According to Alabama state Sen. Shadrack McGill (R), the Bible says that increasing teacher salaries would only lead to less-qualified teachers. McGill said at a prayer breakfast that doubling teachers’ salaries — starting pay for Alabama teachers begins at $36,144 — would not help education. In fact, he said that keeping teacher pay low is a “Biblical principle“:
McGill found justification in the Bible for not increasing teacher pay, but he evidently found nothing in scripture preventing him from approving a 67 percent pay increase for legislators in 2007, which increased annual salaries for the part-time legislators from $30,710 to $49,500. He said that the higher pay helped to stop corruption.
A 2011 report showed that while Alabama teachers have the highest starting salaries in the nation, the state lags far behind the national average for teacher pay. Currently, a part-time legislator in Alabama is making more than a full-time teacher with a Master’s degree and 15 years of experience.
source: think progress
“If you double a teacher’s pay scale, you’ll attract people who aren’t called to teach.
“To go in and raise someone’s child for eight hours a day, or many people’s children for eight hours a day, requires a calling. It better be a calling in your life. I know I wouldn’t want to do it, OK?
“And these teachers that are called to teach, regardless of the pay scale, they would teach. It’s just in them to do. It’s the ability that God give ‘em. And there are also some teachers, it wouldn’t matter how much you would pay them, they would still perform to the same capacity.
“If you don’t keep that in balance, you’re going to attract people who are not called, who don’t need to be teaching our children. So, everything has a balance.”
McGill found justification in the Bible for not increasing teacher pay, but he evidently found nothing in scripture preventing him from approving a 67 percent pay increase for legislators in 2007, which increased annual salaries for the part-time legislators from $30,710 to $49,500. He said that the higher pay helped to stop corruption.
A 2011 report showed that while Alabama teachers have the highest starting salaries in the nation, the state lags far behind the national average for teacher pay. Currently, a part-time legislator in Alabama is making more than a full-time teacher with a Master’s degree and 15 years of experience.
source: think progress
How do these people even come up with this fucking shit? AND get people to eat it up.
Hell, let's just go back to 1892, when it was okay to fire teachers for missing church or *gasp* getting married.
'For the Scripture says, "Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain," and "The worker deserves his wages."'
Have ya read it?
Yeah um there is a difference about the love of $$$ being the root of all evil and being able to live a sustainable life when keeping up with rising costs everywhere.
So the numerous teachers I've had had and my friend's parents who have been teacher would do better if they were paid less? So them worrying about getting supplies for their classrooms, affording their kids educations who would eventually become teachers, or thinking about getting a second job. It is just fucking ridiculous.
Edited at 2012-02-02 04:46 am (UTC)
He's been a teacher for three years now and after taxes, what does he make? Less than $30-fucking-thousand a year, and that is even factoring in the paltry $25 extra bucks he makes for doing after school tutoring each week! And they only allow him to count an hour of his time on tutoring each week, even though he works more than that because they don't want to give extra funding for it! And he's being required to pay for part of his insurance now on top of everything else because lawmakers believe teachers should hold more responsibility for that?
He loves what he does. He doesn't want to leave this profession because he feels like he was called to it and he doesn't want to abandon these kids who so desperately need someone who gives a shit. But NC is 49th out of 50 states on per student spending and people want to cut that spending and teacher pay even more! And now some ass hat wants to use the fucking Bible to justify the fact that my fiance and all the other teachers I know barely bring in enough to survive on? FUCK. YOU. FUCK. YOU. I. FUCKING. CAN'T.
Sounds legit! Seriously, though, I'm guessing that there are plenty of Christians who will believe this just because they don't know the Bible well enough to argue.
And there are also some teachers, it wouldn’t matter how much you would pay them, they would still perform to the same capacity.
Oh, yeah, no doubt. I had an ROTC instructor who was independently rather well-off and taught for supplemental income/the sake of teaching. Lots of teachers fit that bill, right?
He said that the higher pay helped to stop corruption.
... I got nothing. Every time I try to formulate a response, I start laughing.
Probably. Though my Christian teacher mother would probably throw a fit if she knew people in positions of power were saying shit like that.
Your Bible does not belong in public education legislation.
Say it with me now, only slowly.
YOUR BIBLE. DOES NOT BELONG. IN PUBLIC EDUCATION LEGISLATION.
public educationlegislation.ftfy
wait
People still invoke that in libraries and, I suspect, other women-heavy fields.
On the other hand, though, maybe we should take away that increase in his wage, and see how his job performance alters?