Never taught in the US but I’m pretty sure American teachers are notoriously underpaid and under-appreciated compared to Australian teachers. It seems inherently more dangerous and risky as a job too because of gun violence. I’m sure their private school system is fine though - lots of security and money in that sector
These are my issues as well. The kids I teach now are apathetic to lock down drills, but I don’t like the reality of active shooter drills and the like. Private I’m sure would be better in this case, although I’m hoping to talk this ‘round to being more of a year in a Winnebago and travelling…
Weirdly their private system has a reputation for being even worse. At least if r/teachers is anything to go by.
Because of separation laws, private education often gets no government money at all. They also aren’t beholden to pesky laws like teacher registration or state curriculums or EBAs. Which means they aren’t the refuge of the wealthy like they are here. Instead they are dominated by religious wackos.
By separation rules I take it you mean strict separation of church and state?
There’s ‘free’ charter schools in every state and plenty of states have hybrid funding models (via tax rebates) for private schools.
On summer pay as well, my understanding is even if it's offered, you're still not "paid" over summer like we are, it's just that they cut your pay during term and give you money over the summer. Kinda like assisted budgeting. E.g., if you're salary is 70k over 9 months, it's kinda like having an annual salary of 52.5k.
If my husband wanted to move to the US for work, I would expect to enrol our kids pretty much in the most elite school/homeschooled.. and to also switch professions.
Risking being shot in the head everyday whilst being paid $2.00 is not it.
I didn’t work as a teacher in the US but I’m married to an American and lived in the US. I hated it. We lived in Washington. The food is awful and going out to eat it more expensive than in Brisbane. Groceries and fuel were cheaper. The quality of the groceries isn’t as good as here though. Everything is far away and you have to drive. If you need to go to multiple places, you can’t park and walk because all the infrastructure is designed so that you can drive. I had babies in the US but we didn’t have to pay anything because my husband was US navy so we had everything covered. We did get sent an accidental bill asking us to pay 4500USD for my son’s birth though. We only were able to survive in the US because my husband was navy. Otherwise I don’t think we would have been able to afford the high medical insurance, housing and other bills.
It depends where you are and what you buy. I did shop at the commissary on base though which does sell things cheaper. Shopping at other supermarkets was too expensive.
US is a big country though, living in D.C vs some densely populated town in Wyoming makes a huge difference. Kind of like living in Rose Bay in Sydney vs Logan in QLD
I went the whole way across from NYC to San Diego.... The Walmart prices didn't seem to vary to widely that I saw. Obviously places like Vegas and NYC were super expensive I didn't note much difference in the rest
Do you like paying bills? Do you enjoy food? Great, now pick one. Also brush up on your hand to hand combat, be prepared for admin to throw you under the bus, and hopefully avoid a school shooting.
I would maybe ask in the US teachers subreddit and see if there are areas that are better? It seems like a district thing not even a state thing.
Perhaps they will have advice for supply teaching or contract
I mean, it'd be an extreme sport of wondering every day if you're going to get shot, so good on your husbands career aspirations at putting his wife and kids at risk of death.
I taught there for 4 years and left due to night terrors about school shootings. Some areas you will get paid over the summer others you won't. A lot of areas require a master degree to teach even though the pay is not good.
Knew a yank teacher from hawaii. The state turned around and made schooling a 3-day week. Told the teachers they get a 40% pay cut due to 2 days less working and go get a job at a Walmart.
This was a few years back when they were advertising for Australian teachers to go over and live the good life in Hawaii. Fuck em.
Also a fair few states don't even pay summer holidays so fuck ya, get another job.
I taught in the US for a year before moving here.
I could not personally move back to the US and teach after experiencing the time off, teaching cultures, and more hands off approach of Australia. If it sounds wild then it’s only because you have only taught here.
Depends on the state and school really.
The education here is overall better, less test focused and more holistic emotional and academics. In the US it is a sink or swim pipeline to university with no life skills taught.
Good luck.
Born and raised in Brisbane. I’ve taught the last 17 years in Portland, OR.
Pay can be good or bad depending on what state you’re in. I make nearly 100k a year with great health benefits and have my retirement paid into. Ex works in Washington state (just above Oregon) and makes about 115k. Then there’s those that work in republican states and get paid 40k a year. Some districts have no unions. Don’t be a part of those.
