You misunderstood my quote marks. I don't care if you account for hours worked, the net pay in the end doesn't seem to attract the quality you need in teachers, nor give them the respect they deserve. Also, your numbers seem suspect. The median pay for teachers is around $40,000 in the US. Median, not starting.
http://www.payscale.com/research/US/All_K-12_Teachers/Salary