To the editor:
As I write this, I’m feeling the deepest sadness personally, and the most piercing hurt professionally, having read the letter to the editor that was published at the top of page 6 in the Jan. 4, 2024 edition of Lynnfield Weekly News. Some of the statements that were included in the third paragraph of the piece are seriously flawed; they misrepresent and seriously underestimate all that is involved with the quality teaching in Lynnfield. Understanding the facts thoroughly and accurately is essential.
The letter-writer states, “This for a group of people (who) work 185 days a year and their work day is less than eight hours… ” Yes, teachers are paid for what their printed daily schedules look like regarding class assignments and time frames for 185 weekdays (and by the way, not the long-time misconception that far too many people claim that teachers are paid for summer months). Yes, the clock says eight hours. However, those numbers of days and hours don’t come close to including the significant time invested before the school day and long after the school day; lengthy nightly and weekend hours of close-correcting essays, projects, tests, alternative assessments, and journals; creating and modifying lessons and materials that are flexible enough to make grade-level course content interesting, meaningful, manageable, understandable, and appropriately challenging for the broad spectrum of student abilities and learning styles within heterogeneously grouped classes; writing detailed progress reports and class-related assessments needed for the development of students’ 504 plans and individual educational plans; hours invested during holiday, winter, and spring “vacations;” parent contact throughout the school year; and most importantly, being able to shift gears when our dear learners need a Plan B (or C or Q…. ) when their days just don’t go smoothly.
The letter-writer does not take into consideration the hours/weeks not during their “185 days and eight hours,” during which teachers attend classes (for which they are not financially reimbursed) and complete the related graduate-level assignments in order to stay abreast of current research and methodology as well as to earn the PDPs required to renew their teaching licenses in their areas of certification. The letter-writer also does not mention that the term prep periods refers to time that is more likely than not used for teachers to meet together with parents of individual students whose specific needs warrant it; for teachers to meet together as grade-level teams to plan expanded group opportunities for their students; for teachers to focus on curriculum-related features that enrich the interconnections among different subjects’ content; or for teachers to meet with guidance counselors to zoom in on grade/age-appropriate strategies when emotional development and/or stress situations need deliberate attention. And these are just a few examples.
I had the honor and joy of teaching in Lynnfield for 35 years (1974-2009). My contract (as a teacher with two master’s degrees plus the additional coursework equivalent of another two master’s, which didn’t count on a pay scale silo) never came close to $96,000 per year, but it was somewhat comparable to salaries at the time. However, during my years, when I calculated what I would be paid if considering all of the real/actual time that the letter-writer has not mentioned, Lynnfield sure got more than its money’s worth. I am certain that today’s LPS teachers are finding the same kinds of gaps. I’m glad the letter-writer said, “… and I have a lot of respect for many teachers.” Hopefully, acknowledging the fuller scope of the commitment and time invested beyond the “185 days and 8 hours” can broaden the perspective.
Teaching goes far beyond days and hours on a printed schedule. Teaching isn’t clock-in/clock-out. Teaching is not a job like other careers. Actually, teaching is not a job. Teaching is much more…. so, so, so much more.
MaryBeth Wing
LMS Grade 8 Language Arts Teacher (retired)
