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Teachers' out of pocket expenses averaged $1848 for the 2013 school year, a recent Federation online survey revealed.
This represents 3.02 per cent of a beginning teacher's salary and 2.02 per cent of an experienced, unpromoted teacher.
Thirty per cent of respondents spent more than $2000 and 16 respondents more than $10,000.
Teachers too often fill the funding gap between government funding and community contributions and what teachers regard as necessary to engage students or even what is necessary to ensure schools are clean with proper staff facilities. Without individual teacher subsidies of the public school system, the school environment would be much less attractive for teaching and learning.
Survey respondents spent an average of $985 on classroom supplies (writing and drawing materials such as pens, pencils, paints, exercise books, pencil holders and buckets as well as craft supplies such as cardboard, glue, fabrics, magazines/ newspapers); educational materials (books for class libraries, games and toys, sports equipment, music equipment, computer software for class use) and classroom furniture (such as pin boards, crates for resources, filing cabinets, additional seating or floor coverings, computer hardware and audio visual equipment and even heaters).
Teachers spent on average $169...