You hit the nail on the head with "...don't want to learn...". My last job before disability, I worked with a couple of very nice ladies. One was a single mother of 3, the other was about to be a single mother of 4 that I know of. The first one, her 2nd oldest son dropped out, because he already knew everything. The other, same thing with two of her boys. Now, they float from job to job, or go long periods without jobs, relying on relatives to feed and house them. No Child Left Behind only works when they want to learn; it doesn't work for the addicts, gangbangers, and those that already know it all. The kind of kids that make teaching difficult.

I totally understand where you’re coming from as to what they have to put up with. And yes school was simpler back in the day and kids did learn more. But people are electing the people in place to make the rules and policy in our schools. If they want our kids to learn they need to stand up to everything they know is wrong in school. Parents have to either want to be parents and get ALL these social issues out of the school and tech them that at home. Or they just need to drive up to the capital and turn over their kids and not have any more. Parents can’t be parents if the schools are intrusive in your life. If they don’t want to learn send them to boot camp. So everyone is interfering with the kids and not doing what’s best for them. Professor Smith is not mommy or daddy.

I think they deserve it. Look at what they have to work with. Kids that swear, talk back, unruly behavior in the classroom; things that you didn't see in schools back in the 60's. And it's not just an Arkansas problem, it's nationwide; look at where we rank in relationship to the rest of the world in education. The way kids are raised at home has a lot to do with this I would think. Add to that the dumbing down of tests to placate certain groups; and when that didn't work, the installation of "feel good" classes that anyone can pass, but the kids don't learn anything in these type classes. And it isn't going to get any better, until we go back to the old ways of teaching, discipline, and punishment.

This is so over the top for any of the teachers of Arkansas to get a rise. Do you parents out there not know that kids in this state are NOT getting smarter? If they would spend their time just teaching them the basics of math, reading and writing, then I’d say sure give them a rise. But no, all teachers want to do is make sure they make more money while saying they are doing their best and giving their all to the kids. Bu** S**t.