A study by personal finance website WalletHub comes as the pandemic has made teachers’ jobs more difficult than ever while being statistically one of the lowest paid careers requiring higher education.
All 50 states (including Washington, D.C.) were ranked according to 25 different criteria important to the profession of teaching and found that Washington scored higher than any other state.
The criteria measured involved quality of school systems, average commute times, average teacher salaries, average teacher pensions, pupil-to-teacher ratio, access to instructional materials and quality of digital learning programs.
Washington ranked best for its increase in average teacher salaries over 10 years as well its digital learning plans and average overall teacher salaries. It also ranked well above average for public school spending per student, its statewide school reopening plan and its projected competitiveness by the year 2028.
The nation’s worst state for teachers is New Hampshire, New Mexico, Arizona, Maine and Louisiana.
