Do Teachers Deserve Huge Raises? Absolutely Not!
By Jason Richwine
Education Secretary Arne Duncan called for dramatically raising teacher pay last Friday on MSNBC, declaring that the current average salary (about $55,000) should be doubled to improve teacher quality. It’s a familiar refrain for Duncan, who in the same interview declared himself a “radical” when it comes to paying teachers more.
Leaving aside whether the federal government should have any say in how local school districts pay their teachers, Duncan’s position is unwise. According to a recent study by The Heritage Foundation, public school teachers already receive total compensation (wages and benefits) greater than what they could earn, on average, in the private sector. So if the current compensation premium has not improved teacher quality, how would further increases do so?
Duncan is obviously aware of the Heritage study, since he took the time to denounce it on both the Huffington Post and his personal blog. That denunciation, however, was driven by his less-than-objective reaction to evidence that, in his words, “insults teachers and demeans the profession.” The American Enterprise Institute’s Rick Hess (unaffiliated with the study) called Duncan’s commentary “an unusual, personal attack.”
Duncan’s reaction to the Heritage study is especially disappointing given his reputation as a pragmatic reformer. “The path to real reform begins with the truth,” he stated in 2009 during an education forum with the Data Quality Campaign. We agree: Let’s all be consistent in pursuing evidence-based reform.
Sign up for the OV Daily Newsletter
Sign-Up Now for the Opposing Views Daily Newsletter
Sign up for the OV Daily Newsletter
Quote: ".... public school teachers already receive total compensation (wages and benefits) greater than what they could earn, on average, in the private sector."
Doing what in the private sector? Teaching? Well, everyone that is connected to the education world in any way knows that private schools have always and still do pay very low wages. Everyone also knows that the teacher that teach in those schools tend to have less experience and lower academic credentails than those that teach in public schools.
I don't know what school districts Heritage looked at when they did their study, but around here, the majority of teachers in public school systems have Master's Degrees plus additional Master's - level credits. Perhaps it's different in other states.
If the starting salary for a kid with a BS degree in computer science is in the mid 60's - that's what it is in these parts - it seems to me that it's not unreasonable that people with Master's plus level education doing a job that is essential for the future of our society and doing it well should be well-paid.