Fostering Mutual Respect Among Teachers and Administrators at the Start of the Year

It’s late August, so the 2023–2024 academic year is already well underway around the US.

Teachers are often filled with nervous, excited anticipation at the start of a new school year. There are so many possibilities: new students, new classes, or the chance to try a new instructional approach.

To properly kick off the year, though, both teachers and their administrators do have to jump one final hurdle:

Hours of Mandatory “Welcome Back” Stuff.

These agendas come packed with “ice-breakers,” “readings of new policies,” and “engaging workshops.” 

Fun times, right?

Dear school leaders: Please build a few hours into the schedule for teachers to set up their classrooms.

Why do teachers need “so much time?” Well, teachers use it to…

• Ensure there are places for students to place their belongings and school work
• Test the strength of the school’s wifi system in the classroom
• Confirm all furniture has been placed back into the classroom after summer cleaning
• Discern whether there is a new computer, printer, or projector to navigate 
• Cobble together extra pens, pencils, lined paper, and computer paper
• Hang up previous students’ artwork or other decorations that make a classroom feel inviting
• Figure out if (or the extent to which) the air conditioner works (or even exists)

Allowing teachers the time to sort out tasks like these is in the best interest of your students.

After all: kids are young, not stupid. They know when they are entering a space that reflects others’ considerations of their needs as students.

It’s about mutual respect, too. Teachers who feel like they have been given ample time to start the year right are far more inclined to…well…start the year right. 

Of course, the term mutual respect in this context also implies teachers’ respect for their administrators.

Dear teachers: Please remember that administrators do not apply for their jobs out of an unyielding love for giving presentations on attendance policies or proctoring guidelines. They just have to do this stuff.

Like ER doctors or police officers, school administrators are frequently the bearers of bad or mandatory news that they do not want to deliver to you. Again—as with docs and cops; without cynicism—many administrators sought their positions because they wanted to improve the systems in which they operate. 

In the interest of a 2023–2024 school year built on mutual respect between teachers and administrators, here are a few best practices:

Administrators

1) Bring (good) coffee to the first meeting. It is really hard to make a bad impression when you have (even decent) coffee available. 

2) As noted above: Schedule a few hours of unstructured time teachers can use to set up their classrooms. Bonus Tip: schedule it in the morning, and clearly indicate when it begins and ends.

3) Before scheduling a “whole faculty” presentation, consider asking yourself the golden question:

Can this presentation be an email? 

Be assured: the entire faculty in the auditorium = most of what you’re saying will definitely be unimportant to a significant portion of your audience. 

4) Whenever possible, opt for departmental or grade level-specific meetings. 

5) Even if it’s brief: Highlight a few things that went really well during the last school year.

Avoid opening the year with a lengthy, solemn discourse on expected improvements. To teachers, these presentations may as well be titled A Few More of The Many Reasons You’re Not Doing a Good Enough Job. Sincerely recognizing even minor achievements in September will build a lot of good will.

Teachers

1) Try not to project “summer is ending” disappointments onto administrators. If it seems like supervisors or principals are already and alarmingly “business as usual,” that’s because this is business as usual. They’ve been there all summer. 

2) Again: Few administrators enjoy compliance presentations. Also: An even smaller percentage is capable of making these presentations compelling. Teachers who believe they have a better way to transmit information can and should make suggestions!

3) Teachers frustrated by a lack of prep time to start the year should clearly articulate these frustrations to their superiors. Avoid jumping to the conclusion that callous, unfeeling administrators intentionally deprived you of this time. It could be simpler: they may be unaware that this time is so important to you.

4) As the first day approaches, start a departmental / grade-level / building-level group chat with colleagues so that you can organize and articulate your needs. 

It’s a popular assumption among teachers that the one who complains loudest gets needs addressed first. Teachers can fight this sentiment with some organization: if Teacher A tells a supervisor eight times in the first few days of school that his classroom “needs” an iMac, and Teacher B tells a supervisor in October that her classroom has needed an air conditioner since August, the iMac is more likely to be purchased and no one is happy about it except Teacher A. For administrators to assess teachers’ needs effectively, they need to know everyone’s needs. Oh, and both a cost estimate and a realistic deadline can’t hurt your cause, either.

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