Inclusion in Staff Retention

In the past decade, it has been heartening to hear about international schools’ increased efforts to make their recruitment processes more inclusive. This work is a moral imperative, as organizations such as the Council of International Schools (CIS) have published disconcerting data about the lack of diversity in international teaching staff and leadership. A significant body of research tells us that students benefit from not only a diversity of perspective in schools but also adults that reflect their own identities, whether through religion, gender identity, race, disability, sexual orientation, etc. These benefits can range from improved test scores to the promotion of tolerance to higher attendance rates and so on.

To recruit in a more inclusive manner, schools are using strategies like producing standardized interview forms; having their hiring panels do implicit bias training; using multiple measures in the hiring process; and writing inclusive job adverts. Even recruitment agencies are getting on board by changing the language they use on their websites and job postings. However, after a careful and thoughtful recruitment process is completed, schools need to consider how they will retain their new hires. Rather than simply hoping that our valued, diverse staff body won’t leave, we need to ask ourselves why our colleagues would want to stay with us and create environments that foster a sense of belonging and inclusion for all. Here are some things we can do:

• Provide implicit bias training for all staff, as “a large and diverse body of evidence indicates that [unconscious bias] among teachers contributes meaningfully to education inequality” (Dee & Gershenson, 2017). Such bias has a detrimental effect not only on students but also on colleagues, and recognizing it is a powerful step toward equitable practice.

• Implement a staff wellbeing survey; at my last school, we collected anonymous data from staff via TES Staff Pulse every other week. This initiative had a profoundly positive effect, as school leadership not only had a keen awareness of staff wellbeing and morale across a number of areas such as workload or feeling valued, but also people could comment, or report concerns anonymously.

• Audit your schoolhouse; what obstacles might keep people with disabilities from having comfortable working conditions? Do you have gender-neutral bathrooms? Are your staff celebrations culturally inclusive? Consider how the physical environment supports diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

• Be mindful of the “invisible work” teachers with protected characteristics do. Teaching is challenging in itself, and then when you’re organically expected to be the “go-to” person for a certain group of students or the school expert on cultural diversity, burnout can loom. Colleagues should be aware of this work and how to protect their peers’ wellbeing.

• Provide affinity groups or, if you’re in a small school, find larger community affinity groups for colleagues to join. For example, Boston Public Schools has affinity groups for all staff of color and sponsors monthly meetings which provide informal spaces for sharing lived experiences and support. The effect on retention of teachers of color has been significant.

• Identify and encourage teachers who are interested in leadership roles. Data shows that while international school leadership lacks diversity, the majority of applicants are also male and white. For all staff, but especially those with protected characteristics, have shadowing schemes available, provide professional development funding, connect people with mentors/coaches, and simply speak with them about where they want to go and how you can support them in getting there.

• Educate community members about your DEI work. Share and celebrate the efforts your school is making through information sessions and newsletters; explain the “why.” Engage with any concerns and reiterate that along with teaching academics, we are holistically producing global citizens who will effect change in the world. And increasingly, universities and employers are requiring interculturally competent people with the ability to utilize and work with diverse perspectives. 

As a final note, it is also important to acknowledge that individual experiences are shaped by the intersection of various identities, or intersectionality. Inclusive retention strategies should, of course, be mindful of this. 

References

Miller, C. (2018). “Does Teacher Diversity Matter in Student Learning?” The New York Times, 10 Sept. 2018. Retrieved from www.nytimes.com/2018/09/10/upshot/teacher-diversity-effect-students-learning.html.

Dee, T., & Gershenson, S. (2017). Unconscious Bias in the Classroom: Evidence and Opportunities.” Mountain View, CA: Google Inc. Retrieved from https://goo.gl/O6Btqi.

Diverse Educators. (2022). Inclusive Recruitment Toolkit. Retrieved from https://www.diverseeducators.co.uk/inclusive-recruitment-toolkit/.

Magagna, J. (2020). “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.” Search Associates, General News. Retrieved from https://www.searchassociates.com/news-events/diversity-equity-and-inclusion/.

Neyra, A. (2021, October). What the data tells us about diversity in international school teaching staff and leadership.” Council of International Schools. Retrieved from https://www.cois.org/about-cis/perspectives-blog/blog-post/~board/perspectives-blog/post/what-the-data-tells-us-about-diversity-in-international-school-teaching-staff-and-leadership.