When did teacher bashing become acceptable?

[#1hockeymom]

I'll have to wave to you at the next get together. We MUST be in the same district! They're drinking, we're happy to talk to our peers for longer than 30 seconds! Plus, you can't forget the biggest plus of the Christmas party. You can use the bathroom whenever you want!


I've needed some laughs today. Thank you!

 

[Daxx]

Plus, you can't forget the biggest plus of the Christmas party. You can use the bathroom whenever you want!

That is the best Christmas gift that the school gives me ... b/c they don't give us anything else!!!!

 

[Pinnie]

I'll have to wave to you at the next get together. We MUST be in the same district! They're drinking, we're happy to talk to our peers for longer than 30 seconds! Plus, you can't forget the biggest plus of the Christmas party. You can use the bathroom whenever you want!


I've needed some laughs today. Thank you!

I swear teachers have the biggest bladders!!!!! Mine sure got trained when I started teacher kindergarten! Because I have NO specials, I am the only one with my kids except during my 30 minute lunch.

OT but I hope you get your power back soon, I am outside of Detroit and we lost ours for awhile yesterday! Our HS footall game didn't start until 9:05 last night! The Tiger game ended at 3:30 this morning!!! Stay dry and cool!!!

pinnie

 

[djm99]

Farmer - without them I could not eat. I love to read and learn...but I do not want to eat a book.

Umm - I wonder who taught a farmer to farm. I'll take a crack at this - a teacher maybe!!!! Farmers take part in an apprentice type position. They have to clock so many hours of apprenticeship before the government subsidize them.

Everything we know, we have to be taught (in some form or another) by a teacher. In this country children MUST remain in until the age 14 (in St. Louis City its 17). IMO, teachers are the most unappreciated workers in this country, yet one of the most important (if not THE most important). Imagine this country without teachers. Without someone to teach, guide, and encourage careers - where would we be in this country - 3rd world maybe.

 

[Daxx]

And, who taught the farmer to read, write and do arithmetic so he could properly run his business?

Lemme see ... could it have been a teacher?!??!

No ... I suppose he just learned that stuff on his own!

 

[FinallyBoughtDVC]

He teaches in Queens, not LI, so the info. that Chobie posted is accurate for a teacher in Queens. Do teachers on LI make more than $98K a year? If so, I'm gonna go live w/my niece's in-laws and teach on LI!

Yes. I have quite a few teachers in my neighborhood of multi-million dollar homes (some husband/wife teacher duos, some husband teacher/wife nurse and one wife teacher/husband attorney). Teachers in my district typically retire at about $110,000 - $160,000 depending on stipends, level of education, etc. One gym teacher retired at $180,000 because of all the coaching stipends and clubs he tacked on his last couple of years - younger teachers stepped aside and let him take them all so he could "beef" up his retirement numbers. They receive 75% pension (so they bring home $75K for every $100K they earned the last two years of teaching when retired), plus full medical and dental. Many have side businesses (consulting, tutoring, etc.) that they do after school and during the summer months.

Go back to school and get an administrator's degree and you can bring home $300K+ as superintendent of some districts. better yet - be an "INTERIM" and bring home over $700 a day and work only when you want to work.

My across the street neighbors moved last year - sold this house for $1.2million and moved into a brand new $1.8 million dollar home in a gated community. He's a retired middle school principal (retired at 57 years old) and she just retired last year and was a kindergarten teacher (she retired at 55 years old). They can both begin entirely new careers at their ages and still reap nearly $200K in pension payments annually (plus free medical and dental).

Granted - it's very expensive to live on LI - and these salaries are necessary in order for teachers to live here. If you can get free room and board somewhere - it can be very lucrative to teach on the island.

That's why, when I posted previously, I stated that many of our opinions on these boards are regional. People here pay among the highest, if not the highest, property taxes in the nation - the demographic is typically highly educated (so they demand excellence for their children) - and people here do work long and hard hours - far longer hours than teachers in this area - so, when teachers complain about their working conditions, hours, etc. people here get really POed. Our elementary teachers spend exactly 2 1/2 hours a day with their classes. They are given two prep periods a day. Have no lunch, recess or hall duty (we hire aides and assistants to do all that). When our school district wanted to add 10 days to the school year, the union went bananas. When the middle and high schools wanted to start the day closer to 8am in order to let the teens sleep in a little bit longer (fully supported by dozens of scientific studies that state that teens clocks are timed differently), the union went nuts.

So, regionally - my opinions are going to be a lot different than someone who works for $12,000 a year - deals with all kinds of crap and doesn't have the protection of a union or tenure.

Wow - this is one long post.

So- to answer your question - yes, teachers at many districts on Long Island make in excess of $98,000 a year.

