Comments (43)

1. Wow. All of those are medical/dental save the last one.

   posted by Adrienne on 6-10-2008 at 1:45 pm

2. I wonder where teachers rank.

   posted by Shann on 6-10-2008 at 2:57 pm

3. ya, that doesn’t take into account the MASSIVE malpractice insurance OB/GYNs have to pay, in some states it’s in the 200,000/yr range, which is MORE than the mean annual wage…

   posted by moonablaze on 6-10-2008 at 2:58 pm

4. I wondered how long it would take before someone would show up complaining about how underpaid teachers are. Yes, everyone understands that it’s a hard job and an underappreciated one. But, on the other hand, you only work nine months a year. And there are many other difficult jobs that earn you far less. And if you really want to talk “underappreciated and overworked”, talk to a member of the armed services.

   Plus, I don’t think doctors are entirely undeserving of their large salaries. They go to school for a long, long time, often work crazy hours (all year long), and have some pretty high stakes attached to their work.

   Anyway, if it’s money you’re after, don’t go into education. Says the future educator. :)

   posted by kate on 6-10-2008 at 3:35 pm

5. I agree about the teacher remark. Yes you are underpaid, but its also a profession that people take for an “easy” career. I know I’m going to get a lot of sh*t for saying that, but most of the people I went to college with turned to a teaching career because it was an easy undergraduate and they wanted summers off. This especially applies to elementry school teachers. I saw some of the homework and assignments they had in college and it absolutely floored me. My roommate had to write a POEM about physics for her elementry education class. A freaking poem!

   Plus people know what the pay is like when they choose that career, same applies for the army. I hate it when people say you should respect members of the armed forces more than other professions. In the end it still comes down to the fact that they CHOOSE that career and knew what they were getting into. I never asked them to join, not to say I don’t appreciate what they do. To me its no different than any other career.

   If you are going to complain about your salary, the only person who can change that is yourself. Doctors and other medical professions are payed more because they put in the extra schooling and $$ to pay for said school. If you want to be paid more as a teacher, then go back to college and get a masters or PhD and teach college, they get paid way more.

   posted by Laura on 6-10-2008 at 3:56 pm

6. What? Not a single lawyer on the list? I bet corporate lawyers make a lot more than many of the doctors. What about a tax attorney? What about a commodities trader? Stock broker? At $70/hr plumbers can make over $100k as well.

   posted by jason on 6-10-2008 at 4:01 pm

7. Teachers are underpaid? Really? I think this may have been true 20 years ago, but here i am, in a NE city - where my in-laws who are parents are retiring making 90k and 65k respectively, and will make 80% of their pay for the rest of their life for not doing ANYTHING.

   Sounds pretty sweet to me.

   posted by lisa on 6-10-2008 at 4:11 pm

8. Ugh, it’s sad that folks are thinking that teachers are ok getting paid what they get now, and that it’s an easy job with summers off. The current mind-set just boggles my mind.

   My mom-in-law is one of those old-school teachers, who -at about 60 years old- goes the extra mile for her students. She’s working 12 hours a day to plan proper lessons, grading papers, tutoring after school, and meeting with parents. She works summer school too! This is a job she loves because she’s making a difference! She comes from a generation where if you were a woman and wanted to work, your choices were teacher or nurse, and your income was supplementary to your husband’s.

   But today things are different. Just think, if being a teacher paid more, we’d have better teachers (competition for positions would increase), and thus better educated children. As it is, it looks like future generations will get shafted on a good education because no one respects this position anymore. :(

   posted by tona b. on 6-10-2008 at 4:27 pm

9. I think anyone who doesn’t think that teachers are underpaid understates (or underestimates) the importance that these people have in our lives. Everyone goes to school–everyone needs teachers.

   Those who go into education because they think it’s going to be easy probably have a shock coming to them. I think the high rates of burnout among new teachers bears that out.

   posted by Julia on 6-10-2008 at 4:52 pm

10. Teachers should be paid at the same level as doctors.
    They should also be held to same level of accountability for their work product.

    However, neither will ever happen.

    posted by Florida on 6-10-2008 at 5:01 pm

11. Yes! I KNEW medical school would pay off!

    posted by Allison on 6-10-2008 at 5:43 pm

12. Not surprising. It did remind me though of an article I just read in the Huffington Post where Maria Bartiromo of Avenue Magazine stated that earning $200,000 a year does not make you rich. Funny seeing as the 10 best-paying jobs can get you LESS then $200,000. If earning more than the best paying job in America does not qualify as “rich” I have no clue what does.

