grassroots
i like the idea of a grassroots political movement, but what if i'm a different type of grass than everybody else?
that's not really my fear. i would be pretty happy to see the people being heard, regardless of whether i agree with what they're saying or not. i believe that many of my feelings are echoed by the masses, and would be content with that.
i sometimes feel that a lot of the groups that seem to be getting attention are minorities. (i think because they yell the loudest) the special interest groups are organized, and passionate, and therefore they get a response. but what worries me are the everyday things that everyone has issues with, and that we just can't seem to fix. health care, education... the rest of us grumbling on the side figure our lives are "good enough" and don't put much effort into making it great. but i wonder if something that's irksome-but-livable to me isn't perhaps life-challenging to someone less fortunate. and if i had maybe taken a moment to care, i could help them out.
and on the topic of education, let's be real for a second. i, and most of my friends, have college (and sometimes further) degrees in science and mathematics. some of us even have that unique ability of being able to make these topics seem comprehensible and fun. but, are we going to become teachers? most likely not. and here's why: i can make $60k (to start) working in private industry. i have all the insurances paid for. i have vacation (not enough, but some) and relatively little insurmountable hassle. if i were to teach, i would be working 10+ hours a day, making MAYBE $40k. but lots of vacation. unfortunately, i won't have any money to go anywhere on that vacation.
let's do a little cost/hr breakdown: say I move up to management here and pull in $90k. i'm working 55 hour weeks, that breaks down to $31/hr. or instead i become a teacher and make the mean $46k. i'm still working 55 hour weeks (those papers have to get graded and lesson plans written), that breaks down to $16/hr. yikes. again, i have 2.5 months of vacation, but not really since i'll need to pick up another job. oh, and on top of not paying them, we don't provide them resources either. out of date textbooks, pens, pencils. most teachers i know say they spend probably $1000 a year on classroom supplies that they don't get reimbursed for. i probably use more than $1000 in paper, pens, and post-it notes from my company in 6 months!
so then i'm left thinking "i could devote my life to my students and be happy with making a difference there, OR i could work a job that pays well and devote myself to my family using those resources."
i know teachers don't teach because of money. i KNOW this. but shouldn't we do a little better by them?
More articles:
http://www.motherjones.com/news/feature/2004/05/teachers.html
http://groups.google.com/group/k12.chat.teacher/browse_thread/thread/a8c38a586308f8cb/573d39a2b8b19f3b#573d39a2b8b19f3b
that's not really my fear. i would be pretty happy to see the people being heard, regardless of whether i agree with what they're saying or not. i believe that many of my feelings are echoed by the masses, and would be content with that.
i sometimes feel that a lot of the groups that seem to be getting attention are minorities. (i think because they yell the loudest) the special interest groups are organized, and passionate, and therefore they get a response. but what worries me are the everyday things that everyone has issues with, and that we just can't seem to fix. health care, education... the rest of us grumbling on the side figure our lives are "good enough" and don't put much effort into making it great. but i wonder if something that's irksome-but-livable to me isn't perhaps life-challenging to someone less fortunate. and if i had maybe taken a moment to care, i could help them out.
and on the topic of education, let's be real for a second. i, and most of my friends, have college (and sometimes further) degrees in science and mathematics. some of us even have that unique ability of being able to make these topics seem comprehensible and fun. but, are we going to become teachers? most likely not. and here's why: i can make $60k (to start) working in private industry. i have all the insurances paid for. i have vacation (not enough, but some) and relatively little insurmountable hassle. if i were to teach, i would be working 10+ hours a day, making MAYBE $40k. but lots of vacation. unfortunately, i won't have any money to go anywhere on that vacation.
let's do a little cost/hr breakdown: say I move up to management here and pull in $90k. i'm working 55 hour weeks, that breaks down to $31/hr. or instead i become a teacher and make the mean $46k. i'm still working 55 hour weeks (those papers have to get graded and lesson plans written), that breaks down to $16/hr. yikes. again, i have 2.5 months of vacation, but not really since i'll need to pick up another job. oh, and on top of not paying them, we don't provide them resources either. out of date textbooks, pens, pencils. most teachers i know say they spend probably $1000 a year on classroom supplies that they don't get reimbursed for. i probably use more than $1000 in paper, pens, and post-it notes from my company in 6 months!
so then i'm left thinking "i could devote my life to my students and be happy with making a difference there, OR i could work a job that pays well and devote myself to my family using those resources."
i know teachers don't teach because of money. i KNOW this. but shouldn't we do a little better by them?
More articles:
http://www.motherjones.com/news/feature/2004/05/teachers.html
http://groups.google.com/group/k12.chat.teacher/browse_thread/thread/a8c38a586308f8cb/573d39a2b8b19f3b#573d39a2b8b19f3b
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