Too many teachers are overpaid babysitters or pitifully
inept at their craft; their firing will harm no one.


Ah yes, the overpaid babysitter comment.

How much do babysitters get these days? (I ask because it's been some time since I needed babysitters.)

Would $3 an hour be a bargain? It's less than minimum wage, but then, some babysitters are teenagers, still in school and will work for less than minimum wage. (I believe illegal aliens will as well.)

What is the average class size in your area? In my state, the maximum number of students in grade K is 20 students, or 22 if a half-time aide is provided. The maximum in secondary school is 30.

So let's assume an average of 20 pupils per class. (Yeah, I know, probably low, but that's okay.)

Would 7 1/2 hours be an average school day? Of course, that doesn't include time outside of the school day that may be used for planning lessons or grading papers, but that's okay too, so let's call it 7 1/2 hours.

Now multiply 7 1/2 by $3 an hour. Did you get $22.50? (It's okay to use the calculator, if you want to.)

Multiply $22.50 by 20 (the number of students in the class)to get $450 for 1 day. Hummm.

How many days are in your school term? In my state the number of required student contact days for one school year is 178. Teachers only get paid for the days they work, so now let's multiply $450 by 178. (We won't count professional development days, since they wouldn't be babysitting on those days, but that number also depends on your state, in my state, it's 10 days)

$80,100? Damn! I don't make that much after 20 years (with a masters degree)!

Let me know where those overpaid babysitters work. It might be time for a career change.