Tell me teachers

[Monique1]

how many hours do you work for your students without pay? How much of your own money do you spend for your classrooms.

I was in Early Childhood Education in a college center setting. I spent way over $2-300 a month plus probably over 20 hrs a week without pay.

No one cared except to say I shouldn't do it. I said where are the little ones going to get the needed materials and since I don't consider myself a babysitter and I am also responsible for the center - are you going to do the planning? The subject changed quickly.

I see most republic men believe those who teach babysitters. It is not about education unless they can make a buck.

[senseandsensibility]

1. I'm a teacher

My experience is similar to yours. And, yes, the common response is to tell me I shouldn't do it. I wish non teachers could see for themselves the type of people attracted to teaching. I know that I don't absolutely LOVE every teacher I work with and some have strong personalities that rub me the wrong way. But I have never doubted for one moment that they care about their students and are not in it for the money.

[Courtesy Flush]

2. Teachers should refuse to pay out of pocket

I'm 51 years old, and I remember my elementary school teachers paying for supplies out of pocket. Now I'm a civil servant, and we do whatever it takes to make things work, even if it is on our own unpaid time, and with our own money.

The result is that the powers see that the job is getting done, but don't see that it's not possible on the budget they allot. If we start sticking to their budget, and their timetables, it would all fall apart, and maybe they'd see reality.

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. If we don't pay for supplies, the kids don't get them.

It's a no brainer for me. The kids come first. What they don't get, I buy. If I wasn't willing to do that, I would quit teaching.

[Courtesy Flush]

9. Sorry. It's just frustrating to watch.

They balance their budgets on you backs.

[proud2BlibKansan]

12. Yes they do.

I appreciate it that some people realize that.

In my district we are now feeding kids too. The free lunch requirements changed, causing many kids to have to pay for lunch - kids who never had to pay before. So teachers are now feeding kids breakfast and lunch.

[w8liftinglady]

14. my partner,too his school is 98% below poverty level.

[LWolf]

3. I just filed my 1010 taxes.

I spent about $1100 in books and supplies for my classroom.

I also had to renew my teaching license. In order to do that, I had to complete a post-graduate class. ( I have to complete two classes every renewal cycle; I'd completed one a couple of years back.) The tuition, books, transcripts, and the license fee cost me a combined $950.

Summer of 2009, I had to take another Praxis Exam to prove that I am highly qualified in a subject I teach, despite the costly exam I paid to take that proved subject matter competency in that same subject when I first got my teaching license. The testing requirements have changed, so I retest. They didn't offer the test locally. I had to drive 5 hours across the mountains, about 450 miles round trip, pay to spend the night, pay for the test, and then pay to release the scores. That was a combined $450.

Extra, unpaid time? I'm paid to work an 8 hour day. It generally takes me 10 hours, sometimes more, to keep up with everything I'm supposed to accomplish in that time. I'm not alone.

Even then, I still have to put in some 12 hour days, some weekend hours, to really keep up. It's common to find colleagues in our "empty" building, working on Saturday to do everything they didn't have time to do during the week.

Just counting the 10 hour days, that's an extra 10 hours a week, which is an extra 360 hours a year, which is 45 free days a year.

That also doesn't count the time I spend, usually 2-3 weeks, doing prep for the coming year over the summer. I can't do it during the paid week before school starts; we're in mandatory meetings and workshops the whole time.

[demtenjeep]

4. If we don't spend our own money on our classrooms, Our students would suffer

I probably spend at least that much.


I bring home papers to grade, I spend a lot of time looking up things to make my curriculum more interesting and hands on.

If we do not plan, we have no learing.


We also do not get 3 months off in the summer (at least good teachers don't)




Kansas is trying to be the next state to screw its teachers

[Monique1]

5. I am all for teachers

and give you the utmost respect. The thing is parents and administration don't appreciate anything but from watching WI - the students do and to me that is the most important. It is the students who all teachers are trying to impact - that is the ultimate goal.

All states seem to want to screw the teachers - you know what it is don't you? They want to privitize schools and bring in their own beliefs.

I see this in Az especially in the community colleges.

[proud2BlibKansan]

6. About the same as your expenses and time.

The lousy $250 tax deduction doesn't begin to touch what I actually spend.

[msongs]

10. you can itemize actual expenses instead of the $250 deduction nt

[proud2BlibKansan]

11. You have to have enough other deductions to itemize

Most tax payers can't itemize anymore and have to take the standard deductions.

[Smarmie Doofus]

8. They don't understand us. I'm pretty sure we understand them.

>>>>>It is not about education unless they can make a buck.>>>>>>>

They don't get... and have *never* gotten.... that some people do not have as their sole aim the accumulation of money.

I truly think they can't conceive of someone going into a particular profession because of the intrinsic value of the work. ( e.g. helping people, working w. kids, etc.)

They are not capable of such thinking. Therefore, they think we must be lying and are trying to pull a scam.

Because that's what THEY'D do, in a similar circumstance.

[WinkyDink]

13. I'll be honest: I spent untold hours grading papers, studying, reading criticism, yada, yada, all

that English teacher stuff.
However, I always figured the summers were the trade-off.
Just keepin' it real here.
However, I would never, ever "do it all over again."
So I guess I'm lucky life won't afford me that chance. :-)

[w8liftinglady]

15. My partner spends a LOT of time after school with parents/grandparents/foster parents

and half a day Saturdays with failing students.

he kind of feels the same way
"well,I'm off in the summer"
I remind him... "occaisionally"..that it's a 60 hour week...

[Monique1]

16. Are teachers really off during the summer

teachers I know need to take classes to upgrade their degree or attend workshops.

[w8liftinglady]

17. that's a good point... he did last Summer..now that you mention it

[proud2BlibKansan]

18. I've taken exactly 2 summers off in 31 years

One was to write my thesis and the other was when I needed surgery.