While it is refreshing to see that The New York Times is in favor of raises for teachers, I take issue with the statement that the reason teachers leave the profession is because there is  “little  possibility of  advancement.”

The survey of teachers leaving the field done by the UFT in 2013 showed the predominant reasons for the departure  of thousands of new teachers was  for “lack of administrative support, lack of faculty influence, large class sizes, poor student discipline  and inadequate planning time.”

Anyone who goes into teaching thinking they will work their way up the corporate ladder is in the wrong profession. Teachers are attracted to teaching because of a love of children, love and mastery of their subject matter and a desire to communicate and share that knowledge with others. 

Would we have it any other way?

Irene Bernstein Pechmèze, retired