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Journal Critique: Teacher Pay
Educators are considered/some of the world's most influential people. As educators, we
have a responsibility to prepare the future generation that will/give back to the world in various
ways. Educators have a mandate that requires them to teach students how to thrive in life in
addition to their parents. We, as educators, are preparing the next generation of leaders. Teachers
spend a lot of time with students daily, which can be rewarding and challenging/because we are
their influences, and we must always/be careful of our actions. Although being an educator is
rewarding due to the/life changes, we still have to consider the poor compensation. The teacher
turnover rate is high for many reasons, but one of the top reasons is the pay./These unrealistic
demands are/placed on the teaching profession but not backed by proper compensation.
To/keep/great transformative teachers, the school system must reconsider the inequities in the
teaching profession and make improvements.
It is no secret that many teachers believe they have gotten the correct recognition for the
hours they put in daily during and outside their work hours. The article "Teacher Salary and How
It Relates to Job Satisfaction" discusses how teacher salaries are overlooked. For example, as
state and federal education requirements have/changed, their workload has increased yearly. Yet,
teachers'/pay has not improved even to cover/the current cost of living in many areas (Granger et
al., 2022). What message does this send if you're not even getting paid enough to make ends
meet?/Teachers leave education to seek employment in the areas that interest them. In the same
article, the author completed a study demonstrating how/low teacher satisfaction with the
system/it's causing a more extensive migration of/qualified educators. The rising disparities in
the cost of living and budgets worldwide are at the forefront of teachers'/compensation issues.
According to (Grander et al., 2022), students have a better chance of succeeding when teachers
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are paid competitively, given opportunities to advance in their careers, and provided with other
forms of professional development support.
Analysis
When we take the time to think about it, it's clear that although teachers have been great
educational heroes for students, their hard work, time, and dedication have not been a priority for
decades. Teachers have to pay taxes, insurance, union dues, etc., so a teacher's/monthly take-
home pay is cut in half (Granger et al., 2022). Educators spend days and countless hours
throughout the year educating students, and the authors note that students spend more time with
teachers than with their/parents. Sometimes, teachers are viewed as glorified babysitters/instead
of being considered/leader builders or at least being respected for the effort and commitment
they have given. The study that the authors completed also showed that many/school
leaders/asked teachers to take on more duties without the opportunity for more compensation.
They also highlight the difference in pay for those with college degrees and additional
certifications. Having teachers not be compensated for extra work is unfair and unjust, especially
with all the conditions they have to work under.
Personal response
The article brought up a lot of points that/made you think on/many/levels. On the one
hand, we are supporting and preparing the next generation to go into the world and be change
agents; in my opinion, there shouldn't be a price for this because the reward is greater, and then
on the other hand, it hard to say that because teachers need to be paid fairly and not taken
advantage of. I have worked with some of the most dedicated educators in my career and have
seen how they put so much sweat and tears into wanting to see children succeed only to make
ends meet. I feel that most educators will do the work regardless of the pay, but when you have
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numerous conditions against you, it doesn't help. If, as a teacher, you feel that the administration
doesn't care for you, it will be hard to show up after a while. Teachers have so many demands
placed on them that it seems they are putting out more than they are bringing in. You have to
have specific qualifications to get the bare minimum. There are plenty of challenges in the field
of education, which is why it requires those who are passionate to be in it.
It's time for the government to realize that they are doing a disservice to our children
when they don't value the work of hard, dedicated educators because then they walk away from
the profession, leaving our future in jeopardy./The Bible says in Psalm 32:8, "I will instruct thee
and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye "(King James,
1769, Psalm 32:8)./As an educator, no matter what role you play, we have to let God lead and
guide us. Educating others is not an easy task, but with the strength of God, we can make
positive change, and He is the one who will rightly reward us. Our labor is not in vain.
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References
Granger, A., Woolfolk, F., & Griffin-Brown, J. (2022). Teacher Salary and How It Relates to Job
Satisfaction.Journal of Business Studies Quarterly,11(4), 8-13.
https://go.openathens.net/redirector/liberty.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-
journals/teacher-salary-how-relates-job-satisfaction/docview/2679855577/se-2
King James Bible. (2017). King James Bible
Online./https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org//(Original work published 1769)
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