How to cultivate and stimulate teachers’ directness

How to stimulate and improve teachers’ enthusiasm

Wan Xiaoquan

February 13, 2014

Currently, how to stimulate and improve teachers’ work enthusiasm has become an important issue that education authorities and school administrators must solve.

1. Main problems existing in teachers’ work

From the current point of view, teachers in many schools are generally less motivated to work. This is an indisputable fact. The main manifestations are:

Frequently absent from work or asking for leave without reason, leaving early, being late, etc.; work is scattered, lacks a strong sense of responsibility, does not prepare lessons seriously, attends classes, and just dawdles; shirks each other's duties at work, cares about everything, and ignores the easy and the hard. , lack of overall awareness; lack of vitality, passive learning, lack of proactive spirit and competitive awareness; aging knowledge structure, insufficient knowledge of modern educational technology, etc.

Practice has proven that adhering to the people-oriented management concept is an important guarantee for mobilizing teachers' enthusiasm. A scientific, democratic, and efficient management system, especially an effective incentive mechanism, is an important means that managers should take. Therefore, school administrators must proceed from the actual situation of the school, adapt to local conditions, take scientific measures, and fully mobilize teachers' subjective initiative and consciousness.

2. Effective measures to stimulate teachers’ work enthusiasm

1. Meet the most basic needs of teachers.

The needs of survival, safety and belonging are low-level needs of human beings, but they are the most basic needs of human beings. They are also needs that are easily ignored by school administrators. School is a place for educating people. It should provide teachers and students with a beautiful natural environment and create a rich cultural atmosphere. Flowers, plants and trees are indispensable, and lawns, running water, rockeries, etc. are created with every effort. The school motto, slogans, newspaper columns, windows, etc. can reflect the spirit of the school and highlight the school's culture. Even if the conditions of the school are simple, a carefully paved gravel road, a small well-intentioned reminder sign among the flowers and trees, and a "warm reminder" on the roadside wall can reflect the humanity and warmth of school management. Tasteful features.

Improve teachers’ office conditions and meet their office needs. For example, the office is equipped with air conditioning and other equipment to provide teachers with a "warm in winter and cool in summer" office environment. A pot of green flowers on the windowsill and a small clock hanging on the wall may seem casual, but they can bring warmth and joy to teachers. Good interpersonal relationships and a harmonious office atmosphere can bring teachers a sense of belonging, add a good mood to them, and enable them to have a good working attitude. This effect does not occur naturally and requires intentional design and design by managers. Actively advocate and gradually form through management. For another example, schools can arrange regular physical examinations for teachers every year to eliminate their health concerns so that they can work with peace of mind.

Care about the lives of teachers and provide them with a pleasant working environment and a comfortable living environment. It may seem like a small or trivial problem, but it solves the "worries" of teachers and satisfies the most basic needs of teachers. Need is an issue that cannot be ignored and is the primary link in mobilizing teachers’ enthusiasm.

2. Give teachers sufficient humanistic care.

There is a saying now: "Teachers with unhealthy mental health continuously produce mentally unhealthy students." The psychological condition of today's primary and secondary school teachers is undergoing unprecedented tests, and they are burdened with heavier psychological pressure than ever before.

The first is the problem of occupational stress. The manifestations are: excessive examination pressure, excessively tense interpersonal relationships, and high workload, which make teachers feel overwhelmed.

The second is the increase in teacher burnout. Burnout refers to a specific psychological state characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a low sense of accomplishment. Emotional exhaustion refers to the exhaustion of teachers’ personal enthusiasm for work, which is a state of extreme emotional fatigue; depersonalization refers to teachers showing indifference and negative behavior towards students and alienating students as much as possible; low sense of achievement refers to teachers’ lack of understanding of their work. Higher pursuit.

Then, rounds of teaching reforms have posed new challenges to teachers’ psychological quality. Today, the curriculum reform with the new curriculum as the carrier is gradually moving towards campus. As a "revolution" in the school field, while abandoning the old educational concepts, it also has a strong impact on the teachers who are the executors of the curriculum reform. , tests the teacher's psychological endurance and psychological development ability, and restricts the teacher's mental health level.

For teachers, every teaching reform actually means a denial of their own past and a new transcendence of their own educational concepts and educational behaviors. It is undoubtedly a process of spiritual experience.

Today’s education pays more attention to the social value of education and the life value of students, and pays little attention to the life value of teachers themselves. It can be said that humanistic care for teachers themselves is a "blind spot" in today's education. The performance is as follows: attaching importance to discipline to restrain teachers, ignoring teachers’ psychological needs and emotional responses; attaching importance to teachers’ professional development and despising personal development. It is estimated that approximately 120 cases of teacher suicide are permanently exposed in the media every year, while many more cases are not reflected in the media, and some cases are officially deleted or blocked.