    And yes, teachers should be paid SO much more than they are, and if not, then reform the way we educated our children.

    “Is our children educated?” Maybe they would be if the people we put in charge of educating them for us, were treated better.

    posted by Josh on 6-10-2008 at 5:51 pm

13. Yes teachers should be paid as much as doctors, but only IF they attend the same amount of schooling, Laura is right, if you want to earn more money as a teacher, then put in the extra schooling! You forget that people who attend medical school are usually about $100,000 in debt when they graduate, possibly even more! It takes years to pay off that kind of debt, and Moonablaze is right about the malpractice insurance…it can be really pricey.

    I’m not here to knock teachers, but the hours that doctors put in, the schooling they pay for and overall risk they take each and every day earns them the right to make more money than teachers.

    posted by Beth on 6-10-2008 at 5:52 pm

14. Tona B. and Florida hit the nail on the head, unfortunately so does Laura. Giving our children the best education possible should be at the top of our list. Granted, some teachers are unworthy, this reflects our ‘whatever’ attitude towards the teaching profession. If we took more than a cursory interest things may improve.

    posted by Monique on 6-10-2008 at 6:26 pm

15. Josh, what makes you rich are those things this survey didn’t count, like stock options, bonuses, and self-employment.

    That said, if I made $100,000 a year, I would consider myself rich. I still wouldn’t tell anyone.

    posted by Miss Cellania on 6-10-2008 at 6:33 pm

16. Miss Cellania,

    Sorry, try as I might, I just CANNOT get my sarcasm to come across on a website. I definitely consider $200,000, or $100,000 or $50,000 to be rich. I was mainly stunned that someone would think that $200,000 wasn’t rich.

    posted by Josh on 6-10-2008 at 6:57 pm

17. “They should also be held to same level of accountability for their work product.”

    That’s the sort of mentality that drives my mother - a first grade teacher - crazy. If a child isn’t doing well academically or has a behavioral problem, often the real root of that problem is in the home. Don’t send your kid off to school and expect that they can fix your parenting mistakes. Teachers are just one of many factors influencing the final “product.” That’s another thing that makes teaching such a difficult profession - problem parents!

    posted by Vikki on 6-10-2008 at 7:02 pm

18. You know, kate and Laura, although it possibly was implied, I’m pretty sure Shann didn’t say a thing about teachers being underpaid. She just asked a question. If we had a list of the ten most popular colors and I said “I wonder where maroon ranks”, well, I wouldn’t be saying that maroon was unappreciated. I would be expressing curiosity. There’s no need to jump on people like that.

    posted by Pointy-Hatted Geek on 6-10-2008 at 7:50 pm

19. Maybe the problem with teaching is that the pay doesn’t reflect what the markets will bear. It’s past time for merit pay and different scales for different subject/levels. Pay the good teachers and the difficult-to-replace teachers what they deserve.

