South Korean teacher earns $4 million a year. Yes, by teaching.

[Laize]

Kim Ki-Hoon is a South Korean educator who is so good at his job and his services so in-demand that he earns $4 million/year (Salary confirmed by his employer).

South Korea is also a nation that routinely scores higher academically than the United States (Which, despite unwarranted stereotypes, is a pretty high bar).

I think there's something to be said for their meritocratic education model. Over here, teachers are paid whatever their union says they should be paid. Over in South Korea, they have a similar public education model BUT private "hagwons" are extremely popular and command great salaries for good teachers. They are also largely responsible for South Korea's academic success.

I think US education could benefit from such a meritocratic system. The best teachers get rewarded extremely well. Those who suck? Not so much.

[Elegiac]

Conveniently ignoring that Mister Ki-Hoon is making this money privately.

[Arlon]

On what metric would you base a good teacher?

[Arkenaw]

On what metric would you base a good teacher?

The students' grades and peer review maybe?

[Elegiac]

The students' grades and peer review maybe?

Grades are actually a very arbitrary way of doing it; why do you think No Child Left Behind is such a bust? If students can't meet the standard, the standard is simply lowered.

No, I actually think that in the US the better metric is college graduation rates.

[Tradewind]

Grades are actually a very arbitrary way of doing it; why do you think No Child Left Behind is such a bust? If students can't meet the standard, the standard is simply lowered.

No, I actually think that in the US the better metric is college graduation rates.

As long as they're real degrees. Not like a Bachelor in Chair Farts.

[Elegiac]

As long as they're real degrees. Not like a Bachelor in Chair Farts.

A degree is a degree; at the very least it shows some level of commitment and investment.

[Deleted]

As long as they're real degrees. Not like a Bachelor in Chair Farts.

Don't hate on the guy doing a degree in Theology, or Women's Studies...

[Tradewind]

A degree is a degree; at the very least it shows some level of commitment and investment.

But not always "higher education." I wouldn't really base a teacher's success on someone who graduated with a Masters in Basket Weaving or Medieval Arts 6 years after they left their classroom.

I don't -really- have an alternative, but I'm sure we can come up with better than that

Personal example, I have two degrees and a swath of certifications for my career. But I have had my fair share of shit teachers who had little to no influence on my post-secondary successes. At best they could claim I did it to spite them.

[Laize]

Conveniently ignoring that Mister Ki-Hoon is making this money privately.

Uh... no. He earns it through his employer. How else would his employer confirm his salary?

Unless of course by "privately" you mean in the private sector in which case yes... that was kind of my point.

[Elegiac]

Personal example, I have two degrees and a swath of certifications for my career. But I have had my fair share of shit teachers who had little to no influence on my post-secondary successes. At best they could claim I did it to spite them.

Oh boy, I hear that.

Funny story, actually. Originally, I wanted to study political science. But I've liked history so I decided to take it as one of my electives; and the teacher was -so- awful I sat through the class thinking of how I could teach it better. And then it came to me that I -should- do it better.

[Deleted]

Hmm, interesting, as I plan on becoming a teacher of History myself. I might move to South Korea.

[Elegiac]

Uh... no. He earns it through his employer. How else would his employer confirm his salary?

Unless of course by "privately" you mean in the private sector in which case yes... that was kind of my point.

I mean the latter, and....I have a possible idea.

What about a semi-private system wherein the schools are privately run, but each student is publicly funded and the schools are subject to frequent and heavy auditing?

[Laize]

Grades are actually a very arbitrary way of doing it; why do you think No Child Left Behind is such a bust? If students can't meet the standard, the standard is simply lowered.

No, I actually think that in the US the better metric is college graduation rates.

By those metrics, South Korea still curb stomps every other educational system in the world with the exception of Finland (Where a master's degree is required to teach and students have far more freedom to learn according to their ability rather than standardization).

[Elegiac]

By those metrics, South Korea still curb stomps every other educational system in the world with the exception of Finland (Where a master's degree is required to teach and students have far more freedom to learn according to their ability rather than standardization).

Oh, I'm not arguing that. I'm just saying that "grades" is generally a very poor educational metric.

[Kraenen]

Kim Ki-Hoon is a South Korean educator who is so good at his job and his services so in-demand that he earns $4 million/year (Salary confirmed by his employer).

South Korea is also a nation that routinely scores higher academically than the United States (Which, despite unwarranted stereotypes, is a pretty high bar).

I think there's something to be said for their meritocratic education model. Over here, teachers are paid whatever their union says they should be paid. Over in South Korea, they have a similar public education model BUT private "hagwons" are extremely popular and command great salaries for good teachers. They are also largely responsible for South Korea's academic success.

I think US education could benefit from such a meritocratic system. The best teachers get rewarded extremely well. Those who suck? Not so much.

How do you know all this? Did you just make it up on assumption?

[Laize]

I mean the latter, and....I have a possible idea.

What about a semi-private system wherein the schools are privately run, but each student is publicly funded and the schools are subject to frequent and heavy auditing?

You mean like a school voucher system where students (and their families) can choose the best teachers around and those teachers who are in high demand can earn more according to their merit rather than their seniority?

And of course where they're not allowed to do anything silly like preach creationism?

[Tradewind]

Honestly, aside from like anonymous peer review or student review if there's any way to measure how good a teacher is. But then it's basically leaving a teacher's future up to others. Others who have a tendency to be little shits.

[Laize]

Honestly, aside from like anonymous peer review or student review if there's any way to measure how good a teacher is. But then it's basically leaving a teacher's future up to others. Others who have a tendency to be little shits.

Well South Korea has a pretty damn good system for it. Basically it's like a Yelp! for teachers. Parents and kids rate teachers they've had based on how well they learned the material. Those who get really good reviews command very high salaries. Those who do not... well... do not.

[Elegiac]

You mean like a school voucher system where students (and their families) can choose the best teachers around and those teachers who are in high demand can earn more according to their merit rather than their seniority?

And of course where they're not allowed to do anything silly like preach creationism?

-nods- Essentially, yes. Under this system we can also leverage desire for profit in order to achieve educational outcomes. For example, envisage a variation of No Child Left Behind where schools get X% bonus funding based on how many of their students successfully complete tertiary education. The bonus scales so that poorly performing schools only have to improve marginally to acquire it, while the best schools have to improve -significantly- in order to obtain it. This provides an incentive for lower end schools to improve, and higher end ones to excel.

- - - Updated - - -

Well South Korea has a pretty damn good system for it. Basically it's like a Yelp! for teachers. Parents and kids rate teachers they've had based on how well they learned the material. Those who get really good reviews command very high salaries. Those who do not... well... do not.

They have a similar system at many colleges in Washington state; at the end of every quarter students take a survey of the class in order to determine who is eligible for pay rises and benefits.