 

[#1hockeymom]

OT but I hope you get your power back soon, I am outside of Detroit and we lost ours for awhile yesterday! Our HS footall game didn't start until 9:05 last night! The Tiger game ended at 3:30 this morning!!! Stay dry and cool!!!

pinnie

We're just east of Fenton, in Holly. Their Tornado jumped through our town on the way out. Our first home game was canceled last night vs Oxford, which was in the same boat as the rest of us. Since our power grid comes from the west/Lansing instead of Flint or Detroit I'm thinking it will be awhile. Consumers says Monday night 11:59 pm. ACK!

 

[#1hockeymom]

And, who taught the farmer to read, write and do arithmetic so he could properly run his business?

Lemme see ... could it have been a teacher?!??!

No ... I suppose he just learned that stuff on his own!

osmosis?

 

[disneyjunkie]

He teaches in Queens, not LI, so the info. that Chobie posted is accurate for a teacher in Queens. Do teachers on LI make more than $98K a year? If so, I'm gonna go live w/my niece's in-laws and teach on LI!

It wouldn't surprise me if they do. I have heard that teachers in LI are cleaning up.

That pay scale only shows a teacher’s base salary. Many teachers here make more based on which schools they agree to teach in.

A friend of mine was making an extra $5000.00 a year for working in a low performing school. Also, you can move from one step to another during the year.

Toss in summer school, Saturday school, before and afterschool tutoring and your salary starts to soar.

If you guys think the salary April posted is high, you should see what some of the high school janitors are making.

 

[SavvyMom]

First post and its to complain about how easy teachers have it.

I know, and I jumped right in . I just don't understand why a - I don't know - a cashier can complain about something and get sympathy or at least understanding, but a teacher complains and people say, "You have no right to complain. You make a gazillion dollars, work part time, and get 3 months paid vacation." I think teachers are the only people in the world that are considered ungrateful...um...witches if we vent.

 

[MushyMushy]

We went on "fieldtrips" all the time to out of way places. One time we went to "Falling Creek" camp in NC. We were hiking and took a break.....I sat down on the grass. Mr. Freelin piped up "Class!! Why is it that Ms. _____ gets to live, but the grass her fat *** is sitting on gets to die?!" I was 9/10 years old!!!! I just cried in silence....

We were climbing trees the next day and then swinging from a rope with some type of bar between our legs. To get up the tree, we had to be helped b/c the pegs started about 4 feet up. Mr. Freelin helped all the kids to the first peg, when it was my turn, he acted like he couldn't push me up. I was 9 years old and maybe 80 lbs. He told me I was "too damn fat". I was crushed, ashamed and just wanted to die. I ran back to the cabins and just cried by myself.

He constantly ridiculed me and I never understood it was b/c he hated my parents. One day, during parent's day - the crunchy fool decided to take the class out during a thunder storm. GUESS WHAT?!! Mr. Freelin and one of my classmates were struck by lightening (this was 1986 or 87). My classmate suffered sever brain damage. Mr. Freeling suffered severe migraines and soon quit teaching.

I couldn't find much sympathy in my heart for him. I should have told my parents of the abuse I suffered at his hands, but I didn't. I would never allow that to go on with my children and I always make a point to form a relationship with their teachers.

I was scarred, seriously SCARRED by this horrid, horrid man( I had body image issues for years) and I will make sure this doesn't happen to my children.

I hesitated to reply to this, but I will. There certainly are people in the profession who seem to crave this power trip over children and it sounds like he was one of them. I don't know a single teacher who doesn't have a student whose parent they despise, but I have never heard something so horrible in my life -- and I do have some pretty bad teacher horror stories from my own childhood. Sadly to say, this man will probably still teach until retirement age. At least the bad ones I knew did. Anyway all that said, I'm sorry you had to suffer through that.

Those types of comments DO hurt. Right to the soul.

 

[disney junky]

Daxx,
You are on a roll!!
Around here in central PA, the range for teachers is around 35K to start and then a high in the low 80's, usually with all the advanced degrees. Each district negotiates its own contract, both money, benefits and length of contract...and yes, PA teachers still can strike. They are rare, but they do occur.

 

[Daxx]

Teachers in my district typically retire at about $110,000 - $160,000 depending on stipends, level of education, etc.

Go back to school and get an administrator's degree and you can bring home $300K+ as superintendent of some districts. better yet - be an "INTERIM" and bring home over $700 a day and work only when you want to work.

Granted - it's very expensive to live on LI - and these salaries are necessary in order for teachers to live here. If you can get free room and board somewhere - it can be very lucrative to teach on the island.

Heavens almighty!!!! That is crazy. Sure you have a higher cost of living. I teach in an economically depressed area in NY (Buffalo), so there's no way a teacher here would make that kind of cash!

Our elementary teachers spend exactly 2 1/2 hours a day with their classes. They are given two prep periods a day. Have no lunch, recess or hall duty (we hire aides and assistants to do all that).

