Financing Funding And Student Achievement

Many people wonder if teachers should or should not get paid more than they do. A lot of people believe that teachers should get paid more, but there are some that do not. Parents that want their kids to have a good education want teachers to get paid more. For example, P.V Derkachev said, “… teacher pay influences the quality of education.” (Derkachev 574). Teachers that get payed more would be more likely to perform better at their job and not mind the extra time that they have to do stuff outside of work to get everything done. Matt Barnum said, “Higher salaries --- even small bonuses ---- can and do keep some teachers in the classroom, and likely improve outcomes for their students.” (Barnum). The student is going to get taught better if teachers get paid more because the teacher will want to teach at the best of her ability which will help the student.

Ultimately the district would exhaust $1,722,333.40 over its combined revenue of 6,763,484 over the next three years on this salary incentive. This would mean that their would have to be large cuts in instructional programs, or an increase in revenue. To truly see this, happen the board would have to increase revenue or cut programs. I would advise that we take a increase in revenue of 5%, and that we make smaller scale increase in the salary scale of a 2.5% increase in year one with a 250 increase the years following; this would leave the district on track to not have to make any instructional

One of the main issues with merit pay for teachers is found in the manner in which it is measured. Most of the new performances pay laws and union contracts measure “effectiveness,” at least in part, by looking at the students’ test scores from one year to the next. One test score cannot paint a full picture of a student's accomplishment. Teachers unions have historically opposed merit pay, arguing that test scores are not an accurate measure of student achievement (Turner, 2010, para 15). Most teachers will report that a test will only show part of the picture. Standardized tests do not reflect life lessons, effective citizen traits, or character building traits that were taught that year. All of these traits thrive in an effective teacher’s curriculum.

     High school teachers’ average salary varies across the world. The United States is said to be one of the richest countries in the world, yet our teachers are being paid one of the lowest amounts. The Education Intelligence Agency, author of the article “Ohio Teacher Overcomes Union’s Tolerance” published an International Teacher Salary Report ranking the fifty states by “how much the average salary exceeded per capita personal income.” According to the Education Intelligence Agency Ohio’s percentage rate is only fifty- five point one percent. According to the Education Intelligence Agency the lowest state percentage is in South Dakota at twenty- three point six percent and the highest state percentage is

From money to loan forgiveness to early retirement benefits these and a lot of other incentives are being used to entice teaching hopefuls, current teachers and those

The general argument made by Arianna Prothero in her work, “Does Paying Kids to Do Well Actually Work,” is that incentives may help boost students to come to school and learn so they may earn a further education. More specifically, Arianna believes that financial incentives have a huge impact on students rather than little rewards. She writes “Incentives are also more likely to work for students who need a little improvement to earn a passing grade.” Schools that use incentives have a better chance of teaching more kids as well as more of them learning what they really need to at school; new material.

(Brimley 2008) However, to equalize funds and maximize cost quality relationships grants and incentives are good places to start. School districts have to find ways to hire knowledgeable and committed teachers. One way to draw the knowledgeable teacher is to offer stipends for teacher shortage areas and sign on bonuses. Districts must continue to offer some type of incentives to maintain good teachers. Teacher tenure is another great incentive but can sometimes cause good teachers to become too laidback. Tenure grants educators “a right, term, or mode of holding or occupying something of value for a period of time.” (Tenure) Basically, tenure in the education realm grants what some would call stability or even security.

