Rethinking the basis for teacher salaries

I admit that I don't understand the correlation between teacher salaries and the quality of education our children are receiving. It appears that teachers who work in large school districts make a lot more money than teachers who work in small school districts. I wonder if that means that somehow kids who attend the large school districts are more valuable than the kids who don't. What I do understand is there are many teachers who are underpaid; many teachers who are earning salaries commensurate with the quality of education they provide their students; and many teachers who are overpaid for the same reason.

Wading through the 121 page Illinois State Board of Education Teacher Salary Study, all I really learned was that District 211, for example, pays its teachers an average of $92,800 for working 81/2 months per year. Although this salary is among the top in the state, its five high schools rank 35th, 66th, 101st, 178th and 217th in the 2008-09 11th grade reading/math test scores. Beating out high school District 211 was a plethora of smaller high school districts whose teachers receive a lot less in salary and benefits. Tt appears that high teacher salaries are not as vital to a good education as we are being told.

Having compensation tied mostly to the size of the school district and how long the teacher has worked in the district and not on the quality of education, is absurd and hardly conducive to quality education.

I applaud Secretary of Education Arne Duncan for trying to turn things around. Teachers who effectively get through to the students should be paid a lot more than teachers who don't.

Len Brauer

Palatine