By: Stephen Sachs
Teaching and the shortage of teachers is a serious issue in our modern educational landscape. Why do people any longer wish to become teachers? Not only is it a thankless job in many respects, it also is plagued by difficult classroom situations, low pay, hostile parents and a more disrespectful student body. As one teacher said to me, teachers are not "only not paid, but not respected." In our modern society, we are placing and ever rising premium on education, and those who are educated are less likely to go back to become educators themselves. Why is this the case?
Many teachers as young people decide to go into the profession in an attempt to give back to society. They want to educate students, enjoy the feeling of watching children or teenagers grow, progress, and see things differently than when they began that teacher's class. Some students will find an affinity for a certain subject because of a teacher, and others will have a passion or ability unlocked, allowing them to ascend to stations in life never before seen. Teachers are instrumental in our modern society, education is essential and all the while, teachers are increasingly coming under fire.
A teacher I met has argued, "teaching is as important if not more so than a doctor or lawyer. In fact, how could that doctor or lawyer reach their present lot without the aid of a teacher." Well that argument holds a lot of merit. It is true teachers are the reason we have doctors and lawyers, pilots and policemen, not to mention janitors and corporate executives. But how much should we pay teachers becomes the essential question. There is a major shortage in good teachers today because of our inability to pay these persons a high enough wage. In many respects, a teacher is doubly disrespected, so the argument runs, because they not only are increasingly falling under scrutiny and having their job's importance questioned, but they also do not make a living reflecting their importance in society.
How is it that corporate executives make millions and teachers are just above the poverty line? If it was not for those teachers, that executive most likely would not have amounted to very much. If it were not for that teacher, there would be no doctors, no nurses, and certainly (and maybe a good thing) no lawyers. It is on the backs of teachers that great people are made. Their being is constructed by a teacher's ability to teach a person how to manipulate and utilize skills they possess.
Is anyone not noticing the almost socialist rhetoric of this argument? I am not arguing that a teacher is unimportant. They are a foundation on which our society rests. Moreover, they should be respected for their work and contribution to our nation. It is true they are our major pillar for economic and social growth. However, their lot is well known. Before a teacher embarks on their occupation, they realize that they will be taking a generally thankless job. Teaching is not for a weak person. When a person becomes a teacher, they automatically become a leader, much like a politician. Therefore, as a leader, those people must take both the good and bad.
Although adding more financial incentive to aspiring teachers may attract better personnel, I do not think that more money is the solution to our teaching shortage today. When I say shortage, I mean there is a shortage of good teachers. Throwing more money into a pot for teachers will not bring better people en masse into teaching. Sure the hours are long, the pay thankless, not to mention the respect from our public less than desired, but that is the way leaders feel all the time. Teaching is a leadership role. The President of the United States is paid $150,000 to guide the most powerful nation in the world. Sure there are fringe benefits to being President, but the CEO of GE makes much more money than the most powerful man in the world. Why does anyone ever run to be President then? It is because they want to be leaders (well not recently, but that is the subject of a different article).
Teachers must toughen up. They must realize that they chose to be in their occupation not on a hope that pay will increase, but because of their love of teaching. If that love is lost, then perhaps those teachers should leave the profession. Teachers need more an attitude adjustment than more money. They need to understand that they are important, but no more so than a worker on GM's assembly line insofar as without that worker, those cars would not get made, and Americans might not have their institution of the automobile (and the world's largest company). Teachers are wonderful people, and one day I hope to become a teacher myself to some extent, however, the rhetoric we are hearing about more money being given to them is not the solution. Perhaps an honest dialogue with the public and a little soul searching might give us a better idea of how to bring our education system up to par without wasting money on more mediocre teachers.