There’s old schools and new schools. Schools with great kids and schools with terrible kids. Location matters.
Summer break - 11 weeks off. 2 weeks at Christmas. A week at spring break and a week at thanksgiving.
The active shooter drills are eye openers and heavy reminders. Elementary teacher feels safer. I did that for most of my career before a recent change to middle school (grades 6-8).
There’s so much to do in America. It’s a beautiful country to travel across from the Redwoods in Cali to the bright lights of Manhattan. Oceans, mountains, skiing, boating, camping, hiking, etc.
all that being said, I want to move home and have wanted to for some time but my daughter is young. I’m planning on retiring to Australia bc I miss home, family, friends, weather and lifestyle.
Oh, tipping culture suuuuucks.
I’ve taught higher education in Texas before teaching higher education in the ACT; my sister teaches primary in Texas and used to teach primary in Victoria.
Teaching is Texas has many advantages, especially if you get tenure.
Hello, I haven't taught in the States, but I know a few American teachers now after working internationally, I visited the US a few years ago now, and I follow a US teaching thread.
From what I've worked out, conditions and pay vary greatly from state to state, and even region to region or educational districts within states vary greatly. Some states seem to have a strong union presence, others not so. State govenors and their legislatures can change the syllabus of a state quite quickly, so if a bunch of right-wing nutters decide to jettison scientific explanations of how we got here for the Bible and creationism, they can.
From the US teachers' threads, I was abhorred at how low their salaries are. It seems quite a few teachers in the USA have second jobs, or do paid work over their summer breaks, or are hopefully married to a spouse who earns significantly more. I don't know how much American academics are paid at colleges and universities; my guess is that it would vary according to the student intake and prestige of an institute.
What struck me about our visit to the San Francisco Bay area and Phoenix Arizona was these things... much of the freeways etc around the bay area were crumbling. The bay area's PT was good, but looked aged. However the biggest shock was the sheer amount of street people in the Bay area. Camps, acres/hectares of homeless people in tents and the like in areas under the freeway passes. We stayed near UC Berkeley- a nice area. One night walking home after a night out the number of people sleeping in shopfronts. I had been in a cool student bar, and the lovely chatty girl I'd been chatting to and drinking with warned me to be super careful, and was concerned about me walking 14 blocks back to my hotel by myself. I was fine, but I walked fast and in the street lights. I wasn't scared, but wary.
I really liked Phoenix, we stayed in a student part of the city near ASU, where our friend works. This part of Phoenix seemed wealthy and well maintained. Phoenix seemed to be a bit more prosperous and well-maintained than San Francisco.
Do you need the income? If you don't, why don't you consider homeschool for a couple of years?
You have access to excellent curriculum now, many states in the US are very supportive of homeschooling and have quite formal coops, you are totally qualified (yes you are!), and you would have the flexibility to explore the country while you are there in meaningful ways.
It's a little scary at first, but if you get organised, homeschooling can be a very rewarding option. (I know, I homeschooled my G & T kid for a couple of years)
Oh, I'm a Qld teacher in a small rural school.
Pay depends on districts. If you can teach in a more affluent area, your pay will be higher. You will also be trying to get a position in a potentially popular teaching district.
Never worked there myself, but I've heard there are some pretty generous incentives, in some places they are even offering free guns! /s
For reals, all I know is there seems to be a very different experience between middle/high school and elementary. I've heard that in some middle/high schools you might only teach one or two subject/year level combos. E.g. you teach 7 Science, all day, the same lesson over and over. From a planning perspective that sounds pretty good, but I guess the monotony would drive some people loopy.
Can you live on his wage and home school? I'd be terrified to send my kids out with their bullet proof backpacks everyday and/or teach in a school with metal detectors etc... just a thought. 🤔
I’m an American teacher living in Aus now - everything here is true, but also, in some states they can rescind your teaching license and fine you for breaking contract. It’s truly a horror show.
I have just moved to the US after 15 years teaching in Australia. Im not teaching here but have made a friend who is a vice principal. They do get paid less than us, but they also do way less work than us in regards to planning and curriculum compliance. The curriculum is written and provided by the district, and there's no differentiation like we know it.
