Depends upon your definition of a “good deal.” Are you including all aspects of teachers’ working conditions? I’ve never seen any teacher claim that Massachusetts teacher salaries aren’t above national average?

The issue is that, due to HCOL, many towns and cities still don’t pay enough for teachers to live in the communities in which they teach.

If it was such a good deal, you’d think that you’d see tons of people signing up for this job, but in fact, 50% quit within 5 years. I can only imagine what is the actual percentage of teachers who make it the complete length of service to receive a full pension.

The salaries have to be higher because the cost of living/housing is higher in the Greater Boston area than the vast majority of the country.