Letter to the editor: Comment about teaching profession all too familiar

I am a teacher and I am proud of my profession. I have made a difference in the lives of hundreds of children. Last month, while at a community dinner with my husband, the conversation turned to the salaries of a local individual. I made the comment that I would love to make that kind of salary some day and that, often, I am discouraged, because no matter how much education I get or how long I work, that kind of a salary seems out of reach.

The person across the table from me, looked right at me and said, “Then why don’t you get a real job?” I was floored and watched the others at the table smile like the comment was funny and appropriate. Not one person at that table indicated that the comment was inappropriate. I found this attitude to be utterly demeaning and insulting to me as a teacher and a person.

Now, many of you would think I should just let it go, as the person was obviously unaware of what it takes to be an educator. But I can’t. As a teacher, I have heard these comments too many times. I am tired of defending my choice of occupation. I am a competent, dedicated and hardworking individual who deserves to be treated with respect, as do all the other professionals in our community. I have a Master’s degree, 23 years of teaching experience and an English-as-a-second-language endorsement. I am proud to be a teacher. Would this individual have dared to make this comment to his doctor, his attorney, his accountant or the fertilizer plant manager?

Without a teacher, that person wouldn’t have been able to read the menu that evening, figure out how to pay the bill or, more importantly, be able to run the business that he chose as his profession. I would never be so bold to demean his choice of occupation.

I would like to say to every resident of this state that my job as an educator is a mission, that even though only some can successfully accomplish this mission, everyone, everyone in our society benefits from the results. I would like people to remember this saying by Stephen D. Glass: “A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in or the kind of car I drove. But the world can be a better place because I was important in the life of a child.”

Alicia D. Bata

Adams, N.D.

(Bata is a member of the North Dakota Education Association Board of Directors and represents North Dakota on the National Education Association Board of Directors)

Tags: opinion, letter, education, teachers