Knowing I won’t survive financially because my income alone will leave me in poverty means I have no option[s].

What does the issue of pay mean for you as a teacher, and the tamariki you teach?

I am in a two household income and we are doing ok. However I want out of my emotionally and verbally abusive relationship.

Knowing I won’t survive financially because my income alone will leave me in poverty means I have no option but to stay. Then add on the workload and burnout to this equation and I’m asking myself daily “is this my life?”

What will it take to fix pay for kindergarten teachers?

Make it so that a single person can do more than just survive. The role we play with growing young minds is critical to creating a better society so why not show us this is a valued profession and pay us appropriately.

When we fix pay for kindergarten teachers, what impact will that change have on you as a teacher, and the tamariki you teach?

It might entice more people to train in early childhood and show the public we are the change of the future, not babysitters.