Focus on: Are teachers in Europe paid enough?

'Without you, without the affectionate hand you extended to the small poor child that I was, without your teaching and example, none of all this would have happened.' - Albert Camus to his school teacher after receiving the Nobel Prize
Anybody would agree with American journalist Charles Kuralt that 'Good teachers know how to bring out the best in students'. But do governments and public authorities know how to bring out the best in teachers? What are the factors that motivate young people to enter the teaching profession, support them in doing the best job possible, and encourage them to stay?
A common first response might be money. Dolton and Marcerano-Gutierrez studied the relationship between teacher salaries and pupil outcomes, showing a positive correlation between higher pay and higher pupil scores (in TIMSS and PISA). They argue that higher salaries for beginning teachers make the entry to the profession more competitive, and raise the average level of those entering. Moreover, once recruited, the possibility to reach higher pay levels and/or to receive more performance related pay can also act as an incentive for teachers to improve their pupils' educational outcomes. More...