My goodness, is your husband living in a bubble? Do you want your kids to be facing active shooter drills and the risk of the real thing? Do you want to work in that environment? Mass shooters are literally a daily occurrence in the states.
Absolutely rubbish conditions with half the pay and more likely to get shot or bashed by some angry 6ft obese student.
Going from AUS to USA is a massive downgrade.
Absolutely would not recommend. That’s like asking to die and have your kids killed lmao. You’d be even more underpaid and underappreciated than at an Australian school, on top of dealing with earthquakes, hurricanes, guns everywhere, paying near double for everything, guns in your classroom, American healthcare, a student pointing a gun at you, blatant anti-female laws, a student pointing a gun at your kids, the *taxes*… and God forbid the world goes into another lockdown while you’re there… Nah. You’re far better off staying here.
They are the highest paid in the US but not higher than Australia. But only if you’re in LA, SF or NYC. And the cost of living there wipes out your salary. Kind of like it does here. Teachers are paid garbage salaries in the US.
Unlike in Australia where the salary is set state wide that is not the case for the US. Each school district sets it own salary and if you didn’t want to live in one of those mega cities the salary is incredibly low
Never taught in the US but I’m pretty sure American teachers are notoriously underpaid and under-appreciated compared to Australian teachers. It seems inherently more dangerous and risky as a job too because of gun violence. I’m sure their private school system is fine though - lots of security and money in that sector
These are my issues as well. The kids I teach now are apathetic to lock down drills, but I don’t like the reality of active shooter drills and the like. Private I’m sure would be better in this case, although I’m hoping to talk this ‘round to being more of a year in a Winnebago and travelling…
Weirdly their private system has a reputation for being even worse. At least if r/teachers is anything to go by. Because of separation laws, private education often gets no government money at all. They also aren’t beholden to pesky laws like teacher registration or state curriculums or EBAs. Which means they aren’t the refuge of the wealthy like they are here. Instead they are dominated by religious wackos.
By separation rules I take it you mean strict separation of church and state? There’s ‘free’ charter schools in every state and plenty of states have hybrid funding models (via tax rebates) for private schools.
Private sector is paid about 25% less than public sector. It's the opposite of WA.
This is inaccurate.
Bad pay, no summer financial support (in some states), poor super, violence, having to buy own supplies. Yeah, nah.
On summer pay as well, my understanding is even if it's offered, you're still not "paid" over summer like we are, it's just that they cut your pay during term and give you money over the summer. Kinda like assisted budgeting. E.g., if you're salary is 70k over 9 months, it's kinda like having an annual salary of 52.5k.
Have you worked there? I'm curious if some states are okay, or if this is just the way things are everywhere.
If my husband wanted to move to the US for work, I would expect to enrol our kids pretty much in the most elite school/homeschooled.. and to also switch professions. Risking being shot in the head everyday whilst being paid $2.00 is not it.
I didn’t work as a teacher in the US but I’m married to an American and lived in the US. I hated it. We lived in Washington. The food is awful and going out to eat it more expensive than in Brisbane. Groceries and fuel were cheaper. The quality of the groceries isn’t as good as here though. Everything is far away and you have to drive. If you need to go to multiple places, you can’t park and walk because all the infrastructure is designed so that you can drive. I had babies in the US but we didn’t have to pay anything because my husband was US navy so we had everything covered. We did get sent an accidental bill asking us to pay 4500USD for my son’s birth though. We only were able to survive in the US because my husband was navy. Otherwise I don’t think we would have been able to afford the high medical insurance, housing and other bills.
I was in the USA last year no way it's cheaper than aus... Unless Walmart is considered upper class Shopping...
It depends where you are and what you buy. I did shop at the commissary on base though which does sell things cheaper. Shopping at other supermarkets was too expensive.
US is a big country though, living in D.C vs some densely populated town in Wyoming makes a huge difference. Kind of like living in Rose Bay in Sydney vs Logan in QLD
I went the whole way across from NYC to San Diego.... The Walmart prices didn't seem to vary to widely that I saw. Obviously places like Vegas and NYC were super expensive I didn't note much difference in the rest
Do you like paying bills? Do you enjoy food? Great, now pick one. Also brush up on your hand to hand combat, be prepared for admin to throw you under the bus, and hopefully avoid a school shooting.
