¶ what it takes to be Literacy Specialist
trying to understand why some children have a really difficult time learning how to read and write and it's complicated and it happens in parts of our brain hi , welcome back to how much can I make .
I'm a curious journalist with passion for exploring jobs , careers and what people really earn . Last week we had a segment with a teacher from Florida and we got a firsthand look at the challenges and realities of teaching in a red state . This week I thought it would be very interesting to explore the other side of the spectrum .
What is it like to be a teacher in a blue state ? Is it different ? So I reached out to Emmy Brownstein , a longtime educator in San Francisco , california , and let's hear her story and see how the experience compares . First of all , amy , thank you so much for doing it and giving us your time . I really appreciate it .
It's my pleasure . I love talking about this subject .
Oh good , let's start by telling us what is it that you do .
I am the literacy specialist at an elementary school . Some people call it a reading teacher or an interventionist , so it's someone that works with small groups of children or one-on-one with students who are not meeting grade level expectations in literacy or might be on the dyslexic continuum but are not in special ed .
So they would not have yet been diagnosed with a learning disability , and so I would intervene in hopes that they would stay out of special education and give them the tools and the skills they need for reading and writing , even if they have some kind of dyslexic disability or phonological .
Did you say it was a ?
public school .
Was it a public ? Yes , it's a public school . It's a public school .
So I'm not a special ed teacher . I would be the bridge between general education and special education .
What kind of education you needed to get .
I happened to have a few different certifications that I pursued on my own because I wanted more knowledge . So I'm trained in a program called Orton-Gillingham sort of an umbrella .
Is that a national program or is it just a California ?
It's worldwide . It's sort of a set of rules in how we would teach reading and writing in a multi-sensory approach to students that have dyslexia , or what we call phonological learning difficulty , and it's been around for about 100 years .
Wow .
And it was developed through trying to understand why some children have a really difficult time learning how to read and write , and it's complicated and it happens in parts of our brain , and so a doctor and an educator created this approach to a program and many programs use this philosophy , this teaching method .
Let's go back to the certification for a second . So you have this certificate of this worldwide program , right so ?
I was sent to a different school district in Northern California who was offering a training , and it was a week-long training to learn about what's happening in the brain , how to teach this to students that need this approach , and then you walk out with a certification .
And is that the ?
only- , I also have a certification in a different program that uses that philosophy , which is called Wilson
¶ What certifications do you need
, and I'm a reading and recovery teacher , which is a certification through college to teach first graders who are behind in learning to read and write . You always wanted to be a teacher . No , I actually wanted to be an actress on Broadway and have a bachelor's in musical theater .
How did you end up ? A teacher ?
I thought I love children . I've always loved children and I wanted to work with kids and make an impact . So I thought of social work or teaching and , to be honest , I didn't know if I had the heart to work with children in that child protective services realm or work with children that are struggling in whatever way .
And then I knew that teaching would offer me the schedule , like summers off and all holidays off to be with my own family when I chose to have one . So that's the route I went .
So how many years have you been doing it ? 25 .
Wow , always the same grade , yes , and I really didn't know how to teach reading . To be honest , they don't really prepare you very well in credential programs because they don't know where you're going to be honest , they don't really prepare you very well in credential programs because they don't know where you're going to be .
Entering these programs is sort of like loose qualifications . In other countries it's a rigorous application process . They take only the best of the best to be teachers . In America it's quick . It's a year . You student teach for half a year and you're in .
Wow .
So they can't , they don't have enough time to teach you everything . So it's up to the school district that hires you to really give you that training , and they don't
¶ Teacher Shortages and Classroom Dynamics
.
So I read that there is a big shortage of teachers in San Francisco . Do you feel it ?
Yes , it's a double edged sword because there's a shortage in our district . There are classrooms that are not filled , and the goal is really to do that , but at the same time , there are many teachers that are outside of the classroom , like me , and teachers that don't even give direct services to children .
They might be working in curriculum and instruction or coaching teachers , and over the last few years , they've been trying to push people like us out of those roles and back into the classroom .
So when you say you're out of the classroom , what do you mean ? The education that you give is not considered part of the curriculum , or ?
right , it's up , it's a supplement , so we have . My school is very small , we have 13 classroom teachers and then I pull kids out of their classroom and work with them in my room and then we have one-on-oneone you work with the kids one-on-one . Sometimes , sometimes I work with small groups . It depends on what I'm teaching .
How many students in the classroom ?
In K-3 , the state mandates that you don't go above 22 . If you do , you'll lose funding from the state . So for every child above 22 , they'll give you less money . So most school districts want to adhere to that . But there are some school districts in California that have more and they just take the cut .
I read that one place said that there's a big diversity of students in San Francisco and another said that there aren't really too many black and brown kids in San Francisco . What do you see ?
That's true . They're all in a certain neighborhood , a certain part of the city , I'll say , and many families have been pushed out of the city and moved elsewhere because they can't afford to be here .
And that always falls in specific populations , right , and the schools have a lot of people like middle class , middle to upper income families have gone back to their public schools . So you see a lot of middle class , middle to upper class socioeconomic backgrounds in these public schools .
