I vividly recall a TV advertisement in the 1980s. The tune was so catchy that, even now, I occasionally find myself humming: “be the first to say, do you need a hand.”
Thirty years on, I wonder if we’re more inclined to offer criticism than a hand. Just ask our teachers.
Parents are having trouble finding the time and energy to offer a hand in the classroom, yet many do find the time to engage in unsolicited teacher condemnation. A recent study shows that 80% of teachers in Australian schools have experienced bullying or harassment from students and parents. (Quite ironically, when a parent advocates for their child by bullying, harassing or intimidating a teacher, the result will often be poorer student outcomes.) Sadly, our nation’s teachers are not respected or held in the same high esteem as their counterparts in some other countries.
Our teachers are working harder than ever before. Studies indicate the rate of anxiety, stress and burnout for teachers is higher than the national average. Concerningly, nearly 50% of graduate teachers leave the profession within five years.
We’ve evolved into a society that focuses more on our rights than our responsibilities. When future generations do not perform as we think they should, it’s easiest to lay blame on teachers. When we decide children need additional skills in a non-academic field, it’s easiest to handball it to teachers. Teachers are expected to do much more than their vocation originally called for. I recall a time a parent said to me: “My child has been enrolled in your school for a whole term now, and he still doesn’t say please and thank you. Why aren’t your teachers doing their job properly?” Throw into the mix heightened accountability and administration, and it’s not surprising our teachers are exhausted.
Most Australian teachers:
put as much time into preparing, marking, assessing and reporting out-of-school-hours as they do implementing lessons during school hours (despite some public opinion that teachers work 9am �� 3pm, 5 days a week, 40 weeks per year);
grow within the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) Standards by engaging in ongoing professional learning projects;
fulfil, out of hours, the growing number of regulatory and administrative tasks that are required of the teaching profession, including collecting and annotating evidence, publishing and archiving work samples, analysing data, managing events and writing risk assessments;
increasingly communicate with parents via meetings, email, apps, portals and other such means;
spend their weeknights and weekends seeking inspiration from teaching colleagues, educational websites and social media to create learning environments and experiences that are engaging and meaningful;
endeavour to cater not for one class but for 28 individual learners;
lie awake at night contemplating the best strategy to meet specific students’ needs and juggle behavioural dynamics;
have served as a refuge and safe haven for children who have been the victims of more trauma than most adult Australians could ever imagine;
conduct yard duties during their morning tea and lunch breaks; and
sacrifice attending their own family’s extra-curricular events in order to facilitate such events for their students.
The role of teaching is demanding. It’s relentless. The stress often outweighs the fulfilment that comes from the job. Why we do not honour these people with crowns and tiaras, I do not know.
Teachers don’t always get it right – they have bad days just as you and I have bad days – nevertheless they make every effort to positively influence and make a sincere difference in the lives of their students.
Australian teachers are feeling downtrodden. We can do our small part to change the trajectory by actioning one word: appreciation.
We don’t need to shower our teachers with lavish and expensive public gifts to show they are appreciated. But quiet recognition does go a long way. Small acts of unadorned kindness do not take much time and energy, but they do say a lot. A simple email or note of thanks speaks volumes. When photos of your child on school camp appear on the school’s social media, a comment with words of gratitude in relation to the teachers’ willingness to give up their own family time to work 24/7 for the duration of the camp, reminds the entire school community of the sacrifices teachers make for their students. It’s these small and uncomplicated gestures that can mean the world.
Let’s recognise the colossal responsibility our teachers undertake, as they continue in their quest to nurture and develop our nation’s future leaders. Let’s work alongside them, value them and respect them for the professionals they are. Let’s thank them for accepting this high calling amid the growing demands of their profession.
And let’s not make it a tokenistic gesture on one day; let’s commit to the long-term appreciation of our cherished quiet achievers. This is the best way we can offer them a hand.