Brenda Iasevoll is reporting on the Teacher Beat blog teacher salaries in New York are the second highest in the nation, according to a new study by GoBankingRates [dot] com. According to the finance website, teachers in New York are paid on average $76,593 a year. Teacher salaries are highest in Alaska, New York, Connecticut, California and Massachusetts. Of note: The states with the highest salaries also have higher costs of living than the states on the lower end of the income spectrum. According to the authors of the study, a higher average salary does not mean "easy living." In the case of California, the $72,000 average salary "is just a tad under the amount of money needed to live comfortably in [the state]." The five states where teachers are paid the least are: Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Dakota, North Carolina and Arizona. Read the full story at Teacher Beat, an Education Week blog.