Do top private school teachers get paid less than public?

[Anonymous]

I've heard this consistently, but is it true for schools like Sidwell, Beauvoir/NCS/St. Albans, and GDS?

If so, what's the motivation for top-notch teachers to stay at the schools?

[Anonymous]

Yes, they get paid less. The upside is that you're dealing with kids who want to be there and their incredibly supportive families. If a kid is disruptive, they can be kicked out. There aren't SOLs and AYP to worry about. The environment is just night-and-day different than at the public schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, they get paid less. The upside is that you're dealing with kids who want to be there and their incredibly supportive families. If a kid is disruptive, they can be kicked out. There aren't SOLs and AYP to worry about. The environment is just night-and-day different than at the public schools.

This. Most top schools (that I know of) try to keep teacher salary within 80-90% of the public school pay. At the top schools like the ones you mention, the lower pay is absolutely worth it to have motivated kids, supportive administration (usually), and be free of the testing-driven education found in public schools.

[Anonymous]

How much less do they get paid?

Jeez, I want my kids' teachers to be paid more not less than publics. Where does all the tuition money go?

[Anonymous]

The other upside is SMALLER CLASSES. I teach English in MCPS and have 28-29 kids in all of my classes. Imagine spending time grading a class set of essays for 10-15 kids versus nearly 30.

However, I know that when you work at a private school, it is generally the expectation that you pick up other responsibilities, like coaching a team, advising a club, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The other upside is SMALLER CLASSES. I teach English in MCPS and have 28-29 kids in all of my classes. Imagine spending time grading a class set of essays for 10-15 kids versus nearly 30.

However, I know that when you work at a private school, it is generally the expectation that you pick up other responsibilities, like coaching a team, advising a club, etc.

Yes, but--in my experience at one of the schools mentioned above--there is MUCH less admin than in a public school, so teachers have some extra time to work directly with students instead of dealing with admin crap. And they get paid for coaching (don't know about club advising).

OP, I think it is is standard that privates, even the top privates, pay less than public. But the teachers are MUCH happier!

[Anonymous]

They also generally receive either free or heavily discounted tuition for their kid(s), which can more than make up for the difference in salary.

[Anonymous]

The above is not true in many privates .

[Anonymous]

Would love to hear from teachers. Is it truly worth the lower salary to teach in a private school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would love to hear from teachers. Is it truly worth the lower salary to teach in a private school?

YES! YES! YES!

As for tuition benefits: Most of the elite schools do not offer tuition remission for their teacher's students. Still worth it to teach here.

[Anonymous]

Private school teacher here and yes, it is absolutely worth the lower salary. I've taught in both and will never go back to public. Honestly, I would probably change careers before going back to public. That's not a slam against public school teachers at all; I'm just very concerned with the direction that public school education is taking and have no desire to be a part of it.

However, I'm not going to sugarcoat it, in such a high COL area the salary issue isn't a small thing. But, my child attends the school where I teach (with significant financial aid), so I am able to live in a less expensive neighborhood with not-so-great schools. It's worked out well for our families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would love to hear from teachers. Is it truly worth the lower salary to teach in a private school?

YES! YES! YES!

As for tuition benefits: Most of the elite schools do not offer tuition remission for their teacher's students. Still worth it to teach here.

14:42 here-- while many (most?) schools don't have a remission policy, it's been my experience among my teacher friends that schools will make an effort to make tuition affordable for faculty children. I know plenty of teacher families of modest means (like my own) that have children at the private schools where they work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How much less do they get paid?

Jeez, I want my kids' teachers to be paid more not less than publics. Where does all the tuition money go?

Parents send their kids to private school because they want to get extras that they won't get in public-- smaller class sizes, nicer facilities, specials (art, PE, music), field trips, state of the art materials and equipment (iPads, robotics, etc), top of the line athletic fields and playgrounds. Not to mention that an independent school will have admissions staff, development staff, communication staff… All of those things cost money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would love to hear from teachers. Is it truly worth the lower salary to teach in a private school?

YES! YES! YES!

As for tuition benefits: Most of the elite schools do not offer tuition remission for their teacher's students. Still worth it to teach here.

14:42 here-- while many (most?) schools don't have a remission policy, it's been my experience among my teacher friends that schools will make an effort to make tuition affordable for faculty children. I know plenty of teacher families of modest means (like my own) that have children at the private schools where they work.

PP here-Yes, I should have mentioned that in my reply. My school does not offer tuition remission for children of faculty and they need to go through the regular admissions process just as any other student would. That said, there is plenty of financial aide available for teacher's kids here, and a lot of teachers do end up enrolling their children. I was only commenting on the perception that private school teachers can send their children to <their school> for free, and that's why we teach here.

[Anonymous]

PP. Private school teacher. Yes it is. On the whole, the kids are better behaved and more engaged. Less administrative issues too. Unless you're teaching in a Whitman/Langley school, teaching in a public can be demoralizing. That said many public school teachers would not want to teach in a private school.