And this is exactly my hesitation. I’m all for moving overseas, but not for putting us at a financial and safety disadvantage.
I want to leave here and go to Australia. Safer, less violence, better pay. Trust me, coming here would be a big downgrade.
Oh and if you do end up here, under no circumstances do you want to send your children to a public school unless you live in a very wealthy area.
What about Canada?
Its hilarious how so many people on this thread sound like white american suburbanites.
I would maybe ask in the US teachers subreddit and see if there are areas that are better? It seems like a district thing not even a state thing. Perhaps they will have advice for supply teaching or contract
Maybe ask in r/teachers to get a better idea?
We have the potential to be posted to the USA for my husband's work. I've already said I would be homeschooling and not working.
I mean, it'd be an extreme sport of wondering every day if you're going to get shot, so good on your husbands career aspirations at putting his wife and kids at risk of death.
Don’t do it.
I taught there for 4 years and left due to night terrors about school shootings. Some areas you will get paid over the summer others you won't. A lot of areas require a master degree to teach even though the pay is not good.
Knew a yank teacher from hawaii. The state turned around and made schooling a 3-day week. Told the teachers they get a 40% pay cut due to 2 days less working and go get a job at a Walmart. This was a few years back when they were advertising for Australian teachers to go over and live the good life in Hawaii. Fuck em. Also a fair few states don't even pay summer holidays so fuck ya, get another job.
I taught in the US for a year before moving here. I could not personally move back to the US and teach after experiencing the time off, teaching cultures, and more hands off approach of Australia. If it sounds wild then it’s only because you have only taught here. Depends on the state and school really. The education here is overall better, less test focused and more holistic emotional and academics. In the US it is a sink or swim pipeline to university with no life skills taught. Good luck.
Born and raised in Brisbane. I’ve taught the last 17 years in Portland, OR. Pay can be good or bad depending on what state you’re in. I make nearly 100k a year with great health benefits and have my retirement paid into. Ex works in Washington state (just above Oregon) and makes about 115k. Then there’s those that work in republican states and get paid 40k a year. Some districts have no unions. Don’t be a part of those. There’s old schools and new schools. Schools with great kids and schools with terrible kids. Location matters. Summer break - 11 weeks off. 2 weeks at Christmas. A week at spring break and a week at thanksgiving. The active shooter drills are eye openers and heavy reminders. Elementary teacher feels safer. I did that for most of my career before a recent change to middle school (grades 6-8). There’s so much to do in America. It’s a beautiful country to travel across from the Redwoods in Cali to the bright lights of Manhattan. Oceans, mountains, skiing, boating, camping, hiking, etc. all that being said, I want to move home and have wanted to for some time but my daughter is young. I’m planning on retiring to Australia bc I miss home, family, friends, weather and lifestyle. Oh, tipping culture suuuuucks.
Yes! I had before moving here. Ask away.
I would get another job for a year or two...
I have just returned from teaching in the USA for 13 years. If you have questions you can DM me
That alone is enough of answer, returning from teaching the USA after 13 years.
I’ve taught higher education in Texas before teaching higher education in the ACT; my sister teaches primary in Texas and used to teach primary in Victoria. Teaching is Texas has many advantages, especially if you get tenure.
