| West Virginia ranked next to last overall in a study that looks at the best and worst states for teachers.
The study by the personal finance website WalletHub ranked only Hawaii behind West Virginia in 2016's Best and Worst States for teachers.
A total of 51 are ranked including the District of Columbia. New Jersey ranked No. 1, and Massachusetts was at No. 2.
In rating the teacher-friendliness of West Virginia, the Mountain State ranked 42nd in the average starting salary for teachers and 48th in the median annual salary for teachers. Both are adjusted for the cost of living.
Teachers' income growth potential in West Virginia ranked 42nd, while the 10-year change in teacher salaries was 24th.
Meanwhile, West Virginia ranked 23rd in school safety, 18th in pupil teacher-ratio and 16th in public school spending per student.
WalletHubWith said it conducted the indepth analysis of best and worst states for teachers since Oct. 5 is International World Teachers Day and the Every Student Succeeds Act soon goes into effect. | 