    posted by Tom on 6-10-2008 at 9:36 pm

20. I am in High School and let me tell you, we get crap educations. How many times do I go to the hospital, hm, well, I CAN’T. See I have no damn health insurance so I get a cold, I LIVE THROUGH IT. How many times do I go to school? EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR 180 DAYS A YEAR. I would rather be dead then have a sucky education, I am sure there are many that would feel differently. I have had amazing teachers in my life, one being the reason this severely dyslexic girl can read or even type. I had a journalism teacher last year who changed my life, in fact he actually saved it once. He taught us real life lessons and he had the most creative projects out of any teacher. Now that same teacher is leaving the school because of stupid budget problems. My school district has to somehow find a way to skim 2 million dollars from our school budget, what is the easiest way to do that? Somehow fire 30 teachers in the High School alone and over 70 teachers district wide. That leaves over 70 people with no job, 70 people that do have to pay college bills and regular old house bills. Now yes, some teachers are SEVERELY overpaid, I admit that, in fact I have been taught by that. Thank god this budget issues have a shinning light, I may be one Kuchinsky down but hey, at least our school gets rid of Poore [a biology teacher whose face is literally starting to peal off she is so old and smokes on school grounds while she is on her oxygen tank!]. I just think that teachers like her, or maybe my chem teacher, who never really lets us ask a question and if he does he just gives us some bs answer that makes no sense, would not be teachers if there was more competition in the field. I had a math teacher last year who had a total of about 200 students all together, we would get three worksheets a day from him [homework, do now and a wrap up and you have to add in the occasional test or quiz] we always got the papers back the next day, he would take about 2 or 3 days for a test or quiz. I want you all to think about that, this man would work from 7:30 in the morning to at least 3:30 in the afternoon, sometimes staying even later than that. This was was on the middlestates board of our school, and so he had to help deal with that [btw for all you people who do not understand what middlestates is, it is what gives that school accreditation as a school]. This man after doing all that just for the high school [and running two clubs and tutoring students “not in school for undisclosed reasons” aka preggers girls no longer able to go to school] would work till about 7 at night at the sylvan learning center [btw from what he says, TOTAL RIP OFF]. This man would then grade those 600 or so papers that same night, now there is no way in hell you cannot tell me that that man was nothing but hard working. He took only two days off that year that I had him, both were for his infant son being sick and his ex-wife refusing to take off work. Seriously, make your choice if that is a teacher you want your kids having. A teacher whose motto was teach to learn not to test, because he felt too many teachers were just giving the kids the information and doing enough so they would pass the finals and pass the state testing, but him? No, he really wanted the kids to know the information, he wanted the kids to know exactly why you were doing what you were doing. He would give you these abstract problems that made no sense at all, but because you knew WHY you were using that formula, or multiplying those variables you somehow knew what to do. You never memorized what the textbook problems would look like, no, you really knew what you were doing. That man is buried in dept., that man deserves to be paid three times what he is being paid, but is he? No, he is just a lowly teacher who picked his job because that was the easy way out. No because he wanted to inspire the next generation, or was tired of seeing teenagers in stores trying to figure out if a 100 dollar dress is 20% off how much it would cost without being told, he wanted you to know that wow! YOU CAN DO THAT EASILY IN YOUR OWN DAMN HEAD.

    Sorry for that rant, but I am tired of know it alls that just assume because there are summers off or that college training is easy that the job is easy. How about the workshops teachers have to attend by law but also have to pay money to attend? How about the hours re-training they have to go through ever 3 or so years so they can say qualified to teach. How about the endless grading they don’t get paid to grade because it is mostly done from home, where there are no time cards or boss to watch over what work you are doing. How about the time they have to spend planning not only what they will do that day, but what homework they will give out, and making sure that the worksheets get typed up and copied? WHAT ABOUT ALL THAT. No teachers just sit on their laurels alll day long and occasionally get up to write something on a chalkboard for uninterested pupils. Yes teachers get off nice and early at 2:30 and sometimes stay after till 3:30 and that is when their day ends, WORK IS OVER. Yea right, get a clue.

    p.s.. think about that one great teacher you had and think about all those many horrid teachers you had. Think about who you would be without that one great teacher and think about who you would be if all those awful ones were just like him/her.

    I am sooo tired of you people that take educators for granted, get a clue.

    posted by C.Bukowski. on 6-10-2008 at 10:10 pm

21. I work for an Oral & Maxillofacial surgeon. He runs his own practice, as do most. I can’t help but wonder if this takes into account out-of-pocket expenses to run a business.

    posted by ErinM on 6-10-2008 at 10:58 pm

22. wow C.Bukowski, rant much?

    Nobody is argueing that teachers aren’t under-appreciated, but when did money become equatable to respect? As a teacher, what would you rather have; a 50% pay increase or a student come up to you and tell you what a difference you’ve made in their lives? If you choose the money then I feel you have no merit to complain about being underpaid in the first place.

    Do you also think that there are no crummy doctors out there? Its a basic fact of life that not everybody gives 100% at their jobs, this applies to every profession. Don’t you think that some doctors that do the same work as others don’t get paid different salaries? What happens to teachers happens all across different professions.

    Has the world become so superficial that we equate money with our own success? What happened to just enjoying your job and taking pleasure in making a difference? The average teacher makes at least double minimum wage, more than enough to live on, and a lot of them make more than I do and I live a very comfortable life.

    Think of it this way, how many times have you sent your doctor a Christmas card? How many times has your doctor been there for you through the hassles of high school? How many times have you had a doctor touch your life outside of non-medical related issues? Chances are its a lot less then most teachers you have. Take pride in your influence on young minds, you do make a difference, and although that may not be reflected in monetary values, it is in the lives you’ve affected.

    posted by Phinn on 6-10-2008 at 11:36 pm

23. Phinn- C.Bukowski has a point. With all due respect, by your reasoning, doctors should also be happy with a “you changed my life for the better” from a patient rather than the huge paycheck. Sadly, this is not the case. Teachers are expected to be happy with what they have; “you knew what you were getting into” told to teachers and soldiers, as mentioned above, sure doesn’t help change the mindset of millions.

