The baby wipes are for cleaning the dry erase boards, not the desk tops. They baby wipes work as well or even better than the cleaning spray that the manufacturer of the markers sells but at a fraction of the cost.
Maybe we're using different brands. Baby wipes leave streaks on my white board, whereas the Expo brand cleaner that the school stocks is very good. Of course, by the end of the year I'm using an Expo bottle filled with water.
DD's world history teacher gave 5 points extra credit for up to 3 boxes of tissues...she was on that!
I guess she didn't get caught, but that's a huge no-no. It's the same as buying grades.
One of the biggest expenses in my state as well are teachers pensions. Every year the cost goes up. I realize many will not like what I have to say but I think it is time to change that system as well.
Two things you probably haven't considered:
1. Pensions are funded through deductions from teacher's paychecks. The taxpayers may pay a portion, especially in situations where the former teacher ends up living to be 100, but the lion's share comes from the teachers' earnings.
2. Historically teachers have accepted low pay . . . with the promise of the pension for those who make it 30 years. The pay and the benefits balance out. If you take away that end-of-the-career promise, you're going to have to increase teacher pay; otherwise, no one will take the job. I personally wouldn't work for JUST the paycheck I bring home each month.
Sorry but any school that spends millons of dollars on athletics is wasting money. Many schools where I currently live have artificial turf football fields/lights for night play etc. that costs millions to install. That is just ridiculous. Before anyone tries defending this based on those that make careers out of sports or go to college on a scholarship that is not a justifiable excuse because that is a small percentage compared to those that do not participate in sports at all. Yes extra curriculars provide a benefit but in times that we are living where schools can not even provide the supplies needed for the classroom it is ridiculous to be spending money in that way.
Again, some fact-checking would go a long way. High school sports are self-supporting. Basically, football and basketball pay for all the other sports. Teachers are required to sell tickets X number of times each year, and you'd be amazed how much money the school brings in in ticket sales. For our biggest game of the year, we easily have 8-10K in ticket sales alone. That doesn't count food sales, tee-shirts, raffles. People may whine about buying pencils, but plenty of families drop $100 for an evening of high school football.
The one thing the school does pay is the coach's supplement. That's somewhere in the neighborhood of $1500/season for a big sport/head coach and $750 for an assistant (and not all teams have assistants). That amount is totally justified by the school spirit that the teams bring to the school. Also, it's a well-known fact that being part of an athletic team is a highly positive experience for most kids; it raises their grades and self-esteem, and provides other benefits as well. (And this from the mom of two non-athletic kids.)
The schools *DO* have the funding, they *CHOSE* to spend it on bloated administration and union benefits.
Again, fact check: We have four administrators for a school of 1600 students. They arrive before the teachers every day, stay after the teachers every afternoon. One of them is required to attend every sporting event, every school event (i.e., school play, band concert) at the school. I wouldn't have their jobs.
As for union benefits, most American teachers are NOT union members -- really it's just those in the Northeast, which are also the states with the highest wages (for teachers and people in other jobs too) and the highest taxes. Regardless, schools do not pay union dues -- employees pay union dues.
Also schools, like ours, that are part of the green initiative. We will actually get fined if Clorox wipes and other chemicals are found in the school when the school is inspected.
Us too, which is pretty silly since there's no actual bleach in Clorox wipes.
Don't even get me started on how school taxes or federal income exemptions are done.
IMO, no senior citizen should have to pay school taxes
Why? Do senior citizens no longer benefit from living in an educated society? Do they not need the services of doctors, accountants, store clerks, etc. who were educated in the public schools? Would they rather pay for people to be on public assistance?
If you lend a pencil, it should be returned. A teacher in my district bought hideous fake flowers and super glued them to pencils and pens. She topped it off with ribbon for a little extra hold. If a student forgot a pencil or pen, she would lend one of hers out. At the end of class, she could quickly see who borrowed from her and ask for it back.
Another teacher asked for something in exchange when he lent a pencil or pen to ensure he got it back. Often a student would offer up their phone, shoe, or book. He always got his stuff back as the students needed their things back as well.
Both of these teachers were middle/high school teachers. I think it teaches a valuable lesson, return what you borrow or remember you own things.
I used to spend $$$$$ of my own money on pencils, which were never, ever returned. Then I had a Eureka moment: I bought a pack of 500 golf pencils, which cost about $5. Now,
about five years later, I still have probably 450 of those pencils -- the students HATE to use them. As a result, they'll dig through their bookbags or borrow from friends -- turns out ALMOST ALL the borrowers actually had at least one pencil; they just find it easier to ask for one rather than search through their bags. They will do anything to avoid using my short, no-eraser golf pencils.
Where we live, teachers make $75K plus a year for working 185 days. If they have to buy a few supplies, I am not feeling too bad for them.
You live in an unusual location. The average American teacher doesn't make that much by the end of his or her career.
I don't want to take this too far off topic, but the reason I don't think seniors should have to pay school taxes is because I think at some point enough is enough! Too many seniors have to give up their homes because they can't afford the property taxes after retirement. This will be worse in the future if they pull social security ( and few have any retirement anymore) .
BTW, I have no children and pay school tax, but at some point I think enough is enough.
My husband does my grandmother's taxes. Last year she made more money than I did -- more by a long shot. I work full-time as a teacher. She's retired but has substantial investments. Yes, some senior citizens are in dire straits because they didn't plan well, but quite a few are living well. She's done well for a farm girl from out in the sticks, and she worked her fingers to the bone for it.
(As I side note, I went to a pretty expensive private university and it never ceased to amaze me how many people went to this school for a degree in education. I will never understand why people pay $30k+/yr these days to get a degree in education.) There are plenty of fine colleges & universities with degrees in education that are far cheaper! I can't have much sympathy for someone who chooses the expensive route and then complains about the inability to meet their student loan payments when they graduate!)
I think most adults would agree with you; however, the decision to attend a 30K/year college to become qualified for a job that starts at 30K/year is made by 18-year olds, not actual adults who grasp how that debt will affect their future.
I imagine they are doing the 4 day school week to save the state money, right? If so,the work hours are longer, and work out to the same amount of time that was in the 180 day schedule. If not, I'd like to teach there ;-) I think most states are around 180 days with kids; teachers work at least 3 weeks when kids are not there . . . What is instructional supply money? I've been teaching 13 years and never heard of that. I guess we don't get that in NC. Our PTA does give us some money each year and there are parents who donate money to increase what we get.
Yes, we tend to say "X days of instruction", but the truth is that the state and the administrators calculate this by minutes of instructional time. It's just easier for us to think in full days.
I've been teaching 20 years in NC, and we used to get instructional mone
y a loooong time ago. I want to say it ended just before you started; I want to say maybe 15 years ago, but I'm not completely sure I just know it's been a long time.
) I expect my district to provide the necessary items for the teachers to do their jobs. In a perfect world, they would have the best of everything but we know that isn't a reality. There has to be a balance between what you want and what you can have (just like verything else in life.) No kids needs special pencils, smelly markers, tyvek envelopes to get a good education.
