The Tale of Two Oklahoma Teachers

December 18, 2016

      "It was the best of times; it was the worst of times." This line from The Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens sums up our state's educational situation. Last week, we heard from Shawn Sheehan and his situation as a teacher. I think it is also important to hear from the teachers who have taught over 20 years in this state. What do they think about education? Why aren't most of them leaving? So here are the responses from two veteran teachers. One response is anonymous, and the other one is from me.

     I am a twenty-four year veteran teacher; all of my years have been done in Oklahoma. I have taught 9-12 English along with three years of direct instruction language arts. My experience has taken me through curriculum and hallways of 6A schools to 2A schools. When I began teaching, my net pay was just $1,275.00. I am a single parent with two teenagers. Today, because my children are not on my health insurance, my net pay is around $3,000.00. After almost 25 years in teaching, my net pay has just gone up $2,000.00. This amount is roughly an $84.00 increase per month. It is incredibly insulting considering the amount of additional responsibilities and demands placed on teachers, like me, each year. I believe that education has lost sight of the basics, and in lieu of catering to statistics and competition, we are neglecting are kids' basic needs---along with compassion, mentoring, and modeling hard work. I stay in hope that one day the people in charge will notice the crumbling foundation, and that it needs to be repaired before we can pile on all the new initiatives that create more problems rather than solving them.
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      I am an English teacher who has taught twenty-five years in Oklahoma. I have three college degrees: Bachelor's  Degree in English, Master's Degree in Secondary Education, and a Master's Degree in Reading/Reading Specialist.  When I started my teaching career, my net pay was $1000.00.  Now, after 25 years and three college degrees, my net pay is ...$2,200.00. Wait! I only make this much with three college degrees, and we are telling students that college is the only way to make more money and to be more qualified for a job.  That's a topic for another blog. So, why is my net pay so low with this many years of experience and three colleges degrees? Just browse the teacher minimum pay scale on the OSDE website; then one of the reasons for this low net pay will be apparent. For my first Master's Degree in Secondary Education, I received a $600.00 increase in salary, which means that my pay went up $50.00 a month. For my second Master's Degree in Reading/Reading Specialist, I received no increase in salary. My net pay has remained stagnant for at least the last ten years. If we want students to value college degrees, then when need to show them that a college degree is worth more than $50.00 a month. I have told my students about my situation, and that if they choose the college path, they need a degree that will help them earn more money. Another issue is the price of health insurance, not for me, but for my husband and children. My HealthChoice premium is $1, 167.00 a month and will increase to around $1,200.00 in 2017. Each year, there is an increase, and from 2005, the premiums have gone up  So, why would I stay in Oklahoma? My roots run deep in this state, born and raised here, and I have too many years invested in teaching to leave. However, I can understand why other teachers would go to surrounding states. In my opinion, education should go into a different direction: apprenticeships, college courses in high schools, and literacy across the curriculum. 

      At this point, I don't care about a raise; it wouldn't make that much difference in my pay. A stipend would make a bigger difference than a pay raise. I'm looking for solutions, not problems, for education. I choose the road not taken. I hope our "winter of despair turns into the spring of hope."