    Yes, people should choose a job in order to make a difference rather than for the money, but raises certainly don’t hurt- especially when a teacher can no longer do what he or she loves because they can no longer pay the bills, or the job security isn’t there since they get laid off as “disposable.” And kids lose some great teachers because of it.

    posted by arfies on 6-11-2008 at 4:11 am

24. C.Bukowski:

    A high school kid with passion. I applaud you.

    posted by Ira on 6-11-2008 at 8:16 am

25. Hey Phinn, I would probably take the 50 percent raise.

    posted by BKReporter on 6-11-2008 at 8:52 am

26. BKReporter…then you are exactly one of those teachers C.Bukowski was talking about, the ones that don’t give a crap.

    so now money is more important than the quality of work you do.

    what a sad world we live in

    The average teacher makes $40,000-$50,000! Thats more than I make and I went to college too and I am completely happy with my life. I have food, clothing, shelter etc…

    If you want to buy yourself Prada shoes or Gucci purses then yeah, don’t become a teacher!

    If teachers are slacking at their jobs because they feel they don’t get paid enough then that is just sad. I make less and I still love what I do and come to work each day ready to give 100%.

    It is ridiculous to think all careers should be paid the same. What about garbage men? They clean up your nasty sh*t each and every day, yet people aren’t up in arms about their salaries. Sewer workers? Coal miners?

    Come on, there are hundreds of careers out there that have salaries less then that of teachers, and they all have an impact on some area of your life.

    I have NEVER met a teacher who could not pay his/her bills, and if you can’t then you are trying to live above your means. What about the thousands of people who make a living on minimum wage? They seem to make it work, why can’t you?

    I have only the highest respect for teachers, but when you choose that profession you knew what the pay was like and you picked it anyway. This makes you a saint in my eyes, the fact that you could have made more money elsewhere but picked teaching because you had a passion for it! Its extremely admirable.

    posted by Phinn on 6-11-2008 at 9:58 am

27. There is little to complain about if you are a teacher as the work is challenging and rewarding, you can see when you make a difference, the pay is decent, the benefits are fantastic and the time off is unheard of.

    posted by hoipolloi on 6-11-2008 at 10:08 am

28. I’m a teacher. I agree wholeheartedly the the person who stated that if you go into teaching thinking it’s going to be an easy job, you’re in for quite a shock. And I might add, anyone who insists that it’s easy, has never taught.

    Unfortunately, teaching attracts two different camps of people - one being the super-dedicated sort who will work insane hours, bust their butts trying to come up with new and interesting ways to teach their lessons. Two - the burnouts and deadheads who will pop in a video and open up a newspaper.

    Sad but true. And, the fact that the burnouts are not only tolerated but protected and defended in many schools makes the rest of us incredibly resentful. Most teachers burn out after 5 years, it’s a fact.

    It’s a broken system. I don’t know anyone who went into it for the money, and anyone who became a teacher just for the summers, I can guarantee you that the price is too high for that time off.

    I spend my summers planning, taking classes, going back and forth from school for meetings, committees, etc…I haven’t had a summer ‘off’ in years, not since college.

    Don’t judge all of us by the burnouts.

    posted by Jen on 6-11-2008 at 11:19 am

29. I don’t see hedge fund managers on this list or traders. While all of the above listed professions make a good living, its pocket change compared to what some hedge fund managers bring home annually.

    As for teachers, my wife’s a teacher. I would guess that she makes more than about 80% of the people in the county and gets summers off. Add in the fact that she probably couldn’t be fired unless she committted a felony in the classroom and its a pretty good gig. She’s never complained about her salary in her fifteen years at work.

    posted by Miguel on 6-11-2008 at 12:23 pm

30. I’d like to pop in and say I’m a registered nurse. I have shirt I wear with pride that says, “Doctors save lives. Nurses save doctors.” ;)

    Where’s my respect? lol

    - Jess

    posted by Jess on 6-11-2008 at 12:38 pm

31. I agree with Jen. I thought going into teaching would be nice because I love kids and the summers off and getting out of work at 3pm-ish sounded really nice. I was wrong and I have a profound new appreciation for teachers. It is not easy AT ALL. Most of the teachers I knew and/or shadowed stayed at school until 6 or 7 pm. They need summers off so they don’t go crazy. I decided not to go into teaching but when I have a child and they go to school, I’ll be one of those parents who will work WITH the teacher because I know what they go through.

