Word: teacher
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1980-1989
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...time his brother was gunned down and died on the front steps of his house. Soon afterward, the boy himself was fatally shot. In poor rural areas, the deprivation can be even more elemental. "I've got kids that have never held a pencil before," says a Mississippi kindergarten teacher. "And last year I had one that had never held silverware." Trying to convey the majesty of Shakespeare or even basic | addition and subtraction to such children can be a near impossibility...
...separate conferences." That is, if the parents have time. Single parents and two- earner couples are often just too fatigued at the end of the day to show much interest in open-house night or Johnny's science project. Students often reflect their parents' indifference. Says Hillview science teacher Ken Capie: "It's like they're always asking themselves, 'Why am I here?' They don't see the need to learn...
Earnings, or the lack thereof, have much to do with the exodus. During the 1970s, while salaries in other fields soared, teachers' pay fell 15% in real dollars. In some states starting salaries remain as low as $13,000. In Mississippi social-studies teacher Jewelie Brown makes only $22,200 after 31 years in the classroom. Californian Ken Capie does better: $41,000 after 30 years, but that is still $3,000 less than his 25-year-old son's starting salary as an engineer...
Belatedly, many districts are rushing to fatten teachers' paychecks. Since 1980 the average teacher's salary has risen 61.7%, from $17,364 to $28,085. The improvement does not dazzle many teachers, who say the increase has yet to make up the losses of the past. But some districts are finding that better pay is a magnet for fresh teaching talent. Since last summer, when it approved a three-year contract providing for salaries of up to $64,000, Dade County, Fla., has received nine applications for every teaching vacancy. "We really have the pick of the crop," exults assistant...
...addition to raising pay, some districts are experimenting with career ladders that allow teachers the opportunity to move up in status without having to abandon the classroom for administrative posts. Others have created "mentor" programs, which help novice teachers by pairing them with talented and experienced ones. Some wealthier schools provide workout centers and time off for stressed-out teachers. New Trier Township High School in suburban Chicago has a wellness program that allows faculty members to exercise on school time, receive personal and career counseling and even reduce their teaching loads without penalty. But such tender loving care...