A teacher is one of the most important and rewarding jobs on this planet. They play a role in shaping the young minds of tomorrow — educating future workers and leaders. Despite the critical nature of the job, there is a wide disparity in the average teacher salary in different countries.
We say that education is important, but here’s the irony… We don’t value the educators enough. According to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), there’s a yawning gap between the highest and lowest paid teachers around the world. Here are some of the teacher salaries across countries stack up at different experience levels.
Considered as one of the richest countries in the world, Luxemburg has the best salary for elementary school teachers. An inexperienced teacher can expect to make more on his or her first day than teachers in nearly all other countries can hope to make in their entire careers. Meanwhile, the end-of-career salaries for elementary school teachers are in the Slovak Republic, Czech Republic, Poland, and Hungary where they remain below $30,000.
The best countries in paying high school teachers still dominated by Luxemburg. Likewise, Korean teachers still see the biggest jumps in pay over their careers. Though a brand-new teacher in Korea makes just $30,000 in their first year, by the time they’ve hit the 10-year mark, their salary rises to around $50,000, and at the top end, it’s $84,000.
What about the other Asian countries?
Looking at the average teacher salary, including the starting pay, pay after 15 years of experience, and pay at the top of the pay scale for elementary, middle and high school teachers. Also, considering the demand for teachers, here are some of the data.
Japan
Japan has a wide disparity between the average starting salary for teachers and what those at the high end of the pay scale earn. For elementary school teachers, the average starting salary is $30,631, the average salary for a teacher with 15 years of experience is $51,593, and those at the top of the pay scale average $63,969, more than double the starting salary.
China
China is one of the biggest markets for teachers, whereas demand is considered massive. Teachers in China could expect to earn around $1,900 a month. And as if that wasn’t already good enough, the cost of living in China is very low.
Vietnam
Teachers salary in Vietnam range about $,900, but if you consider it in terms of Vietnamese Dong, you’ll be a millionaire! The demand for teachers? There are various sectors to choose from, including kindergartens, universities, state schools, language schools.
Thailand
On average, teaching in Thailand would earn $1,080 per month, which may not sound like a lot. However, bear in mind that everything in Thailand is very cheap. Plus, the demand for teachers are all over the place, meaning that you can choose which area you’d like to teach.
Indonesia
The opportunities to teach in Indonesia, mainly in a major city like Jakarta, are quite literally endless! There are options such as teaching young children or even teaching business English to professionals. The money that will be earned is around 10 – 15 million Rupiah, which while at $1,100 a month may not sound quite so impressive, the cost of living is low here.
Taiwan
Taiwan is definitely an up-and-coming place for teachers in Asia, whereas finding the job shouldn’t be too tricky. Most teaching jobs are found in the larger cities of Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taichung, Taoyuan, and Tainan. As for the salary, Taiwan is like a hidden secret… They pay teachers on average $3,000.