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Low pay. It鈥檚 long been a complaint and a talking point about teaching that has dominated the perception of the profession. While some states have improved wages for educators, the going rate for teachers has still left a lot to be desired for most.

The conversation about teacher pay also has broadened beyond salary, to include better health care coverage, honoring cross-district tenure, more solidly defined job requirements, and many other benefits.

EdWeek recently wrote about how much more teachers would like to see in their salaries鈥攁bout a $20,000 pay raise. In response to that article, many teachers took to social media to express what they鈥檇 like to see in overall compensation for teachers. Here鈥檚 a collection of the most popular sentiments.

Livable pay is needed

鈥淟ivable wages are not too much to ask for. Especially because it is a service we ALL depend on to educate the future generation and without it, no one would have childcare. When I have folks working in public education who can鈥檛 pay their bills and feed their children, something is terribly wrong.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 not about the amount [of money]. No one goes into teaching to be rich. It鈥檚 about the quality of life. Teachers should be compensated enough to buy a home, have health care, be student debt free, and retire comfortably [at a rate] that is matched by the cost of living in the area of the state they teach in.鈥�

鈥淲e can鈥檛 afford to live in the districts we teach in, and that鈥檚 BEFORE we spend our own money on classroom supplies and teaching aids.鈥�

鈥淏ack when I was young in the 鈥�60s, a teacher made enough money on a single salary to support a family of 6. Think about that for a minute.鈥�

Slow paycheck growth

鈥�... I鈥檓 in Arizona and only make $50K, 15 years in. A raise of 1-3% does nothing for me with the cost of living! We need better pay!鈥�

鈥淸The] issue is fairness, not only in comparison to jobs with similar qualifications and education, but [also] for veteran teachers. [A] starting salary and [a] 30-year veteran salary shouldn鈥檛 be close ... but it is closer than it should be here in N.C.鈥�

鈥�... 25 years [of] experience gets me about $10K more than a new teacher, and the raise yearly is just enough to cover the rise in health insurance costs ... It鈥檚 sad that the only way to get a real salary bump is to leave the classroom and become admin.鈥�

鈥淚n my area (a large metro area in Texas), the starting pay is higher than the average income... But 24 [years in] = 8K more than a first-year teacher. The [pay] steps are ridiculous.鈥�

鈥淭eachers are not valued. I have taught in the same district for 30 years. Only 2 different schools. [And now] my adult children make more than I do.鈥�

Better pay is big, but benefits also count

鈥淗onestly, [I鈥檇 like it] if my state and district would just give us better insurance coverage and not raise premiums every single year ...鈥�

鈥淚鈥檇 be happy if our healthcare/dental/vision was 100% paid for with no deductible. That would be worth it to me.鈥�

Transferrable tenure, credits, and experience would help

鈥淭enure should be transferable, at least within the same state, so teachers can apply for the better-paying jobs like other professions, rather than being locked into a district just because they worked there for their first few years.鈥�

鈥淚 taught in 3 states ... Each time I had to earn 3 or more credits to get certified in the new state and also get docked in pay equivalent to 3 years鈥� experience. Respect for several years of experience? Not!鈥�

鈥淚鈥檇 just like a cost of living raise like so many other professions. I鈥檇 also like my benefits to transfer with me if I change districts in the same state.鈥�

Less 鈥榝ine print鈥� in the job description

鈥� ... now [that] I鈥檓 retired, I鈥檓 grateful for a good pension. What I wanted was more time, not having to do paperwork every evening and weekend. Time is more important than money, hence I took early retirement.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檓 happy with my salary. I鈥檓 unhappy with the lack of support and extras we are always asked to do.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 often the conditions such as planning time and class sizes that we fight for, which benefit our students.鈥�

鈥淚 think [there] should be a massive increase every time we are exposed to violence.鈥