Modern school management is changing from the legalization and institutionalization of the past to the humanization and human culture of today. Managers should be the psychological "masseurs" of teachers and give them more humanistic care. This is exactly what teachers need to respect.

3. Build a platform for teachers’ professional growth.

School leaders must understand that "caring about teachers' lives" satisfies low-level physiological needs and safety needs, "paying attention to teachers' psychology" satisfies the need for respect, and "paying attention to teachers' growth" can Satisfy high-level self-actualization needs, which are the ultimate needs of teachers. Teachers all have the desire to develop professionally and realize their ideals in life. They hope to improve their education and teaching level through various forms of training and remain invincible in future competition.

First of all, school leaders must build a platform for teachers to grow professionally. Schools should provide teachers with as many learning opportunities, further training opportunities, training opportunities, and evaluation opportunities as possible. It is necessary to establish a scientific, objective, fair and incentive mechanism that is conducive to the professional development of teachers. The main task of the principal is not to manage teachers, but to set a stage for teachers. “The best leader is the leader who makes teachers not feel that they are leading.” This type of leader usually focuses on coordinating the overall situation and ensuring direction. Although they pay attention to the specific work of teachers, they do not interfere too much and can create convenient conditions for teachers' specific work in appropriate ways. One of the ultimate purposes of management is to achieve "no matter", that is, to enable teachers to manage themselves. Schools should establish famous teachers, use famous teachers to promote famous schools, and give full play to the leading role of famous teachers. Promote "academic sabbatical", that is, organize some teachers to study abroad, which can activate the "stagnant water". Strengthen the construction of the teaching team and create a team of teachers with high professional quality and strong professional capabilities. Cultivate teachers' feelings for the school so that they are "proud that I am a teacher in this school."

Secondly, schools should pay special attention to teaching and scientific research. Teaching and scientific research management is the most direct and closely related task to the professional growth of teachers among all school management. It can be said that strengthening educational scientific research is an important way to promote the professional growth of teachers. To do a good job in teaching and scientific research, we should start from the following three aspects:

1) Scientific research-oriented principals lead management. The full-time principal is a research-oriented principal or a research-oriented vice-principal is assigned full-time responsibility. Without the personal participation and personal guidance of the full-time or deputy principal, teaching and scientific research work will become an empty talk (for example, Zongyang Middle School has a With a scholar-oriented principal and a scientific research-oriented principal, the school's teaching and scientific research activities can be carried out stably, with fruitful results and famous teachers emerging in large numbers, playing a leading and radiating role in the region). It is necessary to establish a teaching and scientific research center, recruit full-time scientific research personnel, establish teaching and scientific research files, and give full play to the center's guidance and service functions. Formulate various systems for teaching and scientific research, clarify the teaching and scientific research responsibilities of all types of personnel at all levels, and establish and improve a reward system. Change the support point of teaching and scientific research, and change power management into system management.

2) Pay attention to the key points of scientific research. The key point is the teacher, who determines success or failure. Different requirements are put forward for teachers of different ages, and scientific research must be staged. Establish this view: "New teachers teaching classes well is scientific research." Guide teachers to summarize their experiences in teaching. Articles must be derived from teaching practice. Adhere to the scientific research principle of “from practice, to practice”. We should use the subject as the carrier, the classroom as the stage, and the activities as the platform. Create a strong atmosphere where all teachers engage in teaching and research. According to relevant surveys, students dislike teachers who are not engaged in teaching and research but are dedicated the most, and most like teachers who do little teaching and research.

3) Cultivate the growth points of scientific research. Instruct teachers to turn problems into topics. Scientific research should solve school problems, especially problems in teaching, and do scientific research in the classroom. Think small and start with small problems.

We must adhere to the guiding ideology of "problems are subjects, teaching is research, and growth is results." It is necessary to properly handle the relationship between tradition and inheritance, to learn and carry forward the advantages and strengths of traditional Chinese education, and to selectively draw on the advanced theoretical achievements of Western modern education.

