Editorial: Is paying teachers $10K a cure for shortage?
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Money is not the only answer.
With government, it often seems that way. No matter what the problem may be, there are any number of solutions that can be proposed. Most of them have big-ticket spending attached, which can end up on the chopping block later when the problem being solved is the budget.
That makes them quick fixes and public relations more than solutions. It’s like developing a pill to treat a sickness, something people would have to take every day, instead of finding a cure.
Is that what the state House of Representatives is doing by proposing $10,000 payments to increase the number of teachers? The bill passed the chamber by a vote of 141-62 and heads to the Senate for consideration.
The lawmakers are wise to look at options to solve the problem of a decline in the number of educators in the state. It’s an issue facing school districts. It’s being seen in the state’s universities, which are seeing fewer and fewer people seeking education degrees. It’s impacting classrooms nationwide, meaning those getting teaching degrees are even more in demand in other states.
Money is definitely a factor. The amount paid to become a teacher balanced against student loan payments after graduation doesn’t make the career as attractive as it once was.
But lawmakers should consider finding ways to offer more support to teachers in ways other than ponying up cash.
Teachers are frustrated by more than just their paychecks. They are stressed by the demands of the job, which are complicated by not offering help where it is needed and sometimes creating hurdles instead of smoothing roads.
What if standardized testing was less burdensome on both students and teachers? What if teachers were responsible only for actually teaching and not a laundry list of other social issues? What if there was more support for things such as child abuse and neglect, sexual assault, hunger, addiction and so many things that end up on teachers’ plates?
Much of that could be accomplished by redirecting things from teachers to agencies that are already out there, rather than making teachers the operators in a complicated game of telephone that identifies problems.
That would help teachers, but it also would help students. By smarter use of existing services and budgets, it also would be a boon to taxpayers.
In short, it could be a cure instead of a maintenance drug for a problem that really needs a permanent solution.