Should teachers harm their children by sacrificing their own pay/benefits?

[CreekDog]

in order to not "hurt" the children they teach?

And I'm just wondering if anybody in any other profession is expected to forego pay that is needed to feed, shelter and pay to college educate their own children (big cities are expensive) so that the customers they serve through their jobs can pay less?

I'm just wondering if that's what people expect here, of teachers (I assume it's not expected of most other professions --in other professions, mostly, people are expected to go for the best deal they can get...whereas teachers for some reason, it's considered selfish to want to maintain one's standard of living, 50k to 80k not being a high standard of living in Chicago...and most teachers have student loans thanks to needing post graduate work to enter the profession).

[Luminous Animal]

1. For some reason, we can't quite believe that teaching is a skilled profession.

[CreekDog]

2. The great thing about spending less on teachers is that it lets us spend less on children

It's strange that spending less or getting a great deal by cutting the cost of children's education pleases so many people in this country.

Maybe they'll realize their mistake when those kids grow up and more of them are doing unskilled labor, the taxes from which will not pay for as much Medicare and Social Security as maybe they'd like.

And then it will be karma, won't it?

[David__77]

3. I helped convince my ex to become a teacher...

...but I'm more cynical now, and probably wouldn't have that same position again. Sadly, teachers are used as a scapegoat just like other public sector workers when times are bad. As a matter of course, so many teachers go beyond viewing teaching as merely a job from which they clock out each day. It is too bad that people lack the political will to defend their well being.

[cali]

4. one more time: In Chicago, this is really not about pay and benefits

[CreekDog]

5. True though it is a chance to take on the meme