K-12 Confidential
Even before the pandemic lock-downs, American teachers from sea to shining sea reported a critical shortage of teachers within their ranks, and have watched in horror at the crippling levels of greed, arrogance, apathy, and ignorance at every level of K-12 educational governance. While embattled teachers have continued to try in vain to draw attention to the issues, our leaders have failed to acknowledge the problems at all. But since covid, the nation’s teachers have borne witness to a break neck hastening pace of this downward spiral–and a total avoidance of a conversation from our leaders.
This a-political podcast, created and produced exclusively by teachers, gets into the nitty gritty details of why teachers are leaving the profession in droves, and uncovers huge contributing structural problems baked into the teaching profession which are not discussed or understood even within the K-12 educational world, which also explain why so much of what is done in K-12 is ineffective. These desperate, passionate, highly qualified teachers use this podcast series to insert teachers forcefully into the national conversation about the critical issues plaguing K-12 education, because no one else was letting them in–a fact which belies a central thesis about the roots of the problems discussed throughout the episodes. Listeners will be gripped by the reality that without substantial reforms which empower teachers to lead the work, the inevitable result is a collapse of our very ability to effectively self-govern–a process which they argue is already well underway.
Listen as they describe the problems in teacher pay, teacher preparation requirements, special education, climate and culture, reading instruction, the false promise of existing DEI based frameworks in K-12, and the problems inherent in outsourced canned curriculums. Become a part of the solution as they outline a framework to authentically fix these problems, which require all hands on deck from both inside and outside of K-12 education.
K-12 Confidential
Episode 9. Intro to the Teacher Pay Mess
In this episode of K-12 Confidential, hosts Trina and Melissa discuss the critical issues surrounding teacher pay in the United States. Melissa, a veteran teacher with diverse educational experiences, joins Trina for an in-depth conversation about why teacher salaries are so low and the historical and systemic reasons behind it. They explore the impact of structural flaws in the educational system, the disparities in per-pupil spending across different states, and the misplaced values affecting education. The episode also covers the complexities of the step and column pay structure and its implications for teachers' financial well-being. They highlight how these issues contribute to the difficulty in retaining veteran teachers and attracting new talent, ultimately affecting student outcomes. It's a revealing discussion that calls for a reevaluation of how society values and compensates educators.
00:00 Introduction to K-12 Education Crisis
00:44 Meet the Co-Host: Melissa's Journey
03:09 The Teacher Pay Dilemma
07:04 Historical Context of Teacher Pay
14:31 Structural Issues in Teacher Compensation
17:20 Challenges and Solutions in Teacher Pay
26:25 The Impact of Teacher Pay on Education Quality
33:03 Challenges in K-12 Governance
33:36 Inequities in School Districts
35:34 Teacher Pay Over the Years
37:49 Healthcare Costs for Teachers
42:18 The Calling of Teaching
50:18 Teacher Strikes and Union Challenges
54:18 State Spending on Education
01:00:25 Proposals for Improving Teacher Pay
We need more teacher voices to this this justice! Visit us at k-12confidential.com to request to speak on the podcast.
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