Hidden Subsidies Hold Back Teacher Compensation

I read a good blog post the other day from Justin Baeder, titled Subsidies to the Teaching Profession.  In the post he argued that " the teaching profession continues to be subsidized" by three things which are helping to keep wages lower. 

First, is what he called the charity work subsidy.  Because education is a noble profession, people are willing to "donate" their time to it.  He mentions seeing applicants for open teaching positions who have already had a successful career or who are supported by wealthy parents.  Speaking from my own experiences, I have seen former military folks in the classroom who would fit into this group as well.  I might even fall into this group a little bit as both my parents and my in-laws are very generous towards my family when it comes to things like vacations and eating out.  Their financial support in these little areas has helped make my family's quality of life better than it would be if we were just on my salary.   

Second, is the rich spouse subsidy.  He acknowledges that the term, which I adjusted slightly, might be a little offensive.  This is the idea that many teachers have spouses who work at better paying jobs.  Again I see this at play with my own colleagues.  Many are married to lawyers, doctors, and engineers who are paid well.  My own mother falls into this category.  My father makes a good living from his job which allows my mother to work as an amazing preschool teacher with out having to worry as much about what she gets paid.

Another part of this subsidy is summed up when Justin says, "For men in particular, the idea of choosing a career that needs to be financially supported by a partner's career isn't very appealing."  I admit I struggle with this idea in a slightly different context.  My wife is about to stay home full time to watch our six month old son.  Our budget is going to be tight because of this decision.  I wish that I could paid a little bit more so things wouldn't be so tight.

The final subsidy is what Justin calls the vow of poverty.  Justin sums this idea up best when he says, "Many educators reject higher-paying alternatives because they believe education to be a worthy endeavor."  I definitely fall into this category.  One of the many reasons I was drawn to education was the idea of giving back in a public capacity.  I knew what I was getting into from a compensation stand point and was still willing to take the job.  I gave up a career in Washington, D.C. to become a teacher.  

What do you think about these subsidies?  Do you think they make sense?  Do you agree with Justin that they are holding back teacher compensation?        

What Makes a Good Video Game: Fantasy

If good video games have educational value, which I argued that they do in Video Games Are Educational, than what makes a video game good?   Well the first part is that the game has some sort of fantasy. 

When I say fantasy I mean anything that allows the game player to pretend to be someone or something that they likely could not be.  For example, a city planner in the game Sim City, a football coach/player in the Madden Football games, a theme park operator in Roller coaster Tycoon, or a World War II soldier in one of the many first person shooters that exist today.  Having a good fantasy helps to captivate players and pull them into the game.  It helps them to become emotionally invested in the game and its outcomes.  This is particularly effective if you can tap into an interest of the gamer player. 

I think this is one area where video game makers are falling short when it comes to attracting more female game players.  I don't think they are doing enough to appeal to female fantasy situations.  If you look at recent games that have been very successful, they do a better job of drawing in female game players.

 What fantasy aspect of a game do you like?      

Video Games are Educational

Do you learn from video games?  That is the major premise of a course I am taking called, Games, Simulations, and Virtual Worlds for Learning.  So far I have been amazed and surprised at how much you actually can learn from a video game. 

First, you learn the basic controls.  You have to teach yourself what the various buttons, clicks, shakes, and pushes do in the game. 

Second, you learn the how to do things with in the game itself.  For example, you learn how to select a play in a football game or you learn how to zone for residential in Sim City.

Third, you start to put those actions together to solve problems.  The nice thing about games is that those problems are easy at first.  They scaffold you as you advance through the game into deeper and deeper levels of problem solving.

Fourth, you learn about the story of the game.  Some games have very complex stories, while others like Sim City are pretty open ended.

Fifth, you learn the values of the game that are defined by its story and its rules.  For example, in one of my readings for the course I came across a quote from a child who had played Sim City.  That child had made the connection in the game that raising taxes leads to riots.  While not directly true in the real world, that idea certainly conveys a value about taxes to the child.

This is just scratching the surface.  Stay tuned for more learning about video games.  I am really excited to explore how video games can help me be a better teacher.   

Weekly Roundup (4)

Going to get this little blog running again after a nice vacation.  Here are three links from the last few weeks that caught my eye. 

Moving Beyond Standardized Test Scores in Evaluating Special Education Teachers:  Part 1 - Patrick Ledesma tells the story of a special education teacher who had a 100 percent pass rate for her students. - This is the kind of real world  analysis that I am not seeing in the education debate about testing.  I don't mind using measures of performance as long as considerations are taken for vast array of additional inputs that go into a student's performance.  I really like his point at the end of the article where he asks how this teacher would do in a division that was less supportive.    

Social Media doesn't "cause" unprofessional or inappropriate behavior.  It "catches it. - Lisa Nielsen raises an argument against restricting teachers use of social media.  - I tend to agree with Lisa's distinction about banning bad behavior and not banning our communication mediums, but this is a tough issue for me right now.  I have not figured out which side I want to join.    

Federal Education Budget Project - New America Foundation has compiled relevant education data into an easy to search database.  I always like things that add to the transparency of government.