Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Professional Athletes and Teachers
This is an extension of what we were talking about in class last week concerning professional athletes and the pay they recieve. I find it especially ironic that many of the PE teachers who contribute in so many ways to the fundamentals, sportsmanship and cognitive aspects for all athletes remain underappreciated by society, yet have the respect and admiration of the athletes themselves. In addition, all PE teachers receive the same benefits as most teachers, low income salary for the work put in. We live in a money driven society, where it's not everything by any means but how far can the rewards of teaching motivate all educators to continue working hard to make things better for themselves and others? The average teacher drop out rate after the first 5 years of teaching in South Carolina is around 30%. This may be for a variety of reasons, but one would have to consider the job toughness and salary with which the job encompasses. We all take responsibilty for the jobs we choose, however, when you have a passion to do something, and understand the job which best suits you does not pay well, should money then be the foundation for which we live? Professional athletes are overpaid, but just as we discussed in class, it is a media issue. Most families want to come home, relax and enjoy television even though there views of professional athletes are altered.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I think the question you raise is a tough one. Even though I know that teaching does not pay well and I have had experience in teaching for a short time, I still continue to strive to reach my goal to be a teacher. Why? I think there are a choice few out there that teach because they love their job, not because of how much it pays. I'm not sure I would become a professional athlete if I had the chance, just to make millions of dollars. Athletes live a totally different life than we do. A life on the road is a hard one and most of the time it is the biggest complaint in professional sports. Many of them long to be in the comfort of their own home when on the road. It's harder than one thinks.
Excellent post, Mark. Good comments by Allison as well.
Like Allison noted, there are other benefits to being a teacher and drawbacks to being an athlete. Teaching is also stable (there's a need for the job, the patterns of teaching have a degree of predictability). It's relatively safe (low risk of injury). It typically has good benefits (retirement & insurance). These are in addition to the personal benefits that drive most of us, like making a difference in someone's life.
Post a Comment