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Originally Posted by CliffFletcher
Really? Into what jobs? I'm curious, because the teachers I know have backgrounds in social sciences, humanities, and fine arts, and the job market for people with degrees in Sociology and Art History is terrible.
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They have gone into construction, publishing, oilfield services, and working in industrial plants. I am not sure what their backgrounds were in, but I don't think that their degrees helped them at all in gaining their positions.
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Can you name a country where you think teachers do get respect, or do you think this is a global phenomenon? People often cite Finland as a country where teaches are highly qualified and highly respected. It's worth noting that the average salary for a teacher in Finland is $38k US.
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I've never heard that teachers in Finland are highly qualified and highly respected, but I have heard that their education system is very economical compared throughout the world.
Interestingly, in a graph towards the bottom of the following link:
http://www.theguardian.com/teacher-n...ound-the-world
, it shows that the average class size in Finland is 17.8 students while the average class size in Alberta is 25.8 students. I would bet that most teachers in Alberta would take a cut in pay to reduce their class sizes by 69%.
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So where would that increased funding for education come from? Do you think provincial governments would divert money from health care to fund education if more men were teachers? Or would the public be prepared to pay higher taxes?
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I think that it is a given that Albertans' taxes are insufficient to fund the level of goods and services that we get from government.
For example, you compared Alberta and New Brunswick back in post #29. I supplied a comparison in post #36 of the differences in median incomes in 2013 (which was the most recent data I could find). In 2013, an Albertan with the median average income of $97,390 would pay $7,979.70 in provincial taxes (=8.2% of income) with a GST of 5% on most purchases. A resident of New Brunswick with the median average income of $67,340 would pay $5,866.49 in provincial taxes (=8.7%), IN ADDITION to a HST of 13%. In other words, after the first $26,415.13 spent on goods that are subject to the GST/HST the resident of New Brunswick would pay more tax than the Albertan while earning $30,050 (or 30.8%) less income. And that is to pay teachers in New Brunswick who make $20,000 less than teachers in Alberta. I would say that yes, in comparison to the rest of the country, we don't pay high enough taxes to pay for the education of our children (along with other goods and services).