Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm kind of tired of hearing teachers say they are not paid enough. My DH is a teacher and makes about $90K, plus we have great insurance (for which we pay little) and he will get a pension when he retires.

I am a lawyer and make about the same as DH does, for more hours and no pension. If I purchased insurance through my employer it would cost a lot more than what we pay via MCPS.

boo hoo, lawyer

Tell me something - How long did it take before your husband earned $90K? Furthermore, how many degrees does he hold?

Sure our insurance and pension are perks. However, I hold three degrees. It took 18 years before I hit the 90K mark.

No boo-hoo for me. I have no complaints. My point is that OP shouldn't complain either.

My DH has been teaching for 20+ years and has 3 degrees. I have three degrees, too, and have been practicing law for 20+ years as well.

We give gifts to DC's teachers during the holiday season and at the end of the school year. My feeling is that we also give gifts to friends, family and other people we appreciate as well; so why not to the teachers and other staff members who are such an important part of our child's daily life? In elementary school (when we had nothing to go by and did not know about forums like this one) we did give gift cards of $50 and $100 at the end of the school year to the classroom teacher. It never occured to us that the teacher would be offended or think that we expected anything. They truly were just thank you gifts of appreciation and nothing more. No one ever objected and we receive nice thank notes. Now I'm feeling a little like we did something wrong. I would appreciate if teachers would comment and let me know what if any gifts we should give to middle and high school teachers?

Anonymous wrote:OP, you are a teacher because you did choose to be one. You invest extra time as any other public servant. All public servants do overtime without getting paid. I am so tired of making cards and contributing towards gifts for below average teachers. It's sad how many teachers are uninterested in the individuality of each student. Teachers should not expect any gifts, they should be there only if they like their job and benefits. And they should treat every individual in their class with the same attention, regardless the gifts received from student's parents.

Aren't you bitter, PP.

I'm sure you're passing along that bitterness to your kids.

Thanks . . .

BTW - I'd love to see you give INDIVIDUALIZED attention to 130 employees each day.

Anonymous wrote:I'm kind of tired of hearing teachers say they are not paid enough. My DH is a teacher and makes about $90K, plus we have great insurance (for which we pay little) and he will get a pension when he retires.

I am a lawyer and make about the same as DH does, for more hours and no pension. If I purchased insurance through my employer it would cost a lot more than what we pay via MCPS.

boo hoo, lawyer

Tell me something - How long did it take before your husband earned $90K? Furthermore, how many degrees does he hold?

Sure our insurance and pension are perks. However, I hold three degrees. It took 18 years before I hit the 90K mark.

Anonymous wrote:Op here, I am pretty sure I indicated that I don't expect students should give me gifts, but appreciate them when students/parents have been so kind as to do so. I make nothing near 90K and we have had a pay freeze In MCPS for three years. Teachers are not paid equally, but by seniority. So as a seven year teacher, I am still only compensated as a 4th year.

17:30 here. Believe me, I know about the pay freeze because like you, DH hasn't had a raise in 3 years - but then, neither have I, and neither have many, many workers. It's not about being a teacher; it's about the economy.

And sorry, but seven years is not a long time to have been in the profession, and seniority and experience is a reasonable basis for additional compensation. DH has been teaching for 20+ years and I should think he'd be making more than someone who's been doing it for a fraction of that time.

Op here, I am pretty sure I indicated that I don't expect students should give me gifts, but appreciate them when students/parents have been so kind as to do so. I make nothing near 90K and we have had a pay freeze In MCPS for three years. Teachers are not paid equally, but by seniority. So as a seven year teacher, I am still only compensated as a 4th year.

OP, you are a teacher because you did choose to be one. You invest extra time as any other public servant. All public servants do overtime without getting paid. I am so tired of making cards and contributing towards gifts for below average teachers. It's sad how many teachers are uninterested in the individuality of each student. Teachers should not expect any gifts, they should be there only if they like their job and benefits. And they should treat every individual in their class with the same attention, regardless the gifts received from student's parents.

I'm kind of tired of hearing teachers say they are not paid enough. My DH is a teacher and makes about $90K, plus we have great insurance (for which we pay little) and he will get a pension when he retires.

I am a lawyer and make about the same as DH does, for more hours and no pension. If I purchased insurance through my employer it would cost a lot more than what we pay via MCPS.

I give my kids' teachers gifts two times a year (December and June). Knowing that a lot of teachers in public school use their own money to furnish school supplies, I don't mind giving them gifts and they really appreciate it.

OP, does cash count as a gift card value? I have given $20 cash to my child's teacher (1 - he's in ES) in years past, but seeing some of the comments on this forum freaked me out that it was inappropriate. We always included a note (in the homemade card) saying "Enjoy a treat on us!" This is in no way an attempt to bribe - just enjoy a treat, whether it is food, desert, a manicure, whatever she would like the most.

I was thinking this year to skip it all out of "appropriateness" but do a card and homemade cookies, even though other posters complained about homemade food.

The gift giving drops each year the kid gets older, i am totally agianst it and tell the parents at back to school night not to send any. i tell them the best gift I can get would be to have homework done and well behaved kids.

Thanks for posting that OP, very helpful. I have a child in an MCPS high school and I have to say we have not really considered teacher gifts despite having done them in earlier grades. Maybe it's because there are so many (7 teachers) or because most of the teachers change with the new semester. We have done coach gifts (who are also teachers) from the team.

Personally in our family we use the holidays as a time of year to say "thank you" to all of those that have helped us out. Whether that is a monetary gift, a card or something else I think its an important lesson for our children to understand. That sometimes it feels good to give to other's that have made a difference in our lives. The teacher's we know work very hard at their jobs and while I know I don't personally get a year end bonus or even a thank you card from my employer I don't see why that should be my guide for what we do for other's that we interact with. And even if I don't think a particular teacher or care giver has done an exceptional job I still like to provide them with a little something because they do spend so much time and energy caring for our children.

Anonymous wrote:. One poster said something to the effect of teachers don't need gifts for doing their jobs... do we get gifts for doing ours? I do think may firms give bonuses at some point in the year, something a teacher does not receive ... and I promise I am in no way fairly compensated for the amount of time I invest in my job, and the way that some students treat me. I am a public servant, and when a student or parent takes a moment to thank me for that I really appreciate it. So if you think a teacher does a good job- let her/him know. Even if it is just in a card.

Imdont think bonuses are as common as you think. Also, as far as compensation, you might not think your paycheck represents fair compensation, but don't forget the generous pension that teachers get. When you consider compensation, you have to consider the paycheck, the benefits and the deferred compensation that your union negotiated for you. It's not a ad package at all - even considering what you put up with from some of your students.

I am an MCPS teacher, I looked through the posts about whether or not to give gifts to teachers, and what is appropriate etc... I did no see anyone posting this information.

At our back to school training in August this topic was discussed.

The MCPS policy is that teachers can not accept a gift card more than 25 dollars in value, and no more than than two such gifts from the same family in one school year.

I have been a high school teacher for seven years and I have probably received as many gifts. It is very rare that students/parents send holiday gifts, at least at my school. When I have been given gifts I have been very appreciative. One poster said something to the effect of teachers don't need gifts for doing their jobs... do we get gifts for doing ours? I do think may firms give bonuses at some point in the year, something a teacher does not receive ... and I promise I am in no way fairly compensated for the amount of time I invest in my job, and the way that some students treat me. I am a public servant, and when a student or parent takes a moment to thank me for that I really appreciate it. So if you think a teacher does a good job- let her/him know. Even if it is just in a card.