Making the Grade

The cartoon explains it all, for most educators. Consider that the 2008 national average teacher salary put Texas at 34th of 50 states. That's nothing new, of course. The good news is that beginning Texas teachers rank 16th in the nation, in terms of pay. Quite a disparity, eh? In my district, newly-hired math teachers get a $5000 bonus. Old-timers like me get nothing extra, and never did. Not surprisingly, less affluent students are the real losers in such an incentive system, as quality teachers can move from district to district every couple years to cash in on signing bonuses. As district priorities shift, the economy plunges, and education funding drops even more, we all look for answers. As for me, I'm still in the same spot, for the last 17 of 20 years, because the students there still need me. That goes a long way toward job security, no doubt. But for parents hoping to get their kids a quality education, is their only option to move to the affluent suburbs? Is that what no child left behind really means?