up a lot of time and is underpaid, but they do that mainly to be involved w/sports and the like, and to bring some meaning to their jobs. PE teaching job possibly is the biggest sham in the world, Guy just retired at my old school made 100k his last few yrs doing jack crap, now he'll get a fatt ass pension and sit and drink beers all day and play golf. Yes, there are legit teachers, but gym teachers are a farce, they only have jobs b/c schools need PE to keep kids "well rounded"
Thirdly, Its a good point how teachers cant skip out on their students. But, Many teachers, in like health and the like, show the same videos for 30 yrs in a row! and sit there and play pocket hockey while the classes watch. Dont tell me these guys spend 35+ hrs a week in the summer, how bout 35 seconds not even! The bottom line is, maybe teachers are underpaid, but dont act like all the teachers are gods gift to the world, alot of them legitimately care about the kids, some of them are in it for the joke ride, and summers off. Also, I think teachers as a whole are conservative, mainly because if they were so high and almighty, why not go make more $$$, with some risk involved? Fireman are the heroes in this world NOT teachers, teachers have a tough and often underappreciated jobs, especially now with the standardized testing, but lets not get too nuts here!
Mike
