I did read your source. Did you read my post? 45 not 54k, not paid during the summer, and EVERY teacher I know works more than 50 hours week (dozens of them).

I did read your source. Did you read my post? 45 not 54k, not paid during the summer, and EVERY teacher I know works more than 50 hours week (dozens of them). The Survey you linked doesn't seem like it should be statistically accurate - it's not a random sampling of teachers, it's a pre-picked group of people, which is then culled for 'teachers' who are randomly picked. Every salary'd job that requires a degree that I'm aware of gets benefits, and the benefits most school systems have are NOT better than average anymore. I pay less for health care, and have better retirement options at my private employer than any of the local school districts. We don't have a pension/retirement benefit (other than 401k), but school districts around here are laying teachers off and not hiring new ones because they don't have the money to pay them in the first place. On top of that, most other professions don't require you to provide your own work supplies (ie: you get a paper to print reports on, pens/pencils and notepads, etc.), while teachers must purchase all of their non-textbook, non-furniture educational materials. Library of books, reams and reams of paper for work packets, colored paper, art supplies, science project materials (we've spent hundreds on various plants, moths, butterflies, etc. for life sciences experiments). Buying even paper and pencils for 72 kids over the course of a full school year is a non-negligble expense, especially at the salary being paid.