Teacher Pay Around the World - Nytimes.com

7/27/2019 Teacher Pay Around the World - Nytimes.com

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more time teaching but apparently without an equivalent advantage in pay.

American teachers spend on average 1,080 hours teaching each year. Across the O.E.C.D., the average is 794

hours on primary education, 709 hours on lower secondary education, and 653 hours on upper secondary

education general programs.

Source: Organization for Economic

Cooperation and Development

American teachers pay is more middling. The average public primary-school teacher who has worked 15 years

and has received the minimum amount of training, for example, earns $43,633, compared to the O.E.C.D.

average of $39,007.


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Cooperation and Development Annual statutory teachers salaries in public institutions in primary education, in

equivalent United States dollars converted using purchasing power parities.

Comparing each countrys teacher salaries to the wealth of that country makes United States educational salaries

appear lower. In the United States, a teacher with 15 years of experience makes a salary that is 96 percent of the

countrys gross domestic product per capita. Across the O.E.C.D., a teacher of equivalent experience makes 117

percent of G.D.P. per capita. At the high end of the scale, in Korea, the average teacher at this level makes a full

221 percent of the countrys G.D.P. per capita.



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Cooperation and Development Annual statutory teachers salaries in public institutions in primary education,

ratio of salary after 15 years of experience to gross domestic product per capita.

The demographics of teachers in the United States look similar to those of teachers elsewhere in the developed

world.

Across public and private institutions at all levels of education, 69.4 percent of teachers are women, compared

with 65.1 percent across the O.E.C.D. Among those developed and developing countries covered by this report,the percentage is highest in Russia (78.3 percent, and the share of women reaches 98.7 percent if you look at

only primary education), and lowest in Turkey (46.8 percent across all levels of education).


Cooperation and Development. Percentage of females among teaching staff in public and private institutions by

level of education, based on head counts, 2007.

The percentage of women instructors in post-secondary (also called tertiary) education is 41.6 percent in the

United States, compared to 39 percent across the O.E.C.D. Of the countries for which data are available, the

share of women teaching higher education is lowest in Japan, at 17.9 percent.


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Source: Organization for

Economic Cooperation and Development

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Education, international economics, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, salaries,

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From 1 to 25 of 34 Comments

1 2Next

1. September 9, 2009 2:01 pm Link

First of all this reporting is terribly skewed. Very few 15 year teachers are teaching with the minimum

credits and receiving the lowest salary. At the very least the comparison should be done using mean or

median salary at that year. Furthermore, salaries vary wildly so someone at the same rank in a different

part of the US might make anywhere from 10 -40K more per annum or even more than that.

What does any of this have to do with how much children actually learn in school? Time behaving in

school does not equate to learning anything other than how to be a couch potato!

Hetty Greene

1.


I knew that were cheating us!! AAAhhhhhhh!

Tai

2.


Id love to see a graph that showed the implied hourly teaching wage per country. The US is about $40.

Korea appears to be about $80. How do they spend so little time teaching? It makes me question the data.

A related chart, which compares public school spending to test scores over the past 40 years can be found

here:

http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/2009/09/09/a-picture-is-worth-300-billion/

Mark T

3.


America wants the best and the brightest but they dont want to pay for it.

Treva

4.


Kind of weird to not have statistics for Canada.

Dan Daoust

5.


I always hear that America also spends significantly more per capita on education than other countries.

This makes me very interested in seeing a more detailed breakdown that tells us how much of the

education spending actually goes to teachers in each country.

As it is now, we spend the most (or close to it) and get, at best, middling results. It would be interesting if

this is due to too little of the money we spend actually reaching teachers and too much going to other

sources of overhead. In any case though, while these graphs are interesting I still dont think we need more

funding for education. Id like to be able to compare these graphs with graphs detailing where money is

going within the systems and with overall education funding.

Ben

6.

7. September 9, 2009 2:36 pm Link7.


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American teachers dont necessarily spend more time teaching; American schools interrupt classtime for

numerous assemblies, events, pep rallies etc etc etc, and that is not counting the classtime wasted on things

like movies, parties, and other events that often take place in American schools that have nothing to do

with learning and decrease the seriousness of the school enviroment. American schools are not only places

to learn, they are parents/babysitters/social engines/ atheletic clubs.

Also, you can only teach so much before students have to take the initiative to take ownership of their own

learning. Unfortunately, when they are spending more time in a classroom than they need to be, that istime away from self initiated learning. Teachers and students both get burnt out, and on goes the Friday

afternoon video. Students would benifit from having less instruction time, and more time researching,

practicing, and engaging the material on their own.

I imagine that although Korean students spend less time in the actual classroom, that time spent in the

classroom is 100% intense learning, and students then motivate themselves to study and learn outside of

the classroom.

