This week’s TES teacher wellbeing survey suggested that only two-fifths of UK teachers feel that their colleagues care about them. That’s a worrying statistic especially when compared to the 2020 survey when the majority (66 per cent) said they felt cared about. So what’s gone wrong?
An email from a colleague earlier this week really made me stop and think. I’d asked the teacher to come and see me regarding a parent issue and suggested some times over the coming days. The teacher’s reply was that they “would not sleep” so “could it please be today”.
“Looking out for the wellbeing of one’s colleagues is vital but the last couple of years have certainly tested that.”
It immediately became apparent to me that I did need to see that person the same day, whatever else my diary dictated to the contrary. We don’t always appreciate the impact that an email communication can have on the recipient. Looking out for the wellbeing of one’s colleagues is vital but the last couple of years have certainly tested that important aspect of working in the teaching profession.
This is clearly a complex issue and it is well known that there are currently more teachers leaving the profession than there are training. The pandemic has certainly shaken confidence and encouraged increased isolation amongst staff bodies. When I speak to fellow heads there is a palpable sense of weariness directly related to Covid and we are all very aware of how our schools and our staff have had to flex and adapt their ways of working.
“A lack of opportunities to develop meaningful relationships has affected our ability to care for each other.”
We’ve all had to stay away from each other. And however adept one is at using Teams or Zoom it cannot replace that human interaction that is so much a part of being in a school community. It is easy to see how a lack of opportunities to forge and develop meaningful relationships with colleagues, especially those taking on a new job in the last couple of years, has had a profound effect upon our ability to care for each other in a meaningful way. When so much of communication is non-verbal, we do need to see each other in person to work out when something is not right and to offer support.
Our students have all had different reactions to the periods of school closure with some having rather enjoyed the online learning, whilst others have really missed the social interaction that school provides. I’d suggest this is the same for our teachers too and the situation has encouraged some people to withdraw and become content with their own company rather than immediately noticing that someone else might need support too.
“The situation has encouraged some people to withdraw and become content with their own company.”
There’s another aspect to this as well. Teaching is all about giving. We care about young people and their futures and we want to make a difference. Teaching is a vocation not just a job. Because of that, we are constantly putting the needs of our students before our own. The staff room chatter is always about how we can help a child more and helping ourselves can take a bit of a back seat.
I hope that as we move beyond the social distancing and the mask wearing we can start to rebuild our communities and take more care of our teaching staff as well as the children. Our teachers are the lifeblood of our schools and if we don’t look after them, we will actually do our children a disservice too.
Every workforce has its challenges but being part of a caring work environment is so vital – now more than ever. By being kind to each other and showing we care about our colleagues we are also modelling the behaviour we seek in the young people we are helping to develop.
“Are we too proud to express our needs and wants and to actually say that we don’t feel supported or cared about?”
This is not just an issue for schools and school leaders but for Government to think about too. The main findings from the Teacher Wellbeing Index 2021 suggest that there are three things the Government can do to show they care about the teaching profession: reducing the burden of unnecessary paperwork or data gathering and reducing the workload volume and recognising the high intensity or high pressure work environment which exists in education settings.
Caring about each other costs nothing but as leaders, we do need to find time for our colleagues and let them know they can come and talk to us. But this isn’t always easily achieved. Are we too proud to express our needs and wants and to actually say that we don’t feel supported or cared about?
Sometimes as a head it can be hard to get one’s teachers to tell you what they are really feeling and actually, why should they? Are they worried about being judged for admitting to feeling a bit lost or vulnerable?
Often it’s the little things that make a huge difference like that passing casual conversation in the corridor or a card or note to say you are thinking about them. I have some staff that give me flowers at the start of each term – such a thoughtful and lovely thing to do and it really does make me feel valued.
We do need to find time for our work colleagues. And as a leader, it’s a case of saying less (not always easy!) and actively listening – perhaps a skill that with the aftermath of Covid, we truly need to hone.