Re: 15% of the Population, 2 Hours per Weekend (was Development of Political Underdevelopment)
On Mar 26, 2007, at 6:50 PM, Matt wrote:
No offense to your sister-in-law intended, but important how? More important than ???, less than ??? In kindergarten I learned the skill of coloring within the lines. Beyond that not much else, other than becomed socialized to the fact that when I chose to eat, sleep, drink, or use the restroom would be at the whim of some random authority figure.
Kindergarten teachers still make more than the median US income, no?
I don’t think your personal memories of kindergarten count for much
in measuring the social importance of early childhood education. I’ve
heard her discussing her work with colleagues - she teaches fairly
poor kids, who are far from problem-free - and it’s complicated. They
think about the kids, their personalities, and their difficulties.
And no, they don’t make more than the median US income, nowhere near
it. It’s a female-dominated profession, and a “caring” one at that,
so it’s got two strikes against it in any wage equation. According to
the BLS doc I cited earlier, the average U.S. worker makes $651/week;
the average woman, $585/week. The average pre-K and K teacher makes
$521 a week. (The field is 96% female, so there’s not enough data to
say with statistical significance how much males make in the field.)
A pre-K/K teacher makes 20% less than the average worker, and 11%
less than the average woman worker.
Public relations specialists, however, make $860 a week. And we all
know how socially useful they can be!
Doug