If not now, when? Reasons to not honor commitments to teachers can always be found, or should I say fabricated. It is a matter of will and priorities. What I hear beneath all the numbers and statistics being circulated is propaganda- a means for continuing what is tantamount to deep-seated anti-school sentiment. Words to the contrary ring hollow. It is at its root a lack of will AND commitment. Instead of, how will we insure fair compensation for our teachers; the plan appears to be how far will they bend and bow before they break? Teacher salaries are stagnant because the commissioners and BOE consistently regard us in the lowest possible esteem despite what one reads in the press during ”teacher appreciation week”-words, just words. Teachers cannot pay rising costs of living with words.
If not teachers, then who? What other public employee is expected to subsist on politician’s praise and speeches about our effectiveness, sacrifice and devotion while costs soar and compensation levels move in reverse or remain the same. Moreover, there are ever increasing demands on teachers. The Common Core curriculum is generating profound workload issues. The number of tests administered increases each year, teacher evaluation systems become more complex, class sizes are said to increase, and new parameters for managing students who disrupt instruction is further threatening the precious time remaining for the delivery of quality instruction. The culture we are navigating feels increasingly anti-teacher thus anti-student. Other county employees are reportedly slated to receive a 1% increase in wages. 1% will surely not enable these employees to keep pace with costs of inflation, but it is 1% more than your children’s, your future’s, teachers are worth.
If not you, then who? It is our commissioners and BOE were put in place to advance and protect our community members, but by pushing our teachers to the brink, and in increasing cases, out of the profession, we risk the future of young people in this competitive world market. The present budgetary approach to our educational system is not sustainable. With teacher pressures and morale at its present levels, we cannot expect to maintain our high rankings. These last 5 years, we know our country, our state, our neighbors have been struggling-our resistance to the devaluation of our profession was therefore muted. Time has shown, however, that our dedication and patience has come to be used against us. Teachers are not the enemy, nor are we scapegoats and work mules. We are highly credentialed professionals charged with educating our youth under often difficult circumstances. We ask that we be re-prioritized to a position of respect with regard to our compensation, and the necessary will be exerted by our elected officials to empower and elevate our teachers.
