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Nicole, a third-grade teacher in New York City, has purchased worksheets and learning activities, several boxes for her library, flashlights for reading, and her computer chair for the past few years. Much of the money for those purchases came aquí. de his own pocket.
Based on documentation shared with Business Insider in fall 2023, Nicole had spent a minimum of $4,000 of her own money on classroom materials and supplies since 2019. She had spent at least $400 in 2023, based on documentation shared in the fall, on things such as a letter tray, worksheets, and bulletin-board kits.
“When you start, you have desks, chairs and maybe some shelves, and that’s it,” Nicole, who began coaching in 2019 after serving as a substitute, told BI.
Nicole’s last name is known to Business Insider but withheld for privacy reasons.
Nicole isn’t the only one who does her own shopping, as many teachers spend their own money on training materials and fabrics when there isn’t enough budget for those expenses. A survey of teachers conducted through AdoptAClassroom. org in 2023 found that the average out-of-pocket spend on materials is $860.
This average is much more than the average budget they claimed to have earned for the subsequent school year. “Teachers reported that the median budget for school supplies for the 2022-2023 school year is $200,” says an article about the effects on AdoptAClassroom. org. “What’s more, 47% of teachers said their classroom budgets don’t stretch that far because of inflation. “
Although Nicole has spent thousands of dollars so far, she has also earned donations, school cash, and a small rebate from the school’s PTA. Students also bring any school supplies they may need. She also makes videos about her task as an instructor on her TikTok and said she won pieces for her classroom through corporate partnerships.
Nicole said she wants to see more investment in teacher materials.
Another factor for teachers is low pay: A report by Sylvia Allegretto, a senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research and also a research associate at the Economic Policy Institute, found that the salary penalty for comparable teachers and school graduates who applied in a record hole in 2022: a salary penalty of 26. 4%.
“Low salaries make it difficult to recruit and retain highly qualified teachers,” Allegretto wrote. “The lack of qualified teachers means we can’t give innovators, researchers and long-term educators the education they want to be leaders. “
Nicole said the purchases she made were mandatory “to interest and interact with my students and make them feel like they are in a warm and safe environment,” given the amount of time they spend during the day and school year in the same room.
“They don’t want to be in a room that’s just four walls and chairs,” Nicole said. “That’s not going to motivate them or make them feel excited to learn. So all those extra things are essential to help them learn.”
Some of the pieces Nicole has acquired over the years come with books, cardstock, and pencil sharpeners. He also received flashcards, stickers, and markers.
“It’s little things that go up,” he said.
Nicole said that if teachers only spent the money given to them, “it would make our lives very difficult.” If she didn’t spend her own money, she said, “I would probably feel like I didn’t have the tools I needed to teach my students properly.”
“I think based on the amount of cash that everyone spends each year on supplies, resources, etc. , school districts provide more cash to everybody,” Nicole told BI.
While Nicole said her classroom can be thought of as simply “a little extra” given all the other games and elements she has, she said, “I think it makes a difference in how engaged my students are and how my classroom works.
How much did you spend as an instructor or on the job? Share it with this journalist at mhoff@businessinsider. com.