What gets me is that some people think that a teacher’s day is done at 2 or 3 PM when the bell rings… and that teachers get paid a FULL year’s salary and get to goof off for 3 months! I’ve seen this first hand. My wife (whose parents were both in the educational field) had to quit being an elementary school guidance counselor because of budget cuts. It’s hard for me to stay apolitical in this comic strip when I look at a certain former Secretary of Education! (Please forgive me for getting onto my soapbox)
Unfortunately the teachers’ union has corrupted education to the point I don’t think we’ll ever get it back. Teachers are not rewarded for good performance. Unions demand every “worker” be treated alike. States pay teachers based on their seniority.
I am a retired teacher. I have never worked a 6 hour day! The formal day was at least 8 hours, then planning, checking work, meetings, after school activities, and so on. Summers usually included weeks of classes to keep our certificates up to date and to rise on the pay scale. Insurance was paid half and we paid half, not free. In addition to the classroom days, there were days for training and such. School supplies had a very small budget, the rest came out of our pockets. I taught in city schools, small towns, and rural schools, everything from Head Start and Kindergarten to Juvenile Detention. Try it!
About 40% of those people who major in education, get a teaching job and start teaching find another job before their tenure year. Very few who survive that five years are poor teachers. I have taught and I have worked in an office. The major difference is that when you are working in an office you do not have to be paying 100% attention 100% of the time. This isn’t a demand from the front office. It is necessary to maintain the classroom discipline and get the job done. A poor teacher pays for it in student disrespect, and they pay for it heavily.As for summers off, there are mandatory inservice classes and meetings that take up a lot of time. That time will be needed to work on your graduate work, since most districts have the bachelor’s track set up so that raises after about 5 years don’t keep up with inflation. The masters is pretty much necessary for a living wage. Another option is to work a summer job. A friend of mine started mowing lawns and within three years was making too much to make it sensible to come back to teaching.And, when you leave work, you leave work. Each class requires about 20 minutes of prep time if you are revising lessons you have done before. If it’s a new lesson, an hour or two is more likely.After getting a total of 6 1/2 years of college and working for 32 years, I was making about 75% of what my nephew was two years into a sales job.All of the ideas for improving education add about 20% to the classroom hours, and no additional money seems to be available to get extra people to help with the job. Paying the people who are doing it more might make them happy, but it’s not going to increase the quality, because it would be an overwhelming amount of work. Eventually, they are going to get to the point where no one with the intelligence to do the job is going to be dumb enough to take it.
when “No Child Left Behind” was first introduced, it occurred to me that to make this work, either the bar should be lowered for children so that no one fails or raised so high for teachers that the bad ones need to find another profession.
BE THIS GUY over 1 year ago
Next time, ask to go the bathroom when the teacher is about to check the homework.
codycab over 1 year ago
Next time, just ignore him, Miss Wormwood.
The Calvinosaurus That Calvin Wanted To Discover over 1 year ago
Well that’s one way to beg for a better grade.
Templo S.U.D. over 1 year ago
good job, Calvin, opening your mouth for saying that statement
leopardglily over 1 year ago
Well he’s right anyhow.
SHIVA over 1 year ago
Nice try, Einstein!!!
Imagine over 1 year ago
He should at least get a little credit for that statement.
Zykoic over 1 year ago
They are! Teacher’s strike season….
JudasPeckerwood over 1 year ago
Calvin, timing is everything when you’re sucking up.
Susan00100 over 1 year ago
Ms. Wormwood has been Calvin’s teacher for—how many years?? She has has enough experience to take his statements with a LARGE grain of salt!!
BTW, doesn’t Hobbes do Calvin’s homework??
sandpiper over 1 year ago
Trying to butter up an old hand like Ms. Wormwood? Wasted effort.
The Reader Premium Member over 1 year ago
It’s scandalous how perceptive teachers are, too.
Jeff0811 over 1 year ago
Sounds like me when I am trying to slip something past the talented and beautiful censors at Go Comics.