A W


It looks like this data was manipulated to show a pre-determined biased outcome instead of following the

scientific process. Comparing wages based on the GDP per capita automatically puts the USA at the

disadvantage because only 1% of the nation holds most of the wealth. And why is 15 years the

benchmark? What are the correlations between years of service and salary? How were the number of

teaching hours determined? The data suggests that on average, teachers in the US, teach for a month

longer than other developed countries..hard to believe considering that many public schools in the US

close earlier and open later in the semester than other countries Ive visited. Also, England is noticeably

missing from the total number of teaching hours per year.

Lyn

8.


This is a pretty useless study

Working as any sort of public servant (I can even give private school teachers the nod here), in the US we

really feel like we shouldnt pay them a dollar wage that is equivalent to what they could be making else

where. So they make up for it with perks.

Break down all the job related insurance/retirement/tenure value and Im sure we look much better.

Jenga

9.


Too bad these very interesting charts dont factor in class size! Even as Americas schools fall apart, we

teachers are told to work longer and longer hours in ever-more-crowded classrooms. The idealization of

small class sizes is increasingly portrayed as some sort of lost cause or unreasonable demand of ourunions. These days, commentators in the capitalist media often insist that class size has no real bearing on

the quality of educational product delivered, even though the expensive private schools nearly always

push their small classes as a selling point.

Meanwhile, Literacy Partners, a largely volunteer organization that teaches basic reading skills to New

York City adults, reports that their fastest growing student group is those aged 16 to 24 undoubtedly a

reflection of the decrepitude of the public schools. Our union leadership, despite occasional cries for

reform, has been working hand in hand with the bosses and their government to tighten our belts for many

years now, but things seem only to be getting worse.

Ellen

10.

11. September 9, 2009 6:42 pm Link11.


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hours of work each day every work day. The average lecturing hours is around 20 hours each week

( I have many relatives who are teachers) , adding 25=10 hours for additional work done

at home, on the average, a Turkish teacher works for 30 hours each week. There are about 8-10 weeks of

holiday and vacation time. So, 30x(52-10)=1260. This number shows that Turkish teachers work more

than US teachers. The 600 hours figure is absolutely wrong.

How did they come up with it?

I wonder if work hours data for the other countries are similarly wrong. I bet the countries like Korea and

Japan also have space problems and the teachershave to work at home when they are not lecturing.

gulriz


As an American teacher, I also spend an average of 1-2 hours at home daily grading, preparing lesson

plans, generating and organizing materials, etc. It has nothing to do with space problemsjust the nature of

the job, This aspect of teaching is always missing when anyone looks at teacher hours. To count just

hours spent working with the students is grossly unfair.

Connie

17.


The hours reported for teachers in Ireland do not include time preparing, evaluating, and correcting exams

all of which is unremunerated unlike in countries such as the UK where teachers are paid for this time.

The variations between countries are so great as to make comparison difficult.

If you want to get bang for your buck, you have to pay well. Better pay attracts better graduates and that

alone can raise standards. Payment by results is an insult as teachers ultimately have very little control

over student performance where which can be impacted on by so many non-school variables.

Ultimately, to get standard up, youve got to invest in the first 3 years of a childs life .

Peter

Peter

18.

19. September 12, 2009 3:21 am Link

Interesting article.

Bryan

19.


Interesting article, but the reader comments make very clear that contract hours are not even close to

actual working hours in any country. In the US, there is paid conference time, but teachers are often

required to attend Special Education or 504 meetings for individual students, meet with parents or

individual, or to do other administrative paperwork. Lesson preparation and grading seem to be outside of

contract hours worldwide.

With respect to whether benefits are calculated into the worldwide comparison of salary, it is not evenstandardized throughout the United States. Not all states have pensions or strong teacher unions. In Texas,

teachers must pay into Texas Teachers Retirement System in lieu of Social Security. The Texas

Legislature has recently legislated that teachers will not be entitled to choose Social Security payments

even if the teacher has paid into Social Security (though previous employment) or would otherwise be

entitled to choose SSI spousal survivor benefits. SSIs troubles may make this a moot point, but the TTRS

pension should not be calculated as a separate benefit any more than a SSI pension would for any

SSI-paying US worker.

Ann

20.


@ AW Our universities are among the highest in the world looking to carry the prestige of US educationoverseas. And dont be afraid of Asian education earthquakes. Of course, providing Asian children with a

21.


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good education is a priority for all of Asia especially Japan and South Korea. However their education

system is in bad form. Excessive competition in entrance exams has destroyed their students moral fibre.

During our high school life, the school dance is an important event and an opportunity for us to meet one

another and to get together in a wholesome environment. They cant picture these in their hometown.

They are so absorbed in their own affairs that they couldnt afford to pay any attention to other people.