    posted by CK on 6-11-2008 at 1:11 pm

32. OK, I’m not sure how teachers are paid in the States, but in Canada, though we are paid a decent wage, the ‘long summer vacation’ is not a vacation. They garnish our wages so that they don’t pay us during the summer, and if you are a new teacher you end up working most of those 2 months to get ready for the next year. We also might get Christmas break and March break, but not many people realize how much planning it takes to get through one day! Not to mention that we have an inclusive classroom, so a teacher may have students with ADD, ADHD, autism, Downs, etc with little or no help! and if you teach grades 3-6 you can have 35-40 kids in your class, many of which English is NOT their first language.
    People who think they can become a teacher if nothing else pans out, are kidding themselves. The average teaching career now is 5 years as many people are in over their heads.
    As for education, it’s about 5 years worth in Ontario, which is more then many.
    You want to knock teachers, go ahead, but don’t forget you wouldn’t be where you are if it weren’t for teachers (including those high paid doctors!)

    posted by Shann on 6-11-2008 at 1:26 pm

33. I am a management analyst at a large consulting firm. I work from 8:00am to usually about 6-7pm at night. I have to fly out every Sunday night and fly home on Friday mornings. I get to spend 2 days a week with my family and friends if I’m lucky. I work year round, and believe me, being on a plane twice a week every week can really take its toll. I knew what I was getting myself into, but I love my job and to me thats its own reward. Oh and I also get paid the salary of an average teacher. EVERY job has its ups and downs, all you teachers out there are NOT in a unique situation, so stop acting like you are so mistreated.

    As for Shann’s comment. There are A LOT of jobs that you “wouldn’t be where you are” without them, so don’t pull that card. Every individual job has its own impact on society.

    The plight of teachers is nothing unique and it happens in lots of career paths. Instead of whiny kids, I have to deal with hard-headed clients. Instead of grading papers I have to write up boring business documentation. If you are unhappy with your job and the compensation it provides then choose a different career! The last person I want teaching my children is a disgruntled teacher, that isn’t fair to the kids.

    posted by Collin on 6-11-2008 at 2:35 pm

34. As a teacher, I don’t think I’m mistreated, and I don’t think I act like I am either.

    But I am constantly having to justify my job to non-teachers. People either think I’m a saint (which I’m not) or I’m a lazy slacker who just wanted to hang at the beach all summer and abuse the tax-payer’s money.

    I’ve never heard the same kind of criticisms directed at management analysts that are directed at teachers.

    posted by Jen on 6-11-2008 at 4:17 pm

35. To everyone who is saying that teachers should be paid as much as doctors, let’s consider for example #1 on the list here, anesthesiologists.

    In terms of education/training, they have: 4 years of college + 4 years of med school + 4 year internship/anesthesia residency + optional 1-2 year fellowship (if you wanted to do a subspecialty, e.g. pediatric anesthesiology or something). So 8 years of education you pay for, plus 4-6 years of training during which you are paid very poorly.

    Then, the job has a type of responsibility and stress to it that teachers do not have. Teachers can have off days once in a while with very little adverse affect on anyone. If an anesthesiologist makes a mistake or reacts poorly to a situation someone can quite realistically die. Sure, doctors make minor mistakes all the time with minor consequences, but the possibility is always there that your negligence could leave somebody dead when you least expect it. Teachers, as well as most other jobs, do not have this risk. While teachers have a great responsibility to their individual students and to society, it is not the same as what is literally a life-and-death matter.

    Most people who decide they want to become teachers could likely do so and would likely be decent, if not outstanding teachers as long as they were committed to the job. There are less people who have what it takes to go through the years of education and stress to become physicians and surgeons. Why? Teaching requires an average level of intelligence and a great deal of dedication. Being a good physician requires an above-average level of intelligence (this could be argued, but it’s what the grades and test scored required to get into med school say) AND a great deal of dedication to get through all those years of school.

