Recognizing Excellence: How HR Fosters Teacher Appreciation on World Teachers’ Day

Quick look: Empowered teachers drive impactful education. World Teachers’ Day is a great time for schools to reflect on meaningful ways to show appreciation for their dedicated educators. Thankfully, there are HR practices that not only express gratitude but also enhance efficiency. Discover how schools are using these initiatives to celebrate and support their teaching staff, both in and out of the classroom.

Teachers illuminate the path to better education for students every day. World Teachers’ Day reminds us to recognize the value and importance of their efforts. Though an annual celebration, schools can preserve the spirit of the holiday year-round with the help of human resource (HR) initiatives. In this blog, explore which HR practices schools can implement to make teacher appreciation a permanent staple of their work culture!

What’s World Teachers’ Day?

On October 5, 1966, UNESCO and the International Labour Organization (ILO) held the Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers conference to set benchmarks for teachers’ rights and responsibilities while employed. These groups also outlined standards for teachers’ continued education, employment, recruitment, and learning conditions. A secondary conference was held in 1997 to set similar recommendations for educators in higher education.

World Teachers’ Day occurs annually on the first conference’s anniversary. Its purpose is to commemorate teachers across the globe while bringing awareness to their needs and challenges within the education industry.

Celebrating World Teachers’ Day with an HR Approach

Showing teachers appreciation is the main objective of World Teachers’ Day. “Thank You” cards, special lunches, and even classroom decorations are popular game plans among schools celebrating the occasion. However, various human resource tactics allow schools to give their instructors appreciation during and after the holiday. Here are some examples of these gratuitous HR strategies.

Recognition programs

Employee recognition programs enable schools to extend gold-star treatment to their teachers for their hard work and accomplishments. Schools leverage multiple program formats to celebrate team achievements. Work anniversaries and promotions become leading talking points during monthly team meetings. Teacher of the Year awards highlight staff members whose contributions offered groundbreaking results to the team. Weekly peer shoutouts foster team engagement and positive communication.

Adopting recognition programs shows teachers appreciation while inspiring their loyalty to their role. After all, recognized employees are about six times more likely to stay at their jobs than employees who aren’t.

Comprehensive employee benefits

Instructors provide stellar classroom experiences by meticulously planning their lessons well in advance of the school year. They deserve the same level of care and attention when it comes to supporting their personal well-being. Offering competitive employee benefits are a fantastic HR strategy for schools wanting to increase educators’ success with planning for the future. Access to a diverse network of medical, dental, and wellness professionals improves teachers’ ability to monitor and protect their everyday health.

Educators also feel secure when their school offers retirement options like 401(k) and pension planning assistance. Schools going the extra mile to provide voluntary benefits like tuition reimbursement plans and student loan assistance can relieve teachers from significant monetary stress.

Professional development

Teachers seek out knowledge to uplift their careers, just as students rely on learning to progress their academic journey. Schools can support teachers’ growth with professional development programs offering both internal and external learning opportunities.

Mentorships are common internal opportunities, promoting knowledge exchanges between newer and more experienced teachers. Schools using ExtensisHR’s SchoolCloud™ gain access to external learning from its Vector Solutions partnership, including over 200 training courses for K-12 teachers and school administrators. Some schools even offer stipends to help teachers pursue special certification or continued education degrees.

Efficient professional development opportunities give educators a clear starting point for their career growth goals. This benefit is impactful since 49% of workers who want to develop their skills don’t know where to begin.

Fair leave policies

Even multitasking masters need downtime. Workers in today’s job market desire the flexibility to prioritize work-life balance and address unexpected emergencies. Schools may consider refining their policy guidelines to include multiple leave scenarios such as sick leave, parental leave, jury duty, bereavement, and vacation time. It’s important to note that leave policies vary from state to state, so ensuring compliance with local regulations is essential to provide the proper support for staff during critical life events.

Schools may also utilize leave management systems to accurately track their teachers’ leave usage and accruals. These leave strategies help schools reduce miscommunications among staff members, preserve productivity, and prevent teacher burnout.

Regular teacher feedback

Open communication with academic instructors is a prevalent theme of World Teachers’ Day. Industry leaders rely on teachers’ direct honesty to understand the challenges they face and the support they need throughout their careers. An employee feedback process encourages educators to have constructive conversations with their schools’ board members and other leadership representatives.

Schools use employee feedback to discover which operational practices help their staff flourish and which ones require updates to be more effective. On top of showing teachers appreciation, an open feedback structure boosts employee engagement and performance with tasks.

Put teachers first with ExtensisHR

Teachers deserve appreciation beyond World Teachers’ Day. At ExtensisHR, we understand the vital role educators play in shaping students’ futures, which is why we tailor our HR services specifically for schools, helping to enhance both operational efficiency and professional growth for teachers.

As a professional employer organization (PEO), our certified professionals offer an array of HR administration and management support such as:

• Health and wellness employee benefits that protect teachers’ physical and mental well-being
• A dedicated service team, including a School Account Manager, an HR Manager, and an Implementation Manager, to oversee your HR needs
• Assistance with designing professional development programs for teachers
• Guidance and tools for documenting and executing leave policies that comply with federal employment laws and fit teachers’ unique needs
• Regulation expertise to ensure your school aligns its operations with labor and compensation laws
• Affordable access to 15Five’s performance management system, complete with peer review features

Teachers are the academic stepping stones of students’ bright futures. With a well-planned human resource strategy, schools give their educators the recognition they deserve while reforming operations to accommodate their workforce’s endeavors.  

Contact the ExtensisHR team today to learn how we help schools thrive, creating a supportive environment where teachers can focus on what they do best: inspiring the next generation.