The teaching profession is an honorable commitment by millions of men and women at all levels from prekindergarten through college and graduate school, and no one goes into the profession expecting to become wealthy!
Rather, they are mostly idealists who love the world of knowledge and wish to impart their enthusiasm for knowledge to the younger generation. They sacrifice the possibility of acquiring wealth because they are drawn to the wish to affect the future in a non profit way.
They should expect respect and dignity from their supervisors, from parents and students, from politicians, from the news media, and from the corporate world!
After all, corporate chief executive officers, doctors, lawyers, dentists, accountants, engineers, professors, police officers, nurses, social workers, fire fighters, and EVERYONE ELSE not specifically mentioned, ALL are educated by teachers at all levels.
It is outrageous that conservatives and Republicans have the gall to insult and deprecate our teachers, who are unable to support their families as it is because of low wages compared to their educational preparation, and often have to work at second jobs to survive, but still are committed to do good for their students and for society!
It is about time that the vicious attack on the teaching profession come to an end, and we start treating teachers with dignity, decent pay and working conditions, and honor those who have a greater impact, much of the time, than do parents on the development and success of their children!