US teachers more interested in reform than money

By DONNA GORDON BLANKINSHIP (AP) –

SEATTLE — U.S. teachers are more interested in school reform and student achievement than their paychecks, according to a massive new survey.

The survey of 40,090 K-12 teachers — including 15,038 by telephone — was likely the largest national survey of teachers ever completed and includes the opinions of teachers in every grade, in every state and across the demographic spectrum.

Called "Primary Sources: America's Teachers on America's School," the survey was conducted by Harris Interactive between March 10 and June 18, 2009, and was to be released Wednesday. It was paid for by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Scholastic Inc.

The purpose of the survey was to keep teachers' voices in the debate over education reform, said Vicki L. Phillips, director of Gates Foundation's K-12 education program.

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Click here to read or download the full Primary Sources survey.