Pay Check Shock

auburnchick · 10-01-2008, 12:28 PM

As y'all know, I recently started subbing as a way to try to get my face known at the schools so when a teaching position becomes available, hopefully I will have an advantage.

Well, I got my paycheck for my first subbing job, and oh boy...what a shock!

My district pays $55 per day for subs with bachelor's degrees. At 7.5 hours of work, that breaks down to $7.33 per hour.

Very sad.

I do not mind that I will not make much money teaching, but this...for subs who are responsible for 30 kids each class period, is sad. I made more money when I was a paraprofessional at the schools a couple of years ago, and I wasn't even allowed to be in a classroom on my own...without a teacher! That's standard policy for all para's.

Sigh...

I LOVE subbing, and I'm hoping that I can find a teaching position really soon. But it's not economically feasible for me to sub more than one day a week (I have another part-time job that pays a lot more but is not in the education field).

Sigh...

Sorry...had to vent.

I think we should take the salaries paid to these corporate executives and filter them down to those not paid adequately for the jobs they do.

:::stepping off my soapbox now:::

Wanda Witch · 10-01-2008, 05:43 PM

Oh, Nathalie, you have every right to be on a soapbox. All teachers do. They are so underpaid. Our nation's future is in their hands. You and all teachers have a right to feel sad.

Silver · 10-01-2008, 06:07 PM

Teachers are the most underpaid profession there is. But if teachers were paid high salaries, there would be a lot of unethical people doing it just for the money. You do it because you love the job and love the kids, and that is priceless, appreciated, and very very special.

auburnchick · 10-01-2008, 06:08 PM

I think my rant is less about teacher pay (although I did kind of stick it in at the end) and more about substitute pay.

If I didn't have my college degree, I'd only be making two dollars less per day. Those with Master's degrees get paid $65 per day. It's not like the teachers are making us do anything different if we have one degree or another. For the most part, the teachers don't know who we are...at least at first. Although I did sub for a friend last week, and when he found out it was me subbing for him, he allowed me to actually teach his class because he knew I was qualified to do so.

This year we are having elections for a new school superintendent, and my kids' principal is running. He'll probably win. He knows me very well thanks to my daughter's soccer ability. I'm going to see if I can pull him aside one day and pick his brain about this.

auburnchick · 10-01-2008, 06:11 PM

Originally Posted by Silver

Teachers are the most underpaid profession there is. But if teachers were paid high salaries, there would be a lot of unethical people doing it just for the money. You do it because you love the job and love the kids, and that is priceless, appreciated, and very very special.

Yeah, you're right...although some people get into the field because they get Christmas and summers off. Phooey. I want to do what I love.

I'm having a blast subbing, which is why I'm so upset. I really want to continue, and I will but at fewer days per week since my bills still need to be paid. I know I'm good at it, and teachers are already asking me to come back.

I guess I want them to make a special exception and pay ME more. I'm not asking for much, eh?

iza · 10-01-2008, 06:19 PM

That's pretty ridiculous. Considering how hard and ESSENTIAL this job is, you are so right to be frustrated!

Hang in there. Remember why you decided to become a teacher.

This is what's important.

Mike · 10-01-2008, 08:21 PM

Teachers aren't underpaid around me. I think they start at $30K. Then they go back for a Masters and get more. And more again for a PHD.
Not really that bad for a 9 month job that is nearly impossible to lose after you've had it for 2 years.

We all knew we were being conned when my niece claimed she couldn't find a job that paid anything around here and went to the south.

But I bet subs don't make much around here either. They're not expected to be much more than baby sitters. (Which you couldn't pay me enough to be.)
The pay is probably why so many subs only look at it as a baby sitting job.

As for how essential teachers are, that depends. The one that taught me that since cold was heavier than warm, ice formed on the bottom of lakes and floated to the top was by no means essential. The one that flunked a friend for doing a report on peccaries because peccaries don't exist was also not essential. The one who turned me off of math by making his class heavily slanted towards giving jocks extra credit and required the ones like me to do extra work for minimum credit should've been taken outside of town and shot.

stitchwitch · 10-01-2008, 09:04 PM

Move down to Hillsborough County!

In the past five years or so I think we've had something like 20+ teachers arrested here for sex with students, selling drugs, buying drugs, sex for drugs, video taping students getting dressed in the locker room, etc. etc.. You name it, we've had it here. We need good teachers, ours suck! It seems like lately the only ones applying are the whack jobs who have some sort of alterior motive behind getting the job. I've heard the pay scale for first year (BA) teacher is $35K and Hillsborough is always having a job fair to attract teachers.

auburnchick · 10-01-2008, 09:09 PM

Awww...such sad stories, Mike!

I grew up in a small town where the coaches taught history and civics. Yeah, and it's a wonder I love both subjects and want to teach them, eh?

I guess there must not be very many subs who take their jobs seriously like me.

Oh well...

Debkcs · 10-01-2008, 09:10 PM

Quote:

The one who turned me off of math by making his class heavily slanted towards giving jocks extra credit and required the ones like me to do extra work for minimum credit should've been taken outside of town and shot.

Agree with you 100%, Mike. I tried to express to my algebra teacher that I had a hard time understanding abstract thought, he laughed at me and turned around and told the whole class. What a jerk! Turns out to be a type of dyslexia, and there were three of us in that class who had it.

Back to you, Nathalie, I think you and all other well qualified teachers should be payed more, and it should be merit based, then people wouldn't want in just because it pays well. Football players make all that $ running down a field with a ball in their hands, and the people that teach their children can't make enough to send their own kids to college. Something is very wrong.