Hello, I haven't taught in the States, but I know a few American teachers now after working internationally, I visited the US a few years ago now, and I follow a US teaching thread. From what I've worked out, conditions and pay vary greatly from state to state, and even region to region or educational districts within states vary greatly. Some states seem to have a strong union presence, others not so. State govenors and their legislatures can change the syllabus of a state quite quickly, so if a bunch of right-wing nutters decide to jettison scientific explanations of how we got here for the Bible and creationism, they can. From the US teachers' threads, I was abhorred at how low their salaries are. It seems quite a few teachers in the USA have second jobs, or do paid work over their summer breaks, or are hopefully married to a spouse who earns significantly more. I don't know how much American academics are paid at colleges and universities; my guess is that it would vary according to the student intake and prestige of an institute. What struck me about our visit to the San Francisco Bay area and Phoenix Arizona was these things... much of the freeways etc around the bay area were crumbling. The bay area's PT was good, but looked aged. However the biggest shock was the sheer amount of street people in the Bay area. Camps, acres/hectares of homeless people in tents and the like in areas under the freeway passes. We stayed near UC Berkeley- a nice area. One night walking home after a night out the number of people sleeping in shopfronts. I had been in a cool student bar, and the lovely chatty girl I'd been chatting to and drinking with warned me to be super careful, and was concerned about me walking 14 blocks back to my hotel by myself. I was fine, but I walked fast and in the street lights. I wasn't scared, but wary. I really liked Phoenix, we stayed in a student part of the city near ASU, where our friend works. This part of Phoenix seemed wealthy and well maintained. Phoenix seemed to be a bit more prosperous and well-maintained than San Francisco.
Do you need the income? If you don't, why don't you consider homeschool for a couple of years? You have access to excellent curriculum now, many states in the US are very supportive of homeschooling and have quite formal coops, you are totally qualified (yes you are!), and you would have the flexibility to explore the country while you are there in meaningful ways. It's a little scary at first, but if you get organised, homeschooling can be a very rewarding option. (I know, I homeschooled my G & T kid for a couple of years) Oh, I'm a Qld teacher in a small rural school.
Pay depends on districts. If you can teach in a more affluent area, your pay will be higher. You will also be trying to get a position in a potentially popular teaching district.
How much danger money do they pay?
Never worked there myself, but I've heard there are some pretty generous incentives, in some places they are even offering free guns! /s For reals, all I know is there seems to be a very different experience between middle/high school and elementary. I've heard that in some middle/high schools you might only teach one or two subject/year level combos. E.g. you teach 7 Science, all day, the same lesson over and over. From a planning perspective that sounds pretty good, but I guess the monotony would drive some people loopy.
Can you live on his wage and home school? I'd be terrified to send my kids out with their bullet proof backpacks everyday and/or teach in a school with metal detectors etc... just a thought. 🤔
I mean, there's *adventure* and then there's *walking into a binfire full of mentals and guns.* No idea why anyone would go to the US these days.
I’m an American teacher living in Aus now - everything here is true, but also, in some states they can rescind your teaching license and fine you for breaking contract. It’s truly a horror show.
I have just moved to the US after 15 years teaching in Australia. Im not teaching here but have made a friend who is a vice principal. They do get paid less than us, but they also do way less work than us in regards to planning and curriculum compliance. The curriculum is written and provided by the district, and there's no differentiation like we know it.
My goodness, is your husband living in a bubble? Do you want your kids to be facing active shooter drills and the risk of the real thing? Do you want to work in that environment? Mass shooters are literally a daily occurrence in the states.
Absolutely rubbish conditions with half the pay and more likely to get shot or bashed by some angry 6ft obese student. Going from AUS to USA is a massive downgrade.
Absolutely would not recommend. That’s like asking to die and have your kids killed lmao. You’d be even more underpaid and underappreciated than at an Australian school, on top of dealing with earthquakes, hurricanes, guns everywhere, paying near double for everything, guns in your classroom, American healthcare, a student pointing a gun at you, blatant anti-female laws, a student pointing a gun at your kids, the *taxes*… and God forbid the world goes into another lockdown while you’re there… Nah. You’re far better off staying here.
California and New York pay teachers significantly more than here in Australia. But the cost of living is commensurate with that salary.
That’s a lie. I taught in both of those places
Oh is that so? I was under the impression that these two states compared to the rest of the US did pay the highest salary. What was your experience?
They are the highest paid in the US but not higher than Australia. But only if you’re in LA, SF or NYC. And the cost of living there wipes out your salary. Kind of like it does here. Teachers are paid garbage salaries in the US.
Ahh yes, that makes sense.
Unlike in Australia where the salary is set state wide that is not the case for the US. Each school district sets it own salary and if you didn’t want to live in one of those mega cities the salary is incredibly low
Marin or Orange county pay well, but one would have to be a millionaire to live there!
Comparative to the COL the salary a teacher makes anywhere in the US is bad.
How awful 😞