Many parents came to a rather abrupt realization during the coronavirus pandemic about just how tough teachers’ jobs are. Parents suddenly became the at-home teacher, pivoting from showing their children the tricks of long division to talking through how to write a five-paragraph essay. And it wasn’t easy. Parents went through a lot this spring to keep kids focused on their work. And teachers do that every day with a classroom full of students with different personalities, learning styles and personal issues.
For education experts, this is nothing new. “You might think that teachers’ jobs should be to ‘just teach,'” said Dr. Andy Anderson, a retired professor of science education from Michigan State University. “But children are complicated. Sometimes they need counseling or personal help. Sometimes children bully other children. Sometimes families are in crisis. Teachers see and must respond to all those parts of their students’ lives, working with families and other professionals as well as their students. So teachers’ jobs are complicated, too.”
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And are they earning what they are worth for doing these complicated jobs? GOBankingRates defined just how much teachers in your state are underpaid based on what their specialized skills would fetch in the private sector. Using responses to a poll by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation about just how much time teachers spend on different tasks every day, the study breaks down what it would cost to cover those hours with area specialists getting paid an average wage for their services. And then that amount was compared to the median salary of elementary school teachers in the state. It’s still likely to understate what teachers do — the study does nothing to account for the additional value of having one individual with functional expertise in so many different fields — but it can put a rough dollar figure on just how far from fair teacher pay in America is.
Read: Here’s How Much Teachers Make in Every State
So how underpaid are teachers in your state? Here’s a closer look at where teacher salaries are the most — and least — out of line with the local economy. States are in order from the ones that would need the lowest percentage increase to the highest to pay teachers in line with their value. Find out where your state stands as far as paying its teachers.
Last updated: May 19, 2021
