I agree with the Oct. 11 editorial “Comparison of teachers with other jobs makes a unrealistic conclusion,” — you cannot compare teachers to other professions.
The salary plus benefits for an incoming Clark County School District teacher is $60,600. A software engineer’s salary is $65,232. The school district workyear is shorter than that of a software engineer, so officially, incoming teacher makes significantly more per hour than his or her peer in engineering.
But in the real world, that is not the case. As Michael Hansen, an expert in public education, said: “Teaching is different from other professions in terms of its calendar, demands, uncompensated overtime and education level, and teachers are paid accordingly.” Teachers are more highly educated than some other occupations. Many teachers obtain postgraduate degrees. So comparing teachers on a per-hour level with software engineers or others in year-round professions doesn’t tell a full story.
The editorial notes that “while software engineers and other professions are important, no one is more critical in our society than the people who teach, shape and enlighten the minds of our future.” I would add that without teachers, there are no other professions.