Principals Can Play Big Roles in Teacher Success

While pay and benefits matter, the research is clear that many teachers who quit their jobs cite low job satisfaction. And many of them attribute this in particular to a perceived lack of support from principals and supervisors.

So it makes sense that Bill Henk, dean emeritus of the Marquette University College of Education, would emphasize the role of these administrators. After attending the Lubar Center conference discussed in the main story, Henk responded to a request from the Marquette Lawyer for his thoughts on making teachers more successful. Henk, education dean from 2004 to 2020, created a list of things that principals and supervisors can do to make classroom work more manageable.

Here are some of Dean Henk’s suggestions:

• Most importantly, trust teachers and listen to them.
• Ask teachers directly what can be done to make their work more efficient, especially ways to reduce non-instructional duties such as hallway, lunch, recess, and bus duty.
• Encourage teamwork by providing opportunities for teachers to collaborate, share resources, and learn from each other through meetings, mentoring programs, and online opportunities.
• Adopt an open-door policy that encourages teachers to share their ideas, concerns, and suggestions.
• Recognize and appreciate teachers’ hard work, achievements, and imaginative practices.
• Help teachers access available mental health resources, counseling services, and workshops on topics such as mindfulness and stress reduction.
• Provide constructive and actionable feedback.
• Enforce student discipline and support teachers when parental issues arise.
• At the start of some days, ask individual teachers if there is anything you can do to help, and then follow through on requests.
• Reduce expectations for lesson-plan compliance and submission.
• Be honest, transparent, and timely.

Summarizing the list, Henk said, “When teachers feel like ‘I’m not in this alone,’ that makes a world of difference.”