Well, in comparison, I spend 5.75 hours out of 7 hours w/my students. They go to one 45 min. special per day and have 1/2 hour for lunch. This year, they won't have computers on Friday b/c the computer teacher quit and, until (if) they find one, no computers. That means no prep on Friday and only 1/2 hour lunch break. And, I have no aide in Kdg. It's just me. I think it's insane that the elementary teachers spend only 2 1/2 hours a day w/their students!

So- to answer your question - yes, teachers at many districts on Long Island make in excess of $98,000 a year.

How about teaching in Queens. B/c the dude making $98K is teaching in Queens. Not quite LI, but not Buffalo either! Do Queens teachers make that kind of money?

 

[SavvyMom]

Well, in comparison, I spend 5.75 hours out of 7 hours w/my students. They go to one 45 min. special per day and have 1/2 hour for lunch. This year, they won't have computers on Friday b/c the computer teacher quit and, until (if) they find one, no computers. That means no prep on Friday and only 1/2 hour lunch break. And, I have no aide in Kdg. It's just me. I think it's insane that the elementary teachers spend only 2 1/2 hours a day w/their students!

We have 40 minute specials and 1/2 hour for lunch. We have to get our kids through the line so I net about 20 minutes for lunch duty free. We have computer once a week, but the teacher is a parapro. We are responsible for the lesson and have to stay there. I think it's terrible that you, a kdg. teacher, don't have a full time para. Move to Georgia because it is required here. I think it should be! I agree that there is no excuse for a elem. teacher spending 2 1/2 hours a day with kids. That school must have twice as many teachers as ours.

 

[Daxx]

Toss in summer school, Saturday school, before and afterschool tutoring and your salary starts to soar.

See, there's the difference. Our school does not offer after school tutoring, Saturday school or summer school. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the only schools that offer summer school are a few of the public schools and the summer school jobs are snapped up by their employees long before summer school even starts.

Our school doesn't permit us to "sell" our tutoring to parents. If they ask about tutors, we're supposed to refer them to the office. I do not know why ... I suppose the school prob. take a cut. I don't tutor b/c I don't have the time.

ETA - we have an after school program that's run by the Boys & Girls club. They were hiring teachers to tutor kids. We were told by the director of the B&G Club that they'd take our resumes but first hires had to be public school teachers. If they couldn't find enough public school teachers, then they would consider the parochial/private school teachers.

 

[Kath2003]

As a NQT, I'll be on just under $40,000 in the UK.

 

[Daxx]

1/2 hour for lunch. We have to get our kids through the line so I net about 20 minutes for lunch duty free.

Oh, yeah -- the lunch is crazy! I have to do cafe duty to make sure that the kids buying their lunch are in the right line, etc. It does cut into my personal lunch time, too! And, heaven forbid you come down late for lunch b/c then half the school is ahead of you and you have to wait for them to get through before you can get your Kdg. kids through and settled!

 

[#1hockeymom]

My students are in the classroom from 8am until 3pm. They have a 25 minute lunch which I take them to and pick them up from. I get the time in between to eat/phone parents/go to the bathroom. If I have a special that day I also have a mandatory team meeting/grade level meeting or curr. meeting. I must be in the building from 7:30 am until 3:30 pm. I am always there 7-4, most days earlier and later.

I'm not complaining. It is just the way it is.

 

[MushyMushy]

Oh, yeah -- the lunch is crazy! I have to do cafe duty to make sure that the kids buying their lunch are in the right line, etc. It does cut into my personal lunch time, too! And, heaven forbid you come down late for lunch b/c then half the school is ahead of you and you have to wait for them to get through before you can get your Kdg. kids through and settled!

You should teach middle school or high school. Teachers push their way to the front of the line.

When I was student teaching, all the teachers told us to do it, but my friend and I couldn't bring ourselves to. I chose to bring my lunch rather than cut in front of all those kids, but the rare times I did go to the cafe, the kids parted the way for me and "asked" me to cut.

 

[Kath2003]

My students are in the classroom from 8am until 3pm. They have a 25 minute lunch which I take them to and pick them up from. I get the time in between to eat/phone parents/go to the bathroom. If I have a special that day I also have a mandatory team meeting/grade level meeting or curr. meeting. I must be in the building from 7:30 am until 3:30 pm. I am always there 7-4, most days earlier and later.

I'm not complaining. It is just the way it is.

That's harsh for little kids. Our kids are at school generally from 9am - 3.30pm in primary school (4-11). They normally get 20-30 minute's break time and an hour for lunch out of that time.

In secondary school (11-18), schools tend to run 8.30am - 4pmish (mine ran 8.15am - 3.50pm). During this time they tend to get 20 minute break time and 45 minutes for lunch. I think they'd cut lunch time in many schools if they could get all 1,000 kids through the cafeteria in under 45 minutes.