Over the years, taxpayers nationwide have wondered why celebrities and sports players have higher wages than those who foster the minds of our future generations. The National Education Association, which serves more than 3.2 million public education employees, has long called for competitive salaries for teachers and support professionals. And, though it still remains unclear at what magnitude these changes may come, it seems that Washington is on the verge of transforming the United States’s educational landscape.

Goals in Washington’s “Roadmap to Recovery” include funding the jobs of 135,000 educators. However, President Obama has also called for a reform in not only how much educators are paid, but also how their salaries are to be determined. A recent article published in the Washington Post details how the President aims to implement merit pay programs, and how this initiative may draw criticisms from teachers unions. The plan, which includes funding to increase education research, open charter schools, and improve low-performing schools, aims to act as a reward for high-performing teachers and an incentive for teachers to work in underprivileged areas. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/07/AR2009050703786.html.

According to the New York Times article “Long Reviled, Merit Pay Gains Among Teachers,” the reason merit-based plans have become popular in places such as Minnesota is because Unions played an active role in the system’s development. The National Education Association, however, deems any system based on teacher evaluations “inappropriate,” while the United Federation of Teachers doesn’t agree with administrators judging teacher performance based on standardized test scores. (Though conclusions have yet to be reached and compromises have yet to be made, we can all agree that the American education system must value its teachers and support those to whom we entrust the education and edification of our children. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/18/education/18pay.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1.