If anyone deserves to be paid well beyond what they the basic necessities, it's teachers. And if any social program is deserving of oodles of funding, it's public education.

But here we are, in a world where schools have to make tough budget decisions and underpaid teachers pay hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars out of their own pockets to supply their classrooms with everything they need to create a vibrant learning environment for their students.

When you go into a classroom and see all the colorful posters and charts on the wall, the hands-on learning centers, the reading nooks with the bean bag chairs and shelves of books, the well-organized supplies and all the other cool educational materials that turn a dull, drab space into a place where kids want to engage and learn, you may not realize how much of that stuff was purchased on a teacher's dime. Some schools offer a small classroom budget, but it's rarely enough to cover everything a teacher needs. And on top of all that, teachers often buy snacks for their students because kids can't learn well when they're hungry.

If you ask the average teacher how much it costs to put together their classroom and keep it going all year, many will tell you they're afraid to add it all up. One survey found that 93% of teachers spend their own money on their classrooms and the average annual amount teachers spend is $915.

Teachers spend money to make their classrooms engaging environments.Photo from Pixabay

It's even worse for first-year teachers, who are starting from scratch and who are at the lowest tier of pay. And yet so many teachers will sacrifice what they have to make sure their kids get the best educational experience possible.

That's why the #clearthelist campaign matters.

Many teachers have classroom wish lists on Amazon that anyone can purchase from, with the items going straight to the teacher. When you start looking at teachers' lists, you realize how much it takes to create a classroom and how ridiculous it would be for a teacher to try to fund all of it themselves.

If you're a teacher with a wish list or someone who wants to help clear a teacher's list, we're collecting and sharing links to make it easier for everyone. Just click on this link to the video below, and either drop your wish list in the comments or click on a link that a teacher has dropped to see if there's anything you can help out with.

Yes. Yes it is. In an ideal world, schools would be overflowing with funds and teachers would be paid like doctors and engineers. Kids in school—literally our future—would be equipped with everything they need to learn and grow and become the world-changing forces they have the potential to be. It's absurd that we have to argue this point, as if education isn't the single most important investment a country or society can make to improve the lives of everyone who lives there.

Teachers in the U.S. usually have small budgets for their classrooms.Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

But since we're not quite there yet, it's up to the community of people who care about students, teachers and education to bridge the gaps. If everyone pitches in a little bit—even buying just one item helps—we can make sure that the financial burden of creating a great classroom doesn't fall solely on teachers' shoulders.

Click here to drop and find teacher wish lists.

Schools often have to walk a fine line when it comes to parental complaints. Diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and preferences for what kids see and hear will always mean that schools can't please everyone all the time, so educators have to discern what's best for the whole, broad spectrum of kids in their care.

Sometimes, what's best is hard to discern. Sometimes it's absolutely not.

Such was the case when a parent at a St. Louis elementary school complained in a Facebook group about a book that was read to her 7-year-old. The parent wrote:

"Anyone else check out the read a loud book on Canvas for 2nd grade today? Ron's Big Mission was the book that was read out loud to my 7 year old. I caught this after she watched it bc I was working with my 3rd grader. I have called my daughters school. Parents, we have to preview what we are letting the kids see on there."

The book in question, "Ron's Big Mission," highlights a true story from the childhood of Challenger astronaut Ron McNair, who had experienced discrimination as a child in South Carolina because he was Black. In 1959, when he was nine years old, McNair wanted to check out books at the library, but the librarian told him the library didn't loan books to "coloreds." McNair refused to leave the library until he was allowed to check out books. Rather than give him a library card, the librarian called the police, who ultimately convinced her to just let him check out books.

Seriously, what issue could this parent possibly take with such an inspiring story of a kid standing up to injustice and fighting for the right to educate himself? This was a child who single-handedly changed a library's racial segregation policy and grew up to be an astronaut—a genuine, real-life hero. What is there to take issue with? The parent didn't specify, so we're left to conjecture, but if there's any other possible reason than racism, I can't think of one.

Rockwood Education........

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