Teachers’ summers not what you think

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The Happenings recorded a song in 1966 called “See You in September.” The lyrics of the chorus go like this:

“See you in September,

See you when the summer’s through,

Here we are (bye, baby, goodbye),

Saying goodbye at the station (bye, baby, goodbye),

Summer vacation (bye, baby bye, baby),

Is taking you away (bye, baby, goodbye).”

This captures one aspect of how teachers feel at the end of the school year. Of course, we all know that students are usually singing some version of:

“No more homework. No more books, No more teachers’ dirty looks!”

Some teachers might be singing:

“No more committees. No more meetings. No more Leave No Child Behind competing!”

No matter what you sing at the end of the school year, it is a time of closure for students and teachers. It’s also a time that teachers hear, “Boy, you sure are lucky. You get three vacations during the school year and every summer off.”

We would be lucky if that were true.

The best explanation I’ve heard about teachers and vacations is from Dick Marx, who has been a superintendent of schools in several Maine school districts. According to Marx, “Teachers don’t get the summers off. The towns choose not to employ them during the summer months. Teachers only get paid for the days they work.”

Before you read this next section in italics, remember this was written for a state with a much higher average teacher salary than Maine, most likely Connecticut. I’ve received this as an e-mail attachment from many people in different states over the past five years.

It’s time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do – baby-sit. We can get that for less than minimum wage. Right? Let’s give them $3 an hour and pay them for the hours they actually work, not any of that silly planning time.

That would be $19.50 a day (7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with 25 minutes off for lunch).

Each parent should pay $19.50 a day for these teachers to baby-sit their children.

NOW …

How many do they teach in a class, 30? So that’s $19.50 x 30 = $585 a day.

However, remember they only work 180 days a year!!! We’re not going to pay them for any vacations.

LET’S SEE …

That’s $585 x 180 = $105,300 per year.

What about those special teachers and the ones with master’s degrees?

Well, we could pay them minimum wage, and just to be fair, round it off to $7 an hour.

That would be $7 x 61/2 hours x 30 children x 180 days = $245,700 per year.

Wait a minute – there’s something wrong here.

Average teacher salary:

$50,000 for 180 days = $277 per day, divided by 30 students = $9.23 divided by 6.5 hours = $1.42 per hour per student.

A very inexpensive baby-sitter and they even try – with your help – to EDUCATE your kids.

WHAT A DEAL … And the parents don’t even have to buy us pizza or drive us home afterward.

According to the MEA, in 2006, the average teacher’s salary in Maine was $39,864. Even if you halve the number of students in this formula and factor in the average Maine teacher salary, the results are still outrageous.

So, please know that teachers aren’t on vacation in the summer. Many teachers take second or even third jobs during the summer to ensure the financial security of their families. Most teachers take courses, attend workshops and prepare for the next school year. We might take a week or two for a family vacation or weekends at camp or “daycations” to points of interest around the state. But for the most part the summer is full of the everyday chores all of us have coupled with the responsibilities of a second job and continuing professional development for our careers.

I’m no exception to this rule. Next week will find me at Gould Academy in Bethel at the Free and Open Source Software in Education conference. In July, I might be teaching a course at the University of Maine on using technology in the classroom. (Please sign up for the class. You’ll learn something. You’ll have fun. I’ll have a third job.) In August, I will begin getting my classroom ready for my returning students – they’ll be grown-up second-graders. My summer will include lots of other things, including reading for fun, visits with family and friends and trips to the farmers market but it will not include writing this column. I hope I’ll be back in the fall when school reopens.

What did you like about this column? What topics would you like to read about in columns in the next school year? E-mail me at conversationswithateacher@gmail.com