How Not to Be a Poor Teacher

by Guy E. White on 17 September, 2014

Teachers, on average, make more than the average person in the United States. Why, then, do so many teachers seem to be so underpaid?

Teachers are the second most valuable working members of society, second only to parents. Kids often spend a greater ratio of their working hours with teachers than they do with their own parents. Teachers are compensated for their service higher than the national average of paid workers. Yet so many educators still discuss pay as if they are the most underpaid. Why?

Don’t get me wrong, I want a raise. However, the language that educators often use around money is fueled by some unhealthy behaviors that I (and my dear educator friends) have observed over the last many years. Here are a few of those behaviors and how they make a teacher poor.

1. Avoid Unpaid, Self-Imposed Overtime

Do you find yourself spending hours upon hours of extra time doing tasks outside your contracted hours? In my first year teaching, I found myself in my classroom grading papers until 7pm at night. I recall a mentor of mine coming by one day and saying, “I saw your car in the parking lot. Are you okay? You know, if you are staying here working this late at night, maybe your system needs some reworking.”

Frankly, my systems were horrible: they were making me work many more hours than needed. A key question every educator should ask is: “How can I make the greatest impact in the time allotted to me each day?” I take huge ownership of making the taxpayers’ dollars count for my time on the job, such that I can have a life outside the classroom. This is healthy for everyone. Wealth comes from health.

2. Build Better Systems

Could more focused lessons, better grading strategies, and more organized learning provide more time to do what counts? What counts: working intimately with students so they can build the skills they need. What does not count: sorting 1000 papers in alphabetical order by date and period (we’ve all been there). My lessons used to cover way too much. They were disorganized.

Now, by focusing on a few skills at a time, my feedback is more impactful and focused. I put more time into being 500% present with my students, making sure they, step-by-step, are able to demonstrate the required skills IN THE ROOM, such that I can spend less time correcting what they do outside of it. I group students as a learning strategy, and have them turn in papers in such a way that keeps the learning moving and my feedback flowing. What results is a wealth of quality time with students.

3. Do Less Better

Every teacher becomes a coordinator, team lead, or advisor at some point in his or her career. However, I’ve learned to be more and more choosy about what I say “yes” to. Always, I fulfill my contracted duties: always. However, when it comes to those extras, I want to give my best while being compensated in a way that honors the duty being bestowed upon me. Have you been an unpaid lead? What did that offer you? What did that offer the school? In what ways did that hold back and/or harm your school? Encourage your school to compensate talented individuals for their work. There are so many hours in the day: learn the art of saying “no” when appropriate. You’re actually helping others by not overcommitting and burning yourself out.

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