Tulip Canada: January 2016

Like any organization, a classroom is as good as the teacher. Management should have a pulse on the work dynamics of its school and team to access performance and service to students, parents and teachers.

Engagement brings benefits in the willingness to do more than is expected, higher productivity and greater satisfaction. Strong communication impacts on the quality of service delivery and efficiency in a school. School management should continually review its communications programs as a means to ensure greater teacher satisfaction while strengthening the administrative infrastructures to support teachers both in classroom and overall school deliverables.

Control,Opportunity and Leadership: A Study of Employment Engagement in the Canadian Workplace by Shawn Baker highlights:

“Disengaged employees also impact the output of their organizations. The most common results of disengagement were dysfunctional work relationships (29%), lower productivity (25%), and an unwillingness to go beyond their job description (17%). Startlingly, disengaged employees do not quit in droves or fail to show up for work. Turnover at 8% and absences at 7% were among the lower rated results of disengagement. It appears that the disengaged do not leave their organizations; instead they stay and damage both productivity and relationships”.

Strong performance demonstrates high levels of commitment and loyalty. The underlying factor of success is trust. It’s a two-way dialogue between school management and teachers. It is to lead, manage and support teachers. Continuity on the teaching team ensures stability both in service delivery, and fostering positive, healthy relationships with students, parents, and management.

Communication

Technology disseminates information to the teaching team, however it is really the quality of face-to-face meetings individually, and as a team, which is a vital in communicating well and establishing trust. School management should be able to meet with its entire staff monthly, where department heads can meet weekly or bi-weekly. The meetings do not have to be long. It is a time to connect as a team, share information, raise concerns, and recognize teachers’ performances. Individual meetings should occur 2 to 4 times a year.

Empowerment

It is to give the responsibility while sharing in the decision-making authority with the teacher. It is to provide the necessary tools and resources to perform and reach their classroom deliverables on a given day, week, month or year. It is to be there to support their efforts through empowerment of resources, responsibilities and opportunities. Contributing to the team builds excitement and satisfaction. A working environment it should be one, which takes an interest in the lives of its team and teachers -- as individuals, mothers, fathers, parents and community leaders.

Sadly, there are few statistics or studies on the percentage of life spent working, anywhere in this world. It is a safe assumption that regardless of what continent we sleep each night, we work hard. Life is priceless. Time is priceless. We need to be happy in the work we do, and where we work. If there is an unhappiness within at work, than it is time to move onto the next adventure and bellow, “Next! I am ready!”

Accountability

Clear performance metrics should be implement each term. It will establish well-defined metrics both to monitor and evaluate a teacher’s performance, including their contribution in achieving classroom deliverables and school goals. Good work should always be expected and demanded. Meeting timelines is important, however if a teacher needs additional resources their work plan should highlight time management, as well as gaps in resource support. If resource support is not available than negotiate either to shift deadline or deliverables.

If performance exceeds expectations reward the teacher! If the performance is good praise them for their deliverables, and of course, if the performance is poor, offer feedback to encourage and support efforts for improvement. There should be a performance scale for salary and/or bonus increases, which should be use both as an initiative and as measured results.

If performance is poor, addressing it safeguards any fall out issues within the school or department. It allows for the disengaged teacher to move along to a new opportunity with minimal damage to the teaching team and school both in culture, and energy.

Goal Setting

Goals should be set with mutual interest and respect. Performance views are an ideal time to discuss teacher’s career goals, and seek direction to help support growth or stretching opportunities both within their current role or explore leadership or career enhancement roles through projects or secondments. Teachers should be aware of internal openings and be given consideration before venturing to the external market for candidates.

Recognition

Reward teachers for their stellar performance. A recognition program spotlights performance, which goes beyond the call of duty and responsibility. It is an act of appreciation – a dinner, a gift certificate to a spa or to their favourite retailer. The program could offer recognition on a monthly or term basis, and could be applied to a faculty or department team in which the recognition may be a boat cruise, a weekend trip with their family somewhere fun.

A happy classroom makes a happy class. Find opportunities to appreciate teachers. Their loyalty and commitment will far exceed the financial expense of the recognition gifts. When these good teachers decide to leave on another teaching adventure they will have good feelings of the school, and most of all, these feelings in the education community either locally, or internationally have an impact a school image. An image any school wishes to uphold, and enhance as a place to study, and a place to work.

For advice on recruitment services or starting a teaching adventure, please contact us and submit a resume. Follow us at @tulipcanada and Facebook.