Asian young people tend to keep their hands in their pockets as soon as they complete the course of high

school and pass in the entrance exam. This is why their universities are on a low level. It is like that the

house looks nice from the outside but the inside is nothing much to look at. Asian major universities worldranking is poor except Tokyo University in Japan.

http://www.filination.com/blog/2008/10/13/asian-university-rankings-best-universities-in-asia-2008

China

201-302 Nanjing Univ

201-302 Peking Univ

201-302 Shanghai Jiao Tong Univ

201-302 Tsinghua Univ

201-302 Univ Sci & Tech

201-302 Zhejiang Univ

303-401 Fudan Univ

Japan

19 Tokyo Univ

23 Kyoto Univ

68 Osaka Univ

79 Tohoku Univ

101-151 Kyushu Univ

101-151 Nagoya Univ

101-151 Tokyo Inst Tech

South Korea

152-200 Seoul Natl Univ201-302 Korea Advanced Inst Sci & Tech

201-302 Yonsei Univ

303-401 Hanyang Univ

303-401 Korea Univ

303-401 Pohang Univ Sci & Tech

303-401 Sungkyunkwan Univ

Taiwan

152-200 Natl Taiwan Univ

303-401 Natl Cheng Kung Univ

303-401 Natl Chiao Tung Univ

303-401 Natl Tsing Hua Univ402-503 Chang Gung Univ

402-503 Natl Cent Univ

402-503 Natl Yang Ming Univ

Billy

22. September 22, 2009 8:56 am Link22.


11/16

According to the chart, South Korea seems to lead role for improvement of educational environment with

the highest of salaries and the lowest of working hours in the world. Really?

I want to gratify my curiosity for this article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/08/world/asia/08geese.html?scp=1&sq=Wild%20geese%20fathers&

st=Search

Jean23. September 26, 2009 5:56 am Link

Ellen states above that the report does not facor in class size. Apparently she is not looking at the data but

rather just reading the above article. In Japan, the average class size for primary education is 28.1. In the

US, the average size is 23.6. The information is available. Many of us just do not like the published

results.

Bob Singleton

23.

24. October 5, 2009 7:16 am Link

It was interesting to read your facts regarding hours,salaries and other factors in an attempt to understand

the current state of education in the US. In Australia the same debates are occurring and the blame has

shifted from television, then computer games, then the internet to the complexities of society. the debate is

around the product we are presented with that needs to be educated rather than the methods employed to

mould the presenting material into a citizen capable of meeting the needs of society when their time comes

to take the reigns of employment and contributing to the fabric of society. research consistently shows the

issues confronting us yet other than in a few isolated examples is that information embrassed into

constructive methodology to enhance the learning outcomes of students. the language of education is

reading and needs to be the sole priority of the education system. with out reading, the student is unable to

move forward nor are they able to access the curriculum. Being functionally illiterate causes behaviour

issues and self esteem issues. rather than run self esteem programs or behaviour management courses

teach them to read and enable them to experience success. however success in reading is not seen as

exciting or progressive and is not rewarded by promotion. a good school production or success on the

sporting field is embrassed as it is very visual. look at the foyer of the local school and see what is ondisplay. in our schools it is sporting success. academic success is hidden. successful graduates in the

academic field is very second place. failure in national testing does not result in principals not being

reappointed as the students are seen as the reason for poor results and not the teaching mismatch or lack of

initiative given to resolving the issue. i have worked in primary and secondary schools and have

consistently achieved success in improving the literacy skills of the students which highlights the failure

was in the schooling approach and not in the student. class size is irrelevant the empowering of the student

to resolve the issue and empowering them to do so is the key. while not all social issues in schools can be

resolved by teaching students to read it is amazing how many issues are resolved. we need to revisit the

primary function of schools which is to educate the young, the other social issues are the domain of

welfare or other institutions. schools, which are the domain of the teaching profession are not achieving

the results that were achieved thirty years ago despite the advancements in our understanding of learning.

it is the teaching professions role to bring about change and improve the literacy and numeracy skills ofour clients. in doing so i believe the teaching profession would achieve the recognition that it looks for and

desires both in our own self esteem but that there would be the resources available to lower class sizes and

increase salaries by gradually reducing the out of classroom expenses such as behaviour support etc.

Results are reflective of the culture you establish within your school and when you have success within

your classroom the day is not nearly as long and the pay seems better. let go and get on with the job.

graham slarks

24.

25. November 7, 2009 11:32 pm Link

Please, Please do not quote class sizes. Reported class sizes have nothing to do with how many children

are sitting in your room. At my school class size is written down as 25 to 1. I do not have one class with

25 students. I am over 30 in each class. Next year will be worse because of budget cuts and layoffs. Theway they calculate class size, at least in CA, is to count number of students and divide it by number of

25.


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staff. Number of staff include counselors, VPs, Principals and with all I know the custodian and

secretaries. None of these people teach classes so how they are used in the count is beyond me. Either way

it has nothing to do with children in your room and just baffles me when people discuss it and think thats

how many students are in each class.

Carol

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