Amanda Richards, Possip’s Reporting Team Lead, analyzed data from our Pulse Checks! The results were able to provide you with the top 10 March feedback trends from school & district staff!
In the month of March, over 5,100 staff members responded through Possip Pulse Checks! 59% of staff members were happy this month.
What is top of mind for teachers and school staff the past few weeks?
Top 10 Trends
Compensation
Student Discipline and Behavior
Teacher Workloads
School Schedule
Teacher Duties and Requirements
Curriculum
Communication
Facilities and Cleanliness
Professional Development Sessions and Teacher Training
Staff Shortages and Teacher Vacancies
Top 10 Trends Breakdown
#1: Compensation
- Staff members are sharing feedback that they need an overall pay raise, teacher incentives and stipends for certain positions. In addition, they want higher pay for school staff like paraprofessionals, substitutes, and bus drivers. We are hearing that due to the amount of work they are taking on that goes above and beyond their normal job duties, along with inflation, it’s fair to adjust compensation accordingly.
#2: Student Discipline and Behavior
- Teachers are sharing that student behavior is a difficult part of their daily job right now. We are hearing that teachers feel consequences are not being enforced. Plus, teachers are in unsafe situations due to behavior. They don’t feel like there is follow-up from administration when students are referred for discipline situations. Also, teachers are requesting school wide discipline systems, action plans for handling student behavior escalations, and more support through effective restorative practices.
#3: Teacher Workloads
- Staff members are asking for more manageable amounts of work. Furthermore, Possip data shows that teachers need more time to plan and complete daily tasks. They feel overloaded and continue to get additional work and some also feel micromanaged with the tasks they do complete.
#4: School Schedule
- Teachers are sharing feedback on different aspects of the school schedule, with the majority of things regarding next year schedule changes. We heard teachers sharing opinions on having longer individual school days versus having a longer school year and asking questions about shortening summer breaks. Teachers were also asking questions about this year’s schedules like end of year events impacting the daily schedule and weather closures impacting the length of the current school year.
#5: Teacher Duties and Requirements
- Teachers want to ensure their contract time is being followed. Additionally, they are advocating to have planning periods and not take on additional duties like subbing other classes and doing carline late after school hours. Teachers are wanting less duties to focus more on teaching and planning.
#6: Curriculum
- This month, teachers are discussing the curriculum and giving feedback on new ed-tech platforms that districts are using. We also heard requests for more vertical alignment in the curriculum, less focus on test preparation, and more time for students to enjoy the content of the curriculum.
#7: Communication
- Teachers provided feedback on communication from their school and district leadership. They want more transparency in communication, along with clear communication about logistics for the end of this year and next school year. Also, teachers also want their voice and input to be taken into account in decisions instead of just hearing decisions already finalized from leadership.
#8: Facilities and Cleanliness
- Staff members shared a variety of feedback on cleanliness and facilities-related requests. In fact, a few examples include turning back on water fountains, cleanliness, fixing restroom and plumbing issues, updating general building facilities, and requests for better supplies and materials in classrooms.
#9: Professional Development Sessions and Teacher Training
- Teachers shared opinions on the effectiveness of past training and requests for future training that were more content-specific. Moreover, we heard that teachers value more team time to plan and collaborate over trainings that take away their planning periods.
#10: Staff Shortages and Teacher Vacancies
- We heard staff members share that teacher vacancies are making their day-to-day tasks very difficult by increasing class sizes and putting more duties on their plates. Staff members are advocating that district leaders focus on retention and recruitment. As well as, increasing sub availability, and potentially moving people to fill the most critical positions on campus if there is a vacancy.
If you have questions about these top 10 March feedback trends from school & district staff, how to resolve them in your school or have feedback on our trends blog, please reach out to amanda@possip.com!
