I disagree with paying science and math teachers more than phys. ed teachers, regardless of what the supply & demand might be (Also, I disagree that there is really a lack of competent science/math majors to fill up the vacant positions. Even if there is such a shortage, due to low-pay, I think the remedy should be an overall increase in base pay for all teachers, regardless of subject). What you are basically doing when you go down that line is lining up all the subject in the order of importance, and funding them accordingly. But who's going to judge which subject is more important, and by what standard? It might start out with just phys. ed, but then what about tech. ed, home-economics, or even English? Who needs to read "Heart of Darkness" or Shakespeare in this day and age when you are bound to earn so much more and "contribute" more if you major in finance or engineering? Some might say, "Creativity helps to stim...." Really? Prove it. How are you going to prove it. That's right. Quantitatively. But can you really measure the worth of education quantitatively? Look back on the great teachers you had in the past, and try to quantitatively measure the impact they had on you. Can you do it? I highly doubt it.
Sounds a bit like black or white logic, doesn't it?
I do agree that there has to be a priority when it comes to funding, such as books, before expensive stadiums, but paying teachers differently according to the subject they teach I don't think is the answer. We should be promoting an atmosphere conducive to teaching, and I don't think this will happen if phys. ed teachers are treated more as 2nd class teachers than they are now. If they get paid less, does it also mean they have less of a voice too in school affairs? Some of you want more performance-based pay, and while I do agree that teachers need to be held more accountable, the problem is, there is no one effective way to measure teacher's performance. And performance-based pay can be quite a thorny issue in education because having teachers compete against each other for more pay can have disasterous effects. Those teachers could be putting their heads together to find more effective ways to teach the students, and be sharing their lesson plans, instead of refusing to share their insight and working alone just because they want more pay.
What we need to do is start demanding more from phys. ed teachers. As someone mentioned, they should be placed in charge of health classes, and if the quality of education they provide is poor, they should be forced to take additional classes to be up to date on the latest findings. And if there is more demand for science/math classes than phys. ed classes, hire one, not two phys. ed teachers, but don't decrease their pay.
Also, many teachers seem to give up teaching not because of low-pay (even though it is a part of the problem) but because they are sick and tired of uncooperative administrators and parents, who are often obstacles in their efforts to help the students.
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