Delaware schools are seeing staffing shortages, and recruitment and retainment programs are helping, but the cost to attain teacher certification is high. Nearby states rank better for teacher salaries, with New Jersey, Maryland and Pennsylvania coming in second, seventh and 11th, compared to Delaware’s ranking of 17th in the nation. What’s the solution?
• Fewer unnecessary administration positions! — Laura Schultz Hickman
• Shift the burden of dealing with parents and difficult students to the administration. School administration needs to be graded and scrutinized as much or more than most teachers. — Thaddeus Fisher
• Fire bad principals. Stop reassigning them. — Howard Gaines III
• Pay them what they are worth. — Charlie Harper
• Start disciplining troublemakers. Take wokeness, critical race theory out. Stop the mandatory vaccinations and masking. Stop requiring a bachelor’s degree. Many people are qualified to teach that fall short in educational requirements. The military has thousands of highly qualified instructors in various fields. — Bob Hice
• I disagree. A starting teacher has a bachelor’s degree, but in many states, including Maryland, there is a requirement for teachers to eventually have a master’s degree or an equivalent certification. Critical race theory is not taught in elementary through secondary school. A bachelor’s degree needs to be in education, not just any field. — Liz Alban
• Please research on critical race theory. It is not taught in K-12 education. Being able to teach adults is very different than being able to teach school-age children. The training potential teachers receive is vital. — Joan Glover-Wire
• I was speaking generally on critical race theory. I don’t know the curriculum in Delaware schools. — Bob Hice