    So why exactly should teachers be paid as much as doctors?

    posted by David on 6-12-2008 at 12:21 am

36. Why does any discussion on salaries have to bring teachers into the mix? If you look at both the list of those who are highest paid and those who are lowest paid, you may notice that “teacher” is not on either list. They are certainly not overpaid, but I would not say that they are underpaid either.

    posted by Kiki on 6-12-2008 at 8:46 am

37. Well said David!

    posted by Paula on 6-12-2008 at 11:06 am

38. KIKI: I agree with you 100%.

    I guess it has something to do with the fact that I dont ANYBODY who wouldnt say that they wanted to be paid more for their work or who would turn down a raise. Every job has its challenges and reasons why it “deserves a pay increase”. Anyone who tells you that they dont think they deserve to earn more money is lying. It´s just a fact of human nature.

    posted by GTT on 6-12-2008 at 12:29 pm

39. It’s funny… all I asked is where teachers would rank on such a list. I never said that they should be the highest paying, and I never said they are grossely underpaid. (Funny how so much debate can come from such a simple remark!)
    I just graduated from teachers colledge and look forward to a long career as a teacher regardless of pay. There are only 2 things that make me angry when people discuss teachers and that is
    1) some say we don’t earn our salary, because teachers work hard and invest so much into each of their students, (and Collin, it’s not a card I’m playing, though I understand every job as it’s place, no one would be able to do their job if their weren’t taught by, guess what? A TEACHER!)
    and 2) that anyone can be a teacher. It’s like saying anyone can be a computer analyst, a carpenter, a nurse (who conincedently should be paid more, you all do wonderful jobs!) or any other profession out there.
    And for the record, you’d be surprised how much time, emotion, and yes, even money, teachers put into their class. They’re like second parents to your children, and warrent as much respect as any of you.

    posted by Shann on 6-12-2008 at 3:52 pm

40. Shann if your going to word it that way, then shouldn’t the props be given to scientist and inventors and such? Teachers would have nothing to teach were it not discovered in the first place. Math formulas didn’t just pop out of thin air, elements didn’t just magically make themselves known! Without authors there wouldn’t be any books for english teachers to base lessons around, without scientists we would know nothing of the human body with which to teach anatomy! I could go on forever, so no I believe there are plenty of people out there who could do their job just fine without the help of teachers. There have also been plenty of highschool dropout in this world who have made something of their lives. Its GOOD teachers that make the difference, not just teachers in general. I’m not trying to be petty, but teachers do not make the world go round, its every aspect of society as a whole that does.

    And nobody on this comment board mentioned anything about teachers not “earning” their salary. Everybody has to earn their salary and if they’re not, then they’re likely to be fired!

    Oh and don’t pretend like you weren’t being sarcastic in your first post. We knew where you were going with that “simple remark.”

    Yes not everybody can be a teacher, but I believe that stems more from the fact that not everybody is a people person which is about %50 of the job. Teaching IS a field most everybody can get into because its so diverse. There are so many areas one can teach in that its hard not to find a spot within teaching that one would fit nicely into. For the most part, everybody has an academic area that they excel at whether it be mathamatics,physical education, drivers education etc… thus its easy to find an area in which one could teach.

    I am not trying to disrespect teachers Shann, but you make it out to sound like you are the creme de la creme of careers. In every career there are those who work hard, those who just get by, and those who suck. It’s the facts of life. Just because you are a teacher doesn’t mean you automatically deserve respect, you have to earn it like the rest of us. I’ve had plenty of teachers throughout my life that made me a better person and I respect the crap out of them!

    posted by Susan on 6-12-2008 at 5:03 pm

41. Wow. I really hope that Shann does not end up teaching my kids. One would think that someone who just graduated from “teachers colledge” would “conincedently” recognize that she is “grossely” in need of a dictionary.

    posted by Sarah on 6-13-2008 at 8:49 am

42. The only problem with the list is that it doesn’t include malpractice insurance or pro-bono work. Most of them also have student loans in excess of $100,000. They do get paid a bunch, but before anyone begins envisioning a career in the medical field, I would ask them to reconsider.

    As for teachers, I can not fathom why we as a society allow such valuable people to be paid so little. In comparison to how much they give back to the community, they get paid pennies. Besides, there would be no doctors without teachers!

    posted by Rachel on 6-14-2008 at 12:27 pm

43. Paid pennies?!?! I get paid less than a normal teacher and I would not consider myself getting paid pennies! Thats almost an insult! If all teachers are this greedy then that makes me worried for the kids they teach

    Oh and why don’t you read Susan’s post, because I agree with it. What material would teachers have to use in the first place were it not discovered by others? Face it, intelligence is more genetics than being taught and also has a lot to do with that individual’s determination to succeed. An idiot can have the best teacher in the world and still be an idiot. There are many people out there that are self-taught as well! Teachers are not Gods, they are normal hard working individuals just like the rest of us.

    posted by Craig on 6-14-2008 at 7:15 pm

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