A primer for attracting and retaining teachers

It’s that time of year again. The annual eat-your-weight-in-foods-on-a-stick at the State Fair. And the annual trip to Target for notebooks, glue sticks, backpacks, and pens is history.

School’s back. With nerves tingling, kids put on their best outfits, and mom and dad take awkward pictures of kids clutching first day signs.

It’s typical except for one thing.

This year quite a few kids in quite a few schools are going to meet a substitute teacher on that first day instead of their teacher with the full-time gig. It’s because there’s a very real shortage of educated professionals that decided constant abuse isn’t worth the less than professional working conditions and salary.

Politicians call it a “teacher shortage.” Those in the know, call it “a lack of political commitment to public education.”

For that reason, I offer Iowa communities an unsolicited primer on the do’s and don’ts for attracting and retaining those elusive full-time teachers.

To principals and superintendents:

Thanks for hanging in there. I know it hasn’t been easy. Stop overloading new and veteran teachers. Push some stuff off their plates and let them teach. The magic between teachers and kids happens after you stop all the meetings and you let them really connect.

Help them but do it from a distance. Be available instead of escaping to an office or out of the building. If parents come knocking shouting about a book they hate, try running interference so the whole class isn’t rocked because one child’s parents is afraid of a book. I’ll give you a hint. They aren’t afraid of that one book. They’re likely afraid of critical thinking. You’ll have to decide what kind of school you want to be. I hope you choose a school that takes risks on behalf of learning.

To parents:

Please give your teachers the grace to be human and make mistakes. They could’ve been doctors, lawyers, electricians, or plumbers, but they chose to teach. There’s a reason. As corny as it sounds, they want to impact the future and they want to help your kids grow. Let them.

I know it’s hard to let your kids go. You aren’t. You are partnering in education. Please visit school, attend parent teacher conferences, read the newsletter, attend sporting events, concerts, and programs. Your kids notice when you’re there, and they notice when you’re missing. Get to know your kid’s teachers.

To school board members:

Thanks for doing a thankless job. You’ve shown your dedication by putting your name on the ballot. Please show it again by not overreacting when your meetings turn into a local version of the old Jerry Springer Show. Lower the temperature. Let administrators administrate and teachers teach. Make policy that helps your district be open and inviting.

Stop hiring an expensive lawyer to bargain with teachers. You don’t need them. Talk to your teachers and your support staff. Save the lawyer money and apply it to their contacts.

State politicians:

Remember the motto on the Iowa quarter, “Foundation in Education.” For a strong foundation, Iowa needs qualified, dedicated, teachers. It’s tempting to lower teaching standards to “Warm body status.” Please don’t.

Even in the one room schoolhouse days, your predecessors demanded teachers have at least two years of college. Teaching is more complex now. If there was a plumber shortage, you wouldn’t consider allowing anyone to fix the pipes. Our kids are just as important as our plumbing.

Iowa can be number one in education again, but it will take attracting and retaining the best and the brightest teachers.

Bruce Lear lives in Sioux City and has been connected to public schools for 38 years. He taught for 11 years and represented educators as an Iowa State Education Association Regional Director for 27 years until retiring. He grew up in Shellsburg.