This article is reprinted from the Association of Academic Leaders’ member-exclusive Knowledge Library. Want more resources like this? Find out more about membership. As the academic year begins to wrap up, educators are tired. Academic Leaders are tired, themselves–and they still need to help colleagues find the energy to make the end of the year productive, rewarding, and joyful. To do that, it’s important to remind teachers and colleagues there are mindsets and actions that can make your school community more kind and resilient. This is a great time to return to key practices that keep your community well:
Foster a renewed sense of community Academic Leaders can foster a renewed sense of community through modeling acts of kindness toward colleagues. These acts can have big payoffs! Gail Markin, an SEL instructor in British Columbia, writes, “Did you know that when you perform an act of kindness towards another person, ‘feelgood’ chemicals are released in YOUR brain, in the OTHER PERSON’S brain, and in the brains of ANYONE ELSE who just so happened to witness the interaction? Essentially, we have the power to impact each other’s brain chemistry through our words and actions.” In other words, the effects of this type of gesture are contagious. In addition, the lowered cortisol levels that arise with feelings of increased belonging in the workplace can actually boost colleagues’ immune systems. As Markin writes, “The science is clear – if we feel valued by and connected with our colleagues, then we work harder and more effectively while experiencing more fun and more success at work.” Re-establish clear community norms The establishment of clear community norms is important not only for new colleagues but also for those who have worked together for a long time. Nina Portugal and Malia Tayabas-Kim, directors at Lead by Learning at Mills College for Education, note that bringing colleagues together to discuss norms, academic leaders can help make clear to their community that “we all need different things to learn best, and the only way we can learn that about one another is by shining light on our needs.” In Edutopia, Portugal and Tayabas-Kim suggest asking educators to consider the following: 1) What conditions do you need in order to be able to do your best learning?, 2) What conditions do you need in order to feel brave in this group as a learner?, and 3) What do you need from others to feel safe learning? Promote the practice of public learning The perception that our colleagues are not struggling makes us feel worse and less equipped to confront the challenges of our roles. Portugal and Tayabas-Kim write that “the myth of perfectionism puts pressure on us to share only our successes and not our challenges, making it hard for communities to build professional trust.” They put forth public learning as a way to mitigate this perception. Public learning involves sharing “uncertainties and dilemmas aloud, instead of focusing only on best practices.” In response, colleagues do not propose solutions but rather “support their colleagues with deep listening and courageous questions so the public learner can name their next steps on their own.” Public learning promotes trust among colleagues and more constructive relationships. Develop self-efficacy In healthy communities, people feel like they can create change. Academic Leaders can foster a sense of self-efficacy both at the individual level and for the community. At the individual level, Academic Leaders can do this by providing continuous feedback that focuses on areas of effectiveness and growth, developing action plans with colleagues, and formalizing a goal setting process. At the community level, Academic Leaders can open themselves up to feedback and make their own processes more transparent. At ASCD, educators Wendy Anderson and Kathy Schuh write, “Administrators who can create cultures that combine high levels of challenge and support are more likely to foster higher levels of self-efficacy.” Individual educators’ self-efficacy promotes healthy community efficacy.
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In the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing articles that dive more into what drives educators to stay or quit their work in schools, and posts about shifts in hiring practices to adapt to a new hiring environment. You’ll see them in the members-only newsletter, Meet the Moment, for the Association for Academic Leaders. Your school hasn’t joined yet? Find out more about membership. Association Members: Navigating the 2023 Hiring Landscape - Part II is live in the member Portal.
National data and trends back this up. Whereas the media reported incessantly about “The Great Resignation” throughout 2021, the trend continued and perhaps even accelerated in 2022. The education sector was not immune from this trend, as it has been in other volatile times, as seen in this chart (source). Added on top of increased resignations is an increase in behaviors that some are calling quiet quitting. “Quiet quitting refers to opting out of tasks beyond one’s assigned duties and/or becoming less psychologically invested in work. Quiet quitters continue to fulfill their primary responsibilities, but they’re less willing to engage in activities known as citizenship behaviors: no more staying late, showing up early, or attending non-mandatory meetings.” (source) There are two other national trends that Academic Leaders should be aware of. The first is that the demand for remote work has never been greater. Just look at this recent analysis from the Washington Post. Pre-pandemic less than 5% of job applications went to remote positions and less than 3% of openings were for remote positions. Today, more than 50% (!) of applications are going to remote positions and 15% of openings are for remote positions (source). At One Schoolhouse, we’ve been hiring a lot recently, both for part-time faculty and full-time administrators. Both candidate pools have never been stronger. The second national trend that’s getting fewer headlines is called shift shock. “Shift Shock is that feeling when you start a new job and realize, with either surprise or regret, that the position or company is very different from what you were led to believe.” (source) I like to think of this in our industry as “other duties as assigned.” Shift shock is a key factor of those “late quits” I mentioned earlier: employees leaving positions with little notice (or regret) if either the company or the job does not meet what was advertised in the job description or application process.
I’m an optimist and problem solver by nature. So, although these challenges exist, there are things we can do as Academic Leaders to solve for or mitigate them. |
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April 2024
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