In teaching, money seldom becomes an issue. That’s because everyone knows it’s not a profession that’s easily associated with the word lucrative. Most teachers do more than what they’re paid for, but that’s not without cause. For one, we teachers only get what can be collected by the school. If enrollment goes down, then it’s only logical to expect that salaries start constricting. Second, even if enrollment doesn’t dwindle, but collection suffers, then the same thing happens. I mean, if the parents themselves experience financial crises and refuse to pay on time, who can blame them right? It’s not like it’s less costly for the school to hire commercial collection agencies to facilitate faster or more efficient collection. Third, if the economy takes a fall, a school is forced to result to only two alternatives – cut down on the payroll list or cut the down on the pay itself. If it was you, can you stomach an increase in paycheck if it means another colleague has lost his?

Yes most teachers do more than what they’re paid for but it doesn’t mean they don’t get compensated justly. There are certain things that we teachers get from teaching that’s worth more than the financial benefits. There’s admiration, appreciation, a sense of accomplishment, and a sense of relevance and fulfillment especially after realizing you’re teaching more than academics but lessons of life as well.

Before we start complaining about how much less we get than others, let’s remember that teaching is our choice, and we love what we do – not because it brings in the gold, but because that’s what we are. We’re teachers!