Feed it back – effectively

Neha Nair and Preethi Ramachandran

Being a school leader is a demanding job. School leaders need to ensure an effective learning environment for students, and this requires teachers to work at their maximum potential. An ideal school leader, therefore, supports and develops teachers by providing regular feedback that can help improve their teaching methods. Based on the self-help classic How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, let’s look at some ways in which school leaders can effectively communicate with their teachers:

1. Initiate the conversation by acknowledging their strengths.
It is easier to accept criticism when it is preceded by an appreciation of our strengths. Before discussing any areas of improvement, the school leader can begin by commending some good qualities of the teacher. This creates a positive environment and encourages the staff to be receptive to feedback.

2. Call attention to an area of improvement indirectly.
During feedback sessions, a school leader might give the following feedback to the teacher – “I appreciate the way you have been planning your lessons, but the opening could have been more engaging.” However, if the word ‘but’ were to be replaced with the word ‘and’, it results in the feedback being rephrased as – “I appreciate the way you have been planning lessons, and if you consider some alternate methods, the opening of your lessons could become more engaging.” This way, the school leader has acknowledged the teacher as well as indirectly highlighted the area of improvement.

3. Build the connect with personal experiences.
School leaders could share personal examples and experiences to connect with the challenges their teachers face. For example, “When I completed my teacher training, I had a difficult time planning lessons daily. However, I learnt to spend 30 minutes of each day focusing specifically on lesson planning. This might help you too.” This creates empathy and encourages them in the process.

4. Ask questions instead of giving direct orders.
Instead of giving direct orders to the staff, school leaders can phrase it in the form of questions. For example, instead of saying “Please do this better”, you could ask “Don’t you think this would be better?” or “If we did it this way, don’t you think it will be easier for students?”. This way, teachers will feel involved in the decision-making process and will be more accepting of the outcome.

5. Instill a thoughtful feedback processes.
It is essential to maintain the respect and dignity of your staff in any situation. Feedback conversations are better conducted on a one-on-one basis rather than in front of their peers. If a person’s ego is hurt in front of their colleagues, it may damage the relationship they share with the school leader and their colleagues. While we may be aware of some of these strategies, we may not practice it regularly. Consciously implementing these methods will pave the way to create a positive learning space.

The authors are City Programme Managers at the India School Leadership Institute (ISLI), an organization that focuses on supporting school principals as leaders in private and government schools to drive high-performing schools that commit to academic achievement and character development of children from underserved communities.

To know more about ISLI School Leadership Programme for school principals visit India School Leadership Institute (ISLI). Or share your feedback on the article at info@indiaschoolleaders.org.