4. Learn Chinese-style management.

Meeting the different needs of teachers is from the perspective of internal factors. As a modern formal school, in order to fully mobilize the enthusiasm of teachers, it must also emphasize external factors and ultimately implement them in management. It is necessary to establish a modern school system, run schools in accordance with the law, and implement scientific and standardized management. However, we must also pay attention to understanding Chinese culture and learn Chinese-style management based on the characteristics and habits of Chinese people, the foundation and social background of Chinese society. For example, some schools copy modern corporate management. When formulating the school's leave application system, the provisions are too "rigid" and too "domineering". They do not take into account the teachers' financial affordability and psychological acceptance, causing teachers' emotional distress. Resentment and passive sabotage will not have the desired effect; some schools take into account special circumstances such as teachers’ weddings and funerals, children’s high school entrance exams, joining the army, and even female teachers’ miscarriage, and consider the teachers’ financial affordability and psychological acceptance. If the policy is appropriately tilted, such a system not only has human culture, but also can achieve the expected purpose of management. Therefore, corporate management is effective for schools that lack cohesion, but in the long run it is not suitable for the characteristics of Chinese schools and the habits of Chinese people. Chinese-style management is the management of water, emphasizing the use of softness to overcome hardness, and following the trend; Chinese-style management is Tai Chi management, emphasizing change, flexibility, and humaneness; it is management based on the rule of man plus the rule of law; it is management full of ethical and moral spirit; it is moderation, Hehe's management uses "nothing" to manage, and pays attention to "governing by doing nothing". "Nothing" does not mean doing nothing, but doing the right thing. Understanding and learning Chinese-style management does not mean to abandon principles and rules, or to deny the legalization, standardization, and scientific management advocated by modern school management, but to emphasize the ingenious combination of the two, which is more conducive to mobilizing Chinese schools’ Chinese Teacher motivation.

5. Develop scientific and reasonable incentive policies.

Every year government reports at all levels mention the vigorous development of education. It takes ten years to grow trees and a hundred years to cultivate people. Today, with the development of modern education, if we want to truly stimulate and improve teachers' enthusiasm for work, it is no longer enough to rely solely on the attention of school leaders. It is necessary to form a "three-dimensional integration" of society, family, and school, and it is inseparable from the efforts of the municipal party committee and government. Policy support and policy incentives from education authorities. In view of this, the author left the following message in the mailbox to Mayor Luo on September 17, 2013:

Dear Mayor Luo:

Hello! Today, when teachers are respected and education is given priority, in order to improve the quality of education and teaching, no matter how many rewards and incentives are adopted, it is not an exaggeration. Every year on the eve of Teachers' Day, an educational work meeting is held as usual to commend advanced educational units, advanced principals, and advanced individual teacher representatives. Regrettably, since Juchao District was changed to Chaohu City (county-level city), for two consecutive years, individual advanced teachers (winners of the Education and Teaching Achievement Award) have no longer been seen receiving awards. I would like to ask, doesn’t this approach dampen the enthusiasm of some enterprising teachers who want to make achievements in education and teaching? A good school is inseparable from a good principal, but can it lack the radiation effect of excellent teachers? I hope an ordinary teacher’s suggestion can attract Mayor Luo’s attention!

Sincerely yours

Salutes

Soon, I received the following reply:

×××Netizen, you left a message in the mayor’s mailbox to reflect Recommendations for Educational Teaching Achievement Awards. The municipal government attaches great importance to it and instructs the municipal education department to seriously investigate and deal with it. The reply is as follows:

Hello, netizen, thank you for your attention to education. The Municipal Education Bureau commends outstanding teachers, outstanding head teachers, and outstanding educators in the education system every two years. The "suggestions on the Education and Teaching Achievement Award" you put forward will be studied by the municipal education administrative department in future work.

Municipal Government Inspection and Target Office

Everyone knows that the selection of outstanding teachers is mainly based on test scores; the selection of outstanding head teachers is the responsibility of the head teacher; the selection of outstanding educators is Selection is a matter for school administrative leaders. In other words, the so-called "evaluation of excellence and priority" actually excludes most ordinary teachers, and they will never get a share.

In this way, how much enthusiasm can arouse teachers' work enthusiasm by "evaluating the best and evaluating the first"? There is also an indisputable fact that the principal has absolute authority when the "evaluation of excellence and priority" indicators are implemented in schools. If the principal is emotional and cannot give a bowl of water equal treatment, how many teachers can be convinced?

Therefore, our schools and our education authorities must proceed from the reality of education and teaching, highlight quality education, downplay exam-oriented education, formulate scientific and reasonable incentive policies, and optimize the evaluation standards for "excellent teachers" , to select teachers with high overall quality, strong teaching ability, and excellent teaching and research skills into the ranks of "outstanding teachers" (admittedly, the establishment of the "Education and Teaching Achievement Award" should be a good approach). Only in this way can the enthusiasm of most teachers be truly mobilized.

In short, mobilizing teachers’ enthusiasm requires a combination of internal and external factors, a combination of subjectivity and objectivity, a combination of Chinese-style management and modern legal and scientific management, and a sustainable and effective way of enriching human culture through norms. Management promotes fair competition among teachers to achieve the purpose of stimulating teachers' enthusiasm and enthusiasm for work. As we all know, the key to running a good school lies in teachers. Only by fully mobilizing teachers’ enthusiasm for work, exploring their potential, improving their own quality, and strengthening their professional capabilities can we create a harmonious and vibrant educational environment and achieve the school’s education and teaching management goals. , thus promoting the sound and rapid development of school education and teaching work.