TOEFL Topic 97: Paying Teachers According to How Much Students Learn

By Jaisung Yoon

Topic 97: Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Teachers should be paid according to how much their students learn. Give specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.

February 8, 2011

A teacher plays a very important role in a student’s life. This is because a teacher teaches students not only school subjects but also valuable lessons for their lives. The question is whether or not teachers should be paid according to how much their students learn. In my opinion, teachers should not be paid based on how much their students learn because students’ understanding depends on their effort and such a system can possibly inhibit (stand in the way of) teacher development.

To begin with, although a good teacher and a good lecture are essential to improving students’ understanding, how much students learn depends on how hard students study. A competent teacher can help his students understand well and get good grades. However, even though a teacher may teach well, if some students are not interested in his class, they will get low grades. From my personal experience of taking a lot of classes, I can say that my efforts were more important than what teacher said. My high school was famous for mathematics, and there were a number of good math teachers. Although the math teachers gave excellent math classes, the subject was not my liking. As a result, I did not study hard and my math grades were always bad. On the other hand, I liked studying Korean, and was always eager to learn more. Consequently, my understanding of Korean has continued to improve regardless of my teachers.

Next, in order to foster good teachers, all teachers need to help each other and be treated equally. Often, a new teacher learns how to teach from other practiced teachers. However, if teachers get paid by how much their students learn, the teachers will be reluctant to share their teaching skills and some teachers who are not able to teach well will be less likely to get good advice. When my father became math teacher, he was in a lot of troubles because of his poor teaching skills. One day, he talked about his problems with a veteran teacher, and the veteran teacher gave him valuable advice and showed him how to teach better. After that, my father spent some time and money improving his teaching skills and he was able to be well-prepared for his classes. In the end, he became a trustworthy and respected teacher.

In conclusion, paying teachers according to how much students learn is counterproductive. This is because how much students learn is not fully dependent on teachers’ teaching skills, and in order to foster good teachers, all teachers need equal opportunity.