In today’s society one of the most important factors in selecting a career field is rate of pay. No matter whether the profession maybe, the dollar figure must be within a range that allows the employee to maintain a substantial lifestyle. The debate of teacher pay scales has raged on for years. Many argue that the current pay scale for teachers is a scale which rewards teachers merely for seniority. They argue that the current pay scale overlooks those educators which demonstrate exceptional performance. Teacher merit pay systems have been the most popular suggestions made to remedy the problems seen with the current pay scale. Although the current pay scale may not be completely effective, the idea of

The issue of teacher shortage today is continuing to grow. The effects of the achievement gap are reaching the teachers, not just the students: “...good administrators and teachers, who are doing their best under difficult circumstances, will be driven out of the profession…,” (Boyd-Zaharias 41). The achievement gap is part of the reason teachers feel they are underpaid, which happens to be one of the leading cause in teacher shortage considering, “Teachers were paid two percent less [than comparable workers] in 1994, but by 2015 the wage penalty rose to 17 percent,” (Long). Being a teacher requires passion in order to stay in the field, especially if the money in teaching is decreasing. Money is an important aspect for people when it comes to their careers, therefore, fewer people want to become teachers. This lack of teachers and the lack of college students studying to become a teacher leads to unqualified teachers and larger classroom sizes (Ostroff). Both of these causes are eventually affecting students’ learning environments. I chose this issue in education for my project because I have personally felt these effects, and I know others who have as well. As a future educator, I want to see better wages and better benefits, but this can only happen with qualified, passionate teachers. I plan on being one of them, and I plan on sparking a change. I am a future educator fighting to end teacher shortage.

Teachers have and will always have a big impact in everyone’s life and if not everyone, well, at least they did for me. They teach you everything you need to know about a subject and valuable life lessons, so why are they not paid sufficiently enough to make a decent living? Teachers salaries have always been low and I believe it is the time that changes. Being a lawyer, doctor, or engineer is great, but none of that would be possible without the insight of a teacher, I will inform you in this paper on why I believe there is a need for action. I will go over the background of teacher’s salaries, my ideas on what would be best for teachers not just in Texas, but nationwide, and pros and cons on the issues and ideas at hand.

The education profession for the area is not lacking for employees, although as mentioned earlier it is not uncommon for teachers to leave a county to pursue an opportunity in another. For Clay County Schools to recruit and keep the best teachers they must consider ways to invest more into teacher compensation. An incentive pay program is one worth exploring that could have a positive effect on recruitment and overall retention.

Performance pay may in fact drive more talented teachers out of the profession while money matters to teachers, Teachers want to work in supportive environments, where they have creativity, rather than compete,with each other. If performance pay turns teachers against one another it would put more pressure on test scores, more teachers are likely to quit and find somewhere more supportive. Education performance pay goes back hundreds of years. In the 1800s, British teachers were paid on the results of student examinations, for reasons much like `today's. “In 1918, 48 percent of U.S. public school districts described their payment systems as merit based” (Donald B.

Many do not know how much teachers pay is important to education. One persisting problem of the negative effect on school education, especially in High school, is pay based on performance. With the very little they are paid teachers have to: Pay out of their pocket for supplies, get paid on how well their kids do or how their degree is in college. This could cause students trouble in their work and cause test grades and annual grades to decline.

With beginning teachers usually earning entirely less than other college graduates, the profession is at loss of top-notch, quality people who tend to find jobs seeking more money. Almost 50 percent leave the profession within 5 years, lured by higher pay and prestige elsewhere in the booming U.S. economy (World, 1999, par. 7). Starting teachers average a $25,735 salary in the United States compared to an engineer earning $56,820 or a physical therapist earning $56,600 (Engineer, 2000, par.1). And what signal does it send out about the value of good teachers and a good education when a 45-year-old teacher with a master’s degree earns $45,000 a year and a 25-year-old out of law school often starts at $80,000, considering a six year education for a master’s degree and a seven year education for a law degree (Greenhouse, 2002, par. 4)? A teacher is also given no compensation for the long hours spent basically in overtime work. The teacher’s day does not end when they leave school because if lesson plans, grading, or planning is not completed, it will have to be finished on their own time. Accountants, paralegals, and engineers all are compensated and get paid overtime for work that does not get completed in a regular day or if they want to stay and

There is little research available proving the merit base pay works for teachers. In addition to no evidence of the effectiveness, paying teachers based on performance can burden