The Cost of a Highly Qualified Teacher

Originally created 6/28/08

No, it's not. It's the cost to a highly-qualified teacher.

This could be a cute mastercard commercial, but it's really not. A random comment from a fellow CTEL-taker today inspired me to count up the cost of becoming a highly qualified teacher. Yes, these figures are generalizations, and reflect my personal journey to teacherhood. People who don't move won't have to pay as much.

College education: $100,000 more or less
7 separate 3-hour tests that prove how much I know: $1,000 (plus 21 hours...)
Co-pays for doctor visits for classroom-acquired illnesses: $900. Seriously.
Certificate fees: $300 and counting (plus fingerprinting fees, however much those are)

And yet, I will never have the opportunity for promotion, unless I want to become a principal (which I don't). My top salary will be less than what some of my friends made a few years ago without a college degree. My brother will forever think of me as a loser, Jay Leno will always equate teachers with pedophiles, and I'll always be in the profession that is blamed for our nation's woes.

*update: I paid another $110 in certificate fees in November 2008.