by Gerard McCann
MBA: Coaching, Mentoring and Leadership.
In 2021-2022, I did an extensive piece of research into what well-being means from the perspective of the teaching profession by using a combination of surveys (to collect mainly quantitative data), and semi-structured interviews (to collect qualitative data). The qualitative data was coded to enable statistical analysis.
Identifying the determinants of well-being?
Based on the original PERMA profiler by (Butler and Kern, 2015), Dreer (2020) investigated the impact of having a mentor on the well-being of 125 pre-service teachers (PST’s) using two surveys, six weeks apart. Well-being and flourishing were captured using the PERMA framework, Positive Emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Achievement/Accomplishment. Dreer was able to identify key aspects/attributes of each element that indicate well-being. In addition to these, the findings of the 2020 report from the Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI) on the effectiveness of Retention Strategies, relevant to well-being, the 2022 Gallup survey on the State of the Global Workplace, and the Well-being Conceptual Framework (Dunn et al, 2007), enabled me to identify 54 determinants of well-being within the five elements of the PERMA framework.
Analysis
The literature research uncovered no studies into the weighting suggested by Seligman’s framework. This made me wonder, is one aspect of well-being (P, E, R, M, or A) more important than another at different stages of a teacher’s career. To facilitate the collation and interpretation of data, I categorised teachers as follows:
Code Description Years experience
NQT Newly qualified teacher 0-1
ECT Early-career teacher 2-5
MCT Mid-career teacher 6-15
LCT Late-career teacher 15+
If all attributes have equal importance, one would expect the quantitative and coded data to produce a pie chart with five equal sized portions. However, the results proved otherwise, with different elements being more important than others dependent upon the stage of career. Interestingly, when all the teacher data was lumped together, it did produce the perfect pie chart distribution. Well-being (WB) is a matter of where you are in your personal and career life. A summary of some of my findings are shown below:
What is most important?
There were twelve positive emotion attributes of which the most referenced was:
· PE12: feeling more confident in my own ability.
There were six engagement attributes of which the most referenced was:
· EN3: Looking for ways to better engage students.
There were twelve relationship attributes of which the most referenced was:
· PR9 Having good/constructive dialogue with HOD.
· PR10 Feeling supported.
· PR11 Feeling cared about/safe.
There were eleven meaning attributes of which the most referenced was:
· MP7: Feeling that I make a difference/contribution, closely followed by,
· MP10: Committed to a vision.
There were twelve accomplishment/achievement attributes of which the most referenced was:
· AC3: Sense of a job well done.
· AC12: Feeling more confident to take responsibility.
The least referenced attributes (only important to a few) were:
· PE11: Feeling more in control of emotions.
· MP8: Feelings of vocation, calling, what I was born to do. (very surprising!)
· AC4: Making a connection with student(s), important only to the NQT’s.
The final pie chart revealed that the PERMA elements are a very appropriate indicator of the well-being of a large organisation as each element contributed equally to the whole picture.
Conclusions
One NQT stated during interview:
No matter what is going on in your life, don’t take it to work. I liken it to wearing a mask to cover up your problems, issues, fears, emotions, inadequacies. I guess well-being at work means not having to wear a mask.
I love this statement because it suggests that, ultimately, your well-being is your own responsibility. Yes, work policies, practices, processes, systems, and line managers all impact your ability to get the job done and how much you are able to wrestle control, but all of the participants in this research recognised that it is how they deal with challenges that determines their well-being. It also highlights the insidious nature of the adage, fake-it-until-you-make-it.
Different elements of PERMA are important at different stages of one’s career, with establishing oneself amongst your peers being particularly important in the early stages. Feeling a sense of control, being informed, not missing deadlines, or making mistakes, is a constant fear of most NQT’s. As teachers become more experienced, (ECT and MCT) their focus changes as they seek to establish more meaning and purpose, becoming an expert practