A Tribute to Teachers

Teaching would have to be one of the most stimulating, rewarding, and honourable professions - contributing to the development of young people, influencing their knowledge, opening their minds, and impacting their growth. I can not think of another profession with so much reward. So, if teaching is such a gift and an honour, why do we not have a waiting list a mile long of people wanting to join this incredible profession? Why is the attrition rate so low? Why are teachers not the happiest most fulfilled people in the world? More importantly, What can we do about this?

The education world has been my life – from the age of 5 when I entered the school gates for the first time, the transition to high school, then university and by 20 standing before my own class as a teacher. With my 50th birthday next week, I take this time to reflect on 45 years in education, 30 as an educator and I want to honour, congratulate, and thank all teachers.

TEACHERS MAKE THE DIFFERENCE

The quality of the teacher is the most influential factor, that we can control, in improving student outcomes.

“Teachers account for about 30% of the variance. It is what teachers know, do, and care about which is very powerful in this learning equation.” (Teachers Make a Difference. What is the research evidence? Hattie, 2003)

This paper first highlighted the worth of teachers and the incredible impact they have. It proved that investing in teachers was clearly the best way to go and yet it also adds pressure and expectation on teachers to ‘fix everything’.

Over the past 30 years I have seen a considerable decline in the level of respect shown to teachers from others – parents, students, the general public and the media. Saying you are a teacher was said with such pride as you were seen as a pivotal member of society, working tirelessly to support young people develop. You were proud, your parents were proud and the majority of people you encountered were genuinely grateful for all you did. There was never any other profession that I even considered…I love educating. Teaching does not appear to have this same level of regard anymore.

TEACHERS RETENTION

Today, through Powerful Partnerships, I speak with hundreds of teachers, many of whom feel underappreciated, undervalued, and not respected. They are challenged by students and parents alike and the workload seems to continue to climb. It took the recent pandemic to highlight the worth of teachers, with many parents realising just what it takes to educate and care for young people all day, every day. The media finally acknowledged the dedication and commitment shown by the teaching fraternity…..what a refreshing feeling that was.

In the absence of a national database on teacher attrition rates in Australia, estimates vary that between 30 per cent and 50 per cent of teachers leave the profession within the first five years. There are a range of factors in play here but clearly our teachers are not being appreciated, respected and supported enough in this highly demanding, yet highly rewarding profession.

How do we lift the status of teachers in our country? How do we attract quality people to the profession? How do we support teachers throughout their career to continue to grow and thrive? How do we show care for them, so they do not burn out?

There’s no quick fix….but let us explore some of the issues and potential solutions.

WORKLOAD

Australian public school teachers face higher workloads, fewer resources, and more administration duties than global averages, according to a new international report into teaching conditions.

The OECD’s Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) 2018 report focuses on teachers’ work in the classroom, demographics, classroom challenges, Initial Teacher Education (ITE) and training and provision of professional development. It found that Australian teachers are some of the most innovative and enthusiastic adopters of new ideas and approaches to education but also among the most overworked.

Teachers will tell you of their ongoing struggle with a crowded curriculum, poor behaviour and far too much paperwork detracting from valuable, quality teaching and learning time.

ATTITUDE

Teachers report that behaviour and attitude challenges in classrooms has increased. Many parents are more defensive of their children and less supportive of teacher’s decisions to discipline when required. Teachers need greater support from families. After all, we are all trying to provide the best for young people, so we are actually on the same page.

ASSESSMENT

The introduction and public analysis of standardised testing adds another layer of pressure and scrutiny on teachers. Whilst the collection of such data can be very useful for teachers in identifying learning gaps, it’s the public ‘sensationalised headlines’ that adds to the decline in respect teachers feel.

LEARNING PROGRAMS

There has been a significant increase in the number of programs schools are asked to implement or have providers implement, all of which are incredibly valuable – cyber safety, consent, protective education, stranger danger, sun-safety, nutrition….the list goes on. Schools are a convenient place to implement these programs, but they do take time away from the teaching of core subjects, those which teachers are often publicly judged on.

These are just some of the factors impacting teachers in our current climate, contributing to their frustration, fatigue, and burnout. So, let us go back to the key questions which should be driving us to explore solutions and enact changes on the teaching profession.

SOLUTIONS

How do we lift the status of teachers in our country? How do we attract quality people to the profession? How do we support teachers throughout their career to continue to grow and thrive? How do we show care for them, so they do not burn out?

COACHING

Teachers need a variety of pathways to support them in staying fresh, energised, and valued. We need to retain experienced teachers in our system and utilise their expertise and experience to help and support each other and particularly to support the next generation of teachers as they enter our profession. Coaching and Mentoring Programs are a key to this but currently many schools who see the value in this and are embedding these practices, have them as an ‘added extra’. Teachers are not always able to experience the true benefits of coaching as no additional time is allocated. Money needs to be allocated to help create these roles, so teachers have less time face to face with students and more time engaged in professional dialogue with each other, giving and receiving feedback, watching each other teach, planning for the unique needs of all students and being equipped to thrive in the profession.

MENTORING

Teachers new to the profession need additional support. A reduction in their teaching loads, more time observing experienced teachers who have spent years honing their craft, more time to reflect on their practice and more time to discuss their growth with mentors. Mentoring is far more than showing new educators how to work the photocopier! Mentors need time to invest in their mentees. Currently many teachers are trying to support others but already have a full load. If we don’t start investing in teachers to be effective mentors and give them time to do so, not only are we letting down our new teachers, but we are also contributing to the burn out of our experienced teachers.

PROFESSIONAL GROWTH

Australia is one of the highest countries in the world in terms of face-to-face time with students (contact time). Primary schools have on average about 2.5 hours a week where they are not in front of a class and secondary teachers on average about 3.5 hours. How do we possibly expect our teachers to plan, reflect, assess, learn, grow, report etc in just that amount of time? This is why teachers invariably spend their weekends and evenings working – that doesn’t help them learn from each other though – and once again drives us to work in isolation. Teachers need time with colleagues so a truly collaborative culture is harnessed.

Einstein famously said, “The purest form of insanity is to leave everything the same and at the same time hope that things will change.” Teachers need opportunities to regularly involve themselves in professional learning – to understand the changing world that our young ones are growing up in, to hear about the research into effective teaching and to be abreast with the latest developments and programs available. Building capacity in our teachers, investing in their growth and development, reducing their face-to-face time and providing them with opportunities to learn would be a great start.

RESPECT

Lifting the status of educators in Australia is certainly needed. In countries like Finland who regularly make the news by reporting high results in universal measures have the highest university entrance levels – higher than a doctor. Parents say, “My son is becoming a teacher.” with such pride. Their teaching degrees are Masters Level only and they all include a major area of study in Psychology. The society value teachers above many other professions – this respect filters down to the children. We require a culture shift – raise the bar on teaching – make the entrance requirements more rigorous to attract the right people to the profession - increase their salaries - increase the incentives to educate…Make teaching a desirable vocation, one which is respected, honoured, and supported.

Change can start with us. Let us all…..Value our teachers…..Respect our teachers….Thank our teachers….Support our teachers.

by Jodie Davey