I have heard people say that teaching is a noble profession. I have also heard people say that without teachers, none of the other professions would exist. I have always agreed with these statements, which is one of the reasons I am a lifelong educator. However, I always believed that many people who repeat these statements don’t fully believe what they are saying.
Why? Because if they truly believed that K-12 teachers were valuable they would fully fund education and pay teachers what they are worth. Instead, many teachers receive salaries that allow them to live a working-class lifestyle. However, I would argue their work is professional in nature, and as a result, they should be paid a salary that allows them to live a middle-class existence.
Some people would push back and say that teacher salaries are fine, but the numbers say differently. Don’t believe me, check out the average teacher’s salary for 2017-2018. After you view them, think about the cost of living in each state. Would it allow a teacher to live a middle-class existence? Is it a fair given all of the things that teachers do on a day to day basis? Leave your thoughts in the comment box.
Here’s how the states ranked during the 2017-2018 school year:
- New York: $83,585
- California: $81,126
- Massachusetts: $79,710
- Connecticut: $73,113
- New Jersey: $69,917
- Maryland: $69,761
- Alaska: $69,474
- Pennsylvania: $67,398
- Illinois: $66,778
- Rhode Island: $66,758
- Oregon: $63,143
- Michigan: $62,702
- Delaware: $60,484
- Wyoming: $58,578
- Vermont: $58,572
- Ohio: $58,000
- New Hampshire: $57,833
- Hawaii: $57,866
- Nevada: $57,812
- Minnesota: $57,782
- Iowa: $56,790
- Georgia: $56,329
- Wisconsin: $55,895
- Washington: $55,175
- North Dakota: $54,421
- Indiana: $54,846
- Nebraska: $53,473
- Texas: $53,167
- Kentucky: $52,952
- Montana: $52,776
- Colorado: $52,389
- Maine: $51,663
- Virginia: $51,265
- South Carolina, $51,027
- Tennessee: $50,900
- North Carolina: $50,861
- Kansas: $50,403
- Louisiana: $50,256
- Alabama: $50,239
- Idaho: $49,225
- Missouri: $49,208
- Arkansas: $49,017
- South Dakota: $47,944
- New Mexico: $47,839
- Florida: $47,721
- Arizona: $47,746
- Utah: $47,604
- Oklahoma: $45,678
- West Virginia: $45,642
- Mississippi: $43,107
