1 in 4 U.S. teachers are chronically absent

My life as a crab doesn't suck. I still think that working 170 out of 365 days on the taxpayer's dime is ridiculous.

 

Who said my (or anyone else's) life sucks?

My point is that 10 to 13 weeks off per year should be adequate.

For comparison's sake, I get 23 days of PTO.

 

Are we arguing that public school teachers are currently under paid?

Compared to whom?

 

I get zero.

 

In my last journalism job, their salary offer came in below what I felt I deserved. But they were firm that it was the best they could do.

I said I'd accept it if they also offered an additional two weeks PTO, bringing my total to five weeks annually. They agreed.

It was a negotiation, just like teachers do.

Should I have apologized for that? Or not taken it all?

 

I don't get the point.

You had five weeks of time off?

Teachers get three months.

 

Fixing the agrarian school schedule would help solve this

 

This seems like the easiest fix. It doesn't seem like many families make tremendous use of a full summer break anyway, what with both parents working (or single parents) and year-round extracurriculars. Take July off and intersperse the remaining time around the year. It would solve the "brain drain" problem that affects disadvantaged kids severely when school starts up again after a three-month break.

 

I forget where I heard this, but the school schedule isn't agrarian based. The harvest is when labor is most needed, but that is when children go back to school.

 

The big problem in many areas are older school buildings don't have air conditioning. It's awful to be in the classroom in May and August-September.

 

Why intersperse the remaining time?

Why not just have 220 or so school days?