This Is What It’s Like to Be a Teacher in America

> Person who works 180 days out of the year has 2 other jobs to help pay bills.

Imagine my shock.

>“I can’t tell you how many letters I got this summer that said final notice.” Cooke, who makes about $69,000, often skips doctor’s appointments to save the co-pay and worries about paying for her eldest daughter’s college education.

My full sympathies to those who are struggling to get by, but something here just isn't adding up.

When someone asks what happens if national debt, state debt, city debt keeps increasing?

This.

Teacher salaries will not rise. Counties and cities are already overburdened by existing liabilities and far too many bonds are junk. They just don't take in enough in taxes. When they start taking more in taxes, people leave.

This is how middle class erodes and social unrest begins.

In SoCal we have teachers starting out with salaries in the 60k range. Not too bad, but they do have to have 6 years of schooling for most high school teachers.

Becoming a teacher takes a whole lot of education. You have to get a 4 year degree plus 1 year of graduate work to get your teaching credential. For all that education you get:

> In 2016, for instance, the average teacher’s starting salary was $38,617—20% lower than that of other professions requiring a college degree.

Which not surprisingly leads to:

> Between 2008 and 2016, the number of new educators completing preparatory programs fell by 23%

And on top of that:

> at least 17% leave the profession within the first five years, a 2015 study found.

It's a crap job for crap pay. It's not surprising that not many people want to become a teacher. If we want more teachers and better teachers, we're going to have to pay them more and improve the working conditions.