How to raise teacher morale.
When members of most school management teams are asked, “what do you do to motivate your teaching colleagues and boost their morale?” there is generally a long pause.
That is not to say that nothing is being done, but rather that what is being done is not immediately obvious.
But, if what is being done it is not immediately obvious to the senior management team, who are responsible for the well-being of the teaching staff, then it almost certainly isn’t obvious to the rest of the school.
Of course it is possible to reply that it is not the duty of the senior management team to motivate teachers, or to be concerned with raising their morale. Teachers are professionals, and as professionals they should be self-motivating.
There is certainly something in this, but such a view must be set against the fact that a highly motivated teacher is always better than a de-motivated teacher. A teacher who is just doing the work and not much more (perhaps because of problems or issues that have nothing to do with teaching), will be doing less of a service to the school, and to the pupils or students, than one who is fully motivated.
For this reason alone, it is perhaps worth considering methods of raising teacher morale, and of motivating staff.
That simple piece of reasoning lay behind the creation of the report, “Raising Teacher Morale”.
It contains 40 separate strategies for raising the morale of individual teachers, and the teachers across the whole school. It eschews any overt group bonding ideas, and the sort of approach that might make some teachers cringe! Instead it focuses on the individual. Where policies are given that could work across the school they are given in a way that can be applied to individual teachers. The results can be quite remarkable.
The book is supplied in photocopiable format or on disk, so that copies can be made and circulated among the senior management team, thus allowing each person to become aware of the approach, and understand exactly why such approaches are being introduced. It also allows everyone to see the benefits that the schools can accrue in a short space of time, without any extra funding.
Raising Teacher Morale is available by ordering on line for £49.95 as a CD book or as a printed volume in a ringbinder plus £3.95 delivery within the UK. You can also order from the publisher on 01536 399 011 with a credit card or by fax on 01536 399 012.
Schools may order with an official school order – orders to home addresses must be accompanied with a cheque or details of a valid credit card (or you can click on the link above to order on line).