Skip to main content

Even More Ways Ed Leaders Can Truly Appreciate Teachers

     If June is associated with the end of another school year, May is often associated with celebrations. One annual one that tends to get lots of attention is Teacher Appreciation. It used to be Teacher Appreciation Day, then week and now it’s the whole month of May. But in an era where we are desperately in need of recruiting more new teachers, as well as going through some of the most turbulent teacher labor issues, maybe we can’t have enough teacher appreciation.
     As a former site leader and activities director, I facilitated a great deal of teacher appreciation events. We did it all from breakfasts, lunches, dinners, raffle prizes, coffees, gifts, car washes and even massages. They were all fun and well deserved. And why these are fun and do offer some appreciation, especially if students are involved in teacher appreciation, I’m still challenged by the larger implications.
     Just like our other national holidays or celebrations – i.e. Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day and so many others – do we end up having ceremonial gestures or actual true appreciation. After all, should we not value, appreciate and recognize our mothers, fathers, loved ones and even our teachers everyday?

     This is also currently being inspired by what I see as some real travesties in schools in regards to not only recognizing teachers, but also working to keep them (especially the really good ones). It’s ironic. In an era of large teachers shortages, we often only seem to discuss recruitment and not retainment. Almost every year, I have friends and colleagues leave the classroom and their school sites to take other opportunities. Normally, these are not about compensation, but rather value, flexibility, creativity, autonomy and more.
     Last May, I offered five ways for educational leaders and others to make teachers feel as important as they really are. They were Create A Culture of Teacher Support & Appreciation, Autonomy, Flexibility, Digital Appreciation and Let the Students Do It. This year, I’d like to add to that list. And, as usual, instead of focusing on one-off celebrations or recognitions, work towards having a school culture and work environment that honors the hard work of teachers everyday. Here are more ideas to add to the original list:

Support Real, Personal Professional Growth

     Professional Development has often been something dictated or prescribed by administrators. There is no argument that professional growth and lifelong learning, especially for educators, is more vital than ever. But how can we support teachers on their individual professional journeys? Well, if you have any teachers who want to attend professional learning events, work to find any way to support that and get them here. Better yet, if you have teachers who are involved enough to be presenting and sharing with other professionals, be sure to find any way to support that. Whether that is getting a sub, covering their classes or covering expenses. Indeed, ask them to come back and share with and train their colleagues. Indeed, I applaud those districts that are now offering teachers online and personalized professional learning options, as well as things like digital badges, annual funding to be spent as teachers see fit and more. We need to have all leaders work towards creating professional environments where all teachers have professional growth goals that they have established and can be supported.
(courtesy of Ed Surge)
Just Say Yes


     Additionally, when teachers have those lofty or sometimes seemingly crazy ideas of new projects, courses, field trips, lessons, activities, resources, guest speakers or more, find a way to say ‘yes.’ One of my favorite educators and public speakers, Mike Smith, had a keynote intro that always read, “If it’s not illegal or immoral why not give it a try?” It seems that all of us, but especially educational leaders, are almost trained to say “no.” We are often conditioned to be concerned about everything from supervision and safety to policies and procedures. As leaders, we need to say “yes” whenever possible to our teachers and staff regarding any idea they have. If we want them to dream big and think outside the norm, then we have to support that with our faith in them through the power of “yes.” We may have to say no sometimes, but we should work tirelessly to say “yes.” Saying “yes” is not only more difficult, but forces us to question our own philosophies and beliefs. “Yes” not only usually requires more work or effort, but it also may require risk and fear of failure. If we say “no,” we don’t have to see if an idea will fail. If we say “yes,” we are opening up ourselves and those we lead to a more vulnerable state. But it’s our blessing of the idea, as well as the leadership necessary to remove any barriers, that will ultimately lead to a more innovative and creative community.

Coach Them Well, Especially The Good Ones
     Some of our best teachers are the ones who will take on everything. They will lead in the classroom and outside of the classroom. They are committee members, coaches, team leaders, project coordinators and early adopters. And as good as they are at all of it, maybe we need to look out for them. We don’t necessarily want to tell them know, but I also think we owe them the coaching and support of letting them know that nothing is more important than their health, their families, their longevity and their sanity. If they are our great teachers, we need to protect them and save them (often rom themselves). Some folks need a kick in the pants and some need different types of coaching. Just like students,

     Naturally, this list could go and probably should. But the intent is to go beyond the cursory gifts or tokens of appreciation. These are all fine and make great ways for students and parents to say thanks. But for those that are tasked with leading and coaching our teachers, we can do much better. Let’s focus on authentic and sustainable ways to help all teachers become their personal and professional best. In the end, they will appreciate that type of appreciation the most.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Evolutionary Education - 5 Things That Could Be Extinct Soon

     It has often been uttered, that “only the fittest survive.” But when it comes to education, it seems things that might not even be that fit have continued to survive. However, just like in living species through time - dinosaurs, saber tooth tigers and the wooly mammoth just to name a few - even things that have lived on for a long time eventually go extinct. So, with that in mind, it seems educational evolution is occurring too and extinction might be inevitable for a variety of standard educational pedagogy, tools and practices. HERE ARE MY FIVE THINGS THAT COULD BE EXTINCT SOON:  Textbooks/Single Source Curriculum: (this includes ebook textbooks too). Regardless of whether they are digital or not, depending on and surviving on one text as the foundational source of information and context - regardless of course, age group and purpose - seems almost prehistoric at this point. Information changes daily and resources are born every minute on line. Anyone doing serious academ

21st Century High School Student Bill of Rights

     Since I began teaching in 1990, I have repeatedly heard the term “reform” with regards to our educational system. And as someone who has always believed in and practiced teaching that worked to be real world, relevant and student-oriented, I can still get excited about the “possibilities” of real change. However, even with all of the classrooms, schools and some systems that have embraced new standards, new technology, project-based approaches, democratization/student voice and more, it’s almost appalling how little has changed in many of our nation’s high school classrooms. They are still dominated by outdated pedagogies, resources, activities and learning environments. Many still live and die by the lecture, low level note taking, and low level quizzes and assessments, as well as teacher/administrator mindsets not in line with anything related to 21st century workplaces or careers.       This lack of overall progress has lead me to be more anxious, adamant and even angry about

Lead Like A Punk Rocker

(Inspired by and dedicated to #LeadWild, David Theriault, David Culberhouse, Jon Corippo, Dr. Brad Gustafson, Tom Whitford, Ken Durham, The Ramones, Bad Religion, The Clash, X and many others.) "PUNK IS: the personal expression of uniqueness that comes from the experiences of growing up in touch with our human ability to reason and ask questions.” - Greg Graffin, Bad Religion “The thread of culture that runs through the entire history of punk is also a dedication to challenging the authoritarian.” - Greg Graffin, Bad Religion      You can’t peruse social media, even for a minute, without coming across another book, blog post or quote about LEADERSHIP. But, here I go anyway. Leadership, and leadership theory, are applicable to all industries, endeavors and human interactions. And no doubt that leadership, and our leaders, are going through major transformations as our entire global society questions traditional approaches and yearns for more meaningful and empowering ones.