[geeks] geeks Digest, Vol 86, Issue 11

[wa2egp at att.net]

-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Lionel Peterson <lionel4287 at gmail.com>
>
> On Jan 19, 2010, at 7:51 PM, Jonathan Patschke <jp at celestrion.net>
> wrote:
>
> > Or how about let people keep the money they earn and spend it
> > educating
> > their children as they see fit?  Money doesn't have to go through
> > nearly
> > as many politically-connected hands that way.
>
> Doesn't provide for special needs children, though I do appreciate the
> logic of what you're saying.
>
> Merit pay for teachers would be great, but there are historical
> inequities to be concerned with, but automatic raises AND tenure is
> too much, IMHO - teachers should pick one or the other when they start
> teaching...
>
> I'm sure Bob will tell me I'm wrong - right Bob?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Lionel

You're wrong. :-)

I have no problem with merit pay, just who decides what is merit and
how are the lucky ones chosen.  Another layer of politics.  Tenure was
the only thing teachers had when pay was, well, crap compared to other
occupations.  The only reason it is becoming a hot topic is that the
pay is getting closer to what other people get paid and with the way
companies are showing their loyalty to employees, a lot of people are
jealous.  Unlike other professions, I can't move horizontally to "another
company" and get nearly the same or more pay.  I start from scratch.  I
worked in industry and we GOT automatic pay raises (non-union).  BTW,
for info purposes, when I started 30 years ago, I got 13k/year, garbage
men started at 18k and my wife started at AT&T a year later for 25k.
My pay increases were not linear so while she was working she collected
more total money than I did (almost double).  Job security (of a sort)
was the only thing I had.

Bob