Question
As a director/administrator, how can I support my staff?
Answer
Especially in today's world, realize that you are working with teachers who may be young and inexperienced. Also, with the salaries and wages in the education field, especially in early childhood, some teachers may be struggling to make ends meet in their own lives. If they have families of their own, there may be marital issues or problems with their own children. They need you to understand and support them. Like the children, each teacher needs different levels of physical and emotional support. Get to know your staff so that you can provide what they need because one size does not fit all.
Identify each staff member's strengths. If we can find people's strengths, then we can help them deal with their challenges. When looking for solutions, tap into each person's areas of expertise. The best way to make things work is to work together. Letting them know that you believe in them goes a long way in helping them to believe in themselves.
Remember that when you are talking to families or in the classroom working with the children, everyone is watching, so smile -- you are a role model. Respect personal space and remain calm. I have been in schools and watched teachers and administrators for a full day, and sometimes seen no one smile all day. If no one is happy to be there, why should the children feel good about being there?
We also need to realize that sadly, many teachers will enter the classroom with little or no knowledge about children with challenging behavior. Many of us have preconceptions about why children behave the way they do. Often, these perceptions are not going to guide us to the best solutions. Remember that people don't know what they don't know. If your job is to build a relationship of trust with each educator so that they feel they can openly share their concerns with you, they need to know that you're listening to what they need. Most teachers want an instant fix, but that isn't possible, because no intervention or strategy works with every child, every teacher, or in every setting.
As the director, you need to find out what teachers expect from you. What do they want you to do? Often, they feel that the director doesn't truly understand what goes on in the classroom. You might be in the classroom for 20 minutes, and if you see something happen, maybe you'll intervene. Ultimately, however, you get to leave, but the teachers have to stay there all day. It can be very tense when they're worried about what that child might do next, or will this activity work out? It's important to fully understand what they feel you should be doing. Listen to them and try and meet their needs, much in the same way you want them to meet the children's needs.
This Ask the Expert is an edited excerpt from the course, Supporting Teachers in Addressing Challenging Behavior: A Team Approach, by Barbara Kaiser, MA.