'IndyMan' over 1 year ago
I think while it might stunned her for a short while, Miss Wormwood, saw through Calvin’s ruse ! !! !
Diamonds&Roses Premium Member over 1 year ago
I feel like Calvin’s raising a very good point, even if he was just saying it to act up in class…
Johnny Q Premium Member over 1 year ago
It was worth a shot…
bluram over 1 year ago
Miss Wormwood reads Calvin like a book.
hagarthehorrible over 1 year ago
This six year old is way ahead of his comrades. Mrs Wormwood failed to understand the statement once again.
jagedlo over 1 year ago
Nice try, Calvin!
Ol' me over 1 year ago
I totally agree with that last statement.
vaughnrl2003 Premium Member over 1 year ago
Still, a noble effort of buttering up the teacher. I’ll remember it next time I forget a conference call.
dv1093 over 1 year ago
When I taught high school, I had less kids that did their homework than did it.
rshive over 1 year ago
Too obvious to sneak by, Calvin.
V45mikky over 1 year ago
Calvin says they are not paid enough to grade homework.
nathan.sheriff3 over 1 year ago
Got to admit, for a moment he’s got her thinking!
Dr. Quatermass over 1 year ago
What gets me is that some people think that a teacher’s day is done at 2 or 3 PM when the bell rings… and that teachers get paid a FULL year’s salary and get to goof off for 3 months! I’ve seen this first hand. My wife (whose parents were both in the educational field) had to quit being an elementary school guidance counselor because of budget cuts. It’s hard for me to stay apolitical in this comic strip when I look at a certain former Secretary of Education! (Please forgive me for getting onto my soapbox)
klapre over 1 year ago
Unfortunately the teachers’ union has corrupted education to the point I don’t think we’ll ever get it back. Teachers are not rewarded for good performance. Unions demand every “worker” be treated alike. States pay teachers based on their seniority.
anndsssinclair over 1 year ago
I am a retired teacher. I have never worked a 6 hour day! The formal day was at least 8 hours, then planning, checking work, meetings, after school activities, and so on. Summers usually included weeks of classes to keep our certificates up to date and to rise on the pay scale. Insurance was paid half and we paid half, not free. In addition to the classroom days, there were days for training and such. School supplies had a very small budget, the rest came out of our pockets. I taught in city schools, small towns, and rural schools, everything from Head Start and Kindergarten to Juvenile Detention. Try it!
Diane Lee Premium Member over 1 year ago
christelisbetty over 1 year ago
https://www.ThisDayTrivia.com/trivia/september-19?f=Henry-Peter-Brougham#Henry-Peter-BroughamHenry Peter Brougham
Born September 19, 1778 d. 1868
Scottish orator. Quote: “Education makes a people easy to lead, but difficult to drive; easy to govern, but impossible to enslave.”
Marty241 over 1 year ago
when “No Child Left Behind” was first introduced, it occurred to me that to make this work, either the bar should be lowered for children so that no one fails or raised so high for teachers that the bad ones need to find another profession.
KEA over 1 year ago
I had one teacher in elementary who could have very well been the model for Calvin’s teacher… looked like that and was just as savvy.
g04922 over 1 year ago
Calvin is almost as manipulative as Ella in the Mt. Pleasant strip. LOL….
AndrewSihler over 1 year ago
Miss Wormwood is a little hard to bamboozle, isn’t she? Teachers who have seen it all have an unfair advantage.
rklynch over 1 year ago
Haha. She sure saw through all that didn’t she?
Otis Rufus Driftwood over 1 year ago
Some people are impervious to sycophants.
StevePappas over 1 year ago
I love how Calvin pounds his fist into his palm to emphasize his point.
Realimaginary1 Premium Member over 1 year ago
In some schools, teachers are essentially out on the streets!
GreggW Premium Member over 1 year ago
Saying the right thing for the wrong reason.
einarbt over 1 year ago
Here is one list for the US https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-10-worst-us-states-for-education.html