I have a relative who is a teacher.  She never got a masters degree because she felt it wasn't cost effective.  However some teachers in our system do get masters degrees and then get automatic higher salaries. 

I've never understood the logic.  My son has a masters degree but if he didn't do a better job than the person who has high school degree or a bachelors degree he wouldn't get paid anymore.  His salary was based on productivity, not the level of education.  

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Then too I am curious, if your child gets the new teacher with only a BA and my child gets the older teacher with the masters is my child getting a better education?  Are you being short changed in the same school?  How can we justify paying one teacher who teaches 1st grade almost twice as much as the other?