The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1900-02-01
WHY They RETIRE.
A Practical KenOsha County Girl Tells
Why the Ranks of Teachers
are Trimmed.
THEY MARRY FOR A HOME

4 n
No Sentiment Enters Into the Courtship
and Love of a Teacher, But the Stern
Necessity of Life and the Increase cf
Competition Demands That They Wed
in Order to Keep the Wolf From the
Door.-Remedies Suggested.
We have received from one of our
own Kenosha county girls an answer
to the question recently asked by the
State Board of Education "Why Do
| Teachers Retire From the Work? =
She answers it as follows:
Leading educators dep1ore the fact
that there are too few experienced
teachers in our country schools. Why
is this? The answer Is not difficult
one: The average teacher begins her
work with third grade certificate and
IT she is patient, progressive and in
dustr1ous after year or two she OBJ
ta1ns a second grade. Then comes a
struggle for the highest county certi-
hcate. Only good teacher can OBJ
tain first grade, and good teacher
is necessarily a Woodworking one.
By the time the 1onged-for goal is
reached she is weary with the struggle,
and just when she becomes thoroughly
competent to fill teachers position
she retires from the ranks, leaving
vacancy to be filled by an inexperi-
enced beginner.
What becomes of these retired
teachers? In nine cases out of ten
they marry, many of them marrying
for home rather than for reasons of
sentiment. The few who do not marry
either enter some profession, become
sales-1adies, or in very few instances
take a servants position as kitchen
girl.
Leaving the male teachers out of the
question, let us consider the female
teacher. She begins teaching for the
munifcent sum of twenty dollars, and
after three or four years of hard toll
she finds that she has not been able to
save anything, and, moreover, upon
becoming a first grade teacher she
hnds that her wages are not increas-
ing in due proportion to her expenses.
The first requisite for good schools |
is good teachers. Good teachers re-
quire good advantages. Among the
best advantages we count educational
journals, reading circles, teachers as
soclations and attendance of the con-
ventions. Ali these things REQUIRE
and the teacher finds from
year to year that she has scarcely
money enough to tide her over the
weeks.
What incentive is it to a woman to
know that after spending ten or fifteen
years at her chosen profession, she
will at last be crowded to the wall by
competition or failing health without
of livelihood and without suffi-
cient money to support herself in COM
fort, to say nothing of luxury? Who
is to blame for this? We find the ans
wer in Supt Griffith's annual report |
The school boards are to blame. They |
pay the smallest possible wages and !
hire the cheapest possible teachers,
thus encouraging competition. Many
people will say in answer to this argu-
me1lt, "The school teacher does not
want to work. She gets married the
first chance she has" That's true
enough, but what se1f-respecting girl
cares to sell chewing gum and cigars
in some obscure store after she has
reigned supreme in the school room,
nor is it much better for her to resign
herself to work in the kitchen of an
other woman under what seems to her
independent nature, CALLING servitude?
Now, what will remedy this state of
things? The answer is nothing-un1ess
school boards arise to the occasion and
invent some method Of raising the
teachers wages and bringing the
wages of male and female teachers to
an equality.
Never before have the schools of
Kenosha county been in such a good
condition as they are at the present
time. The county superintendent is
fulfilling his official duties in a noble
way appreciated by everyone interested
in the world of education. Poor teach
ers have been cu11ed out and expert
enced ones are taking their places. 1t
now only remains with the school
board to reach the golden mean by
solving the problem of wages.