Now , it's known all around the world . I think that San Francisco cost of living is humongous , but the salary is not enough . So how much does a teacher make at the beginning and how much can they grow to make
¶ Teacher Salaries and Side Hustles
?
There's a base salary if you have a bachelor's degree , plus 30 units , which are the number of units it takes to get a credential .
What's that base ?
And $53,562 . So that's the base salary and then there might be add-ons , like these propositions that went through and the taxpayers voted to sort of add on because , let's say , the salary schedules they felt were low and for different things . So , you might get like an extra 7,000 a year .
Oh , okay , if you have 60 units above your bachelor's or actually I think it goes to 45 next and then 60 units above your bachelor's , which is usually a master's or some kind of certification you will make the most that you can make 81,700 .
So that's the base salary and the extras is when you get- .
So this is a base salary for someone that has 60 plus units more of education , so someone like me . When you get to year 14 , you have three years at one salary . You mean 14 years in the business , After 14 years yeah you make $93,623 and you have that for three years .
It doesn't move for three years , and then there's a career increment another three years . So then you're stepping every three years and still , instead of every year .
Is there a way to make more money ? Like I know in Florida , she told me they tutor .
A lot of people I know work in the summers . They tutor after school . They have some kind of side hustle .
What's the going rate for a tutor in San Francisco ?
You know it depends on your expertise . So I have tutored and because I have been trained in these specific programs for students , like I mentioned before , I could make $100 an hour or even more , and I have , and others might make less .
It just . I think it depends on your clients and all that kind of stuff .
Yeah , exactly .
I know in Florida they're limited what they can talk about and what they can teach . Do you have any kind of limitation established by your government ?
Yes , there are standards that we have to follow and guidelines .
There are certain things you have to teach and actually I think in our district it's sort of it leans to the opposite problem , where people will be teaching a history class or an ethnic studies class and they insert their own politics and their own viewpoints to a fault that they're not supposed to do .
You're not supposed to give your opinion or your political affiliation to your students . You should relay facts and then they can investigate and learn and be critical of you know how they see fit . But it's sort of like a little bit of an ongoing debate right now in San Francisco , unified
¶ Have to deal with ICE?
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Do you have to deal with ICE coming to your school district ?
We prepare for it . Yes , we have training to prepare for it . We do have undocumented students every school does and these are families I've worked with .
Like I have the third sibling of families that I've worked with that are undocumented and it's very scary for them to move around the city , especially on public transportation , and run that risk of being stopped and approached . So we have been told not to answer any questions and say you need to speak with the office and just leave it at that .
What did you say was the biggest challenge ? Did we talk about it I ?
said time , I said time . I think all teachers feel like they're expected to work beyond their paid hours and do whatever they need to do to finish grading , writing report cards , prepping meetings , and we're not getting paid for it . It's a known Teachers work beyond their paid hours .
So what would you say is the biggest reward ?
For me . I love working with kids . I think they're the most honest and real and joyful people to be around . So as a classroom teacher , I loved that and I loved the schedule .
But now that I'm really an intervention teacher and I am working so closely with students , I see exactly where they are and I see the change and the growth I never really saw that as a classroom teacher . You're not working as intimately as you are with students .
When you pulled them out of letters and the sounds and cannot blend sounds to read a word and then to see them leave you and reading is huge . It's just the most rewarding thing I've ever experienced .
I get all the best I get to work with them and see them and then give them back to their teacher and I don't have all of the management and the behavior and the organizing that they have .
¶ What changes would you like to see?
If you could change something in the system in your district , what would that be ?
Right now . It's very mismanaged at the top . We've had years and years of mismanagement . That's what has put us in this particular position of being in a deficit .
The state has semi taken over our school district funding budget , so we have a financial advisor from the California Department of Education managing things now to deal with this , and so we're suffering huge cuts right now .
And it's a hot topic right now because budgets just came out to the schools , the principals got their budget and there are a lot of cuts happening at every school site . So people are really fighting back and speaking out because they don't want to lose staff or programs and they feel like the schools are suffering .
The students are suffering because of the mismanagement at the top . Right . They adopted a software for payroll and human resources .
The school district purchased it without the support of the company , so like you could pay for also the tech support , and they opted out of that , and it's been a disaster to the point where people weren't getting paid or they were getting underpaid , and so the district spent millions to try to fix it and millions to try to unravel it , and then millions for a
consultant to figure it out , and millions of dollars later we're now buying a new one . After three years of this mess . There's a whole different software system coming in for next school year .
Well , I guess there's corruption and millions disappear everywhere . I just don't get it . Maybe we have to get used to it , but anyway , thank you .
Thank you so much Thanks for featuring a public school teacher Of course .
Okay that's a wrap for today . If you have a comment or question or would like us to cover a certain job , please let us know . Visit our website at howmuchcanimakeinfo . We would love to hear from you . And , on your way out , don't forget to subscribe and share this episode with anyone who is curious about their next job . See you next time .