At present, this educator is pursuing an advanced degree in education at the cost of around 50,000.00. There is absolutely no district, state, or federal contribution to this cost other than providing the loan dollars.
Shouldn't educators receive dollars towards furthering their education? Certainly the pay is not adequate for the job in the 21st Century!1
I think about this often. Working in K-12 education, it will take me a long time to pay back my loans. It is kind of ironic that we are in the education business, yet we do not reward or recognize people for furthering their education. In my district, teachers receive an additional $3,000 for Master's Degree, $3,200 for Specialist's Degree, and $3,400 for Doctorate Degree. These do not compound. It would take a teacher nearly their entire career to pay for a doctorate degree.
ReplyDeleteYears ago, my district paid for a teacher to earn her doctorate and she left the district right after she graduated. Therefore, the program ended.
While I do think educators should receive some type of compensation for furthering their education, I do not know what type of "dollars" would be fair or reasonable.
Many districts in NJ do compensate you for the degree and reimburse you for the coursework at about 70%. Typically the contract also states that you owe it all back if you leave before 3 years are up. This is a good mecahnism to ensure the district is benefiting from creating internal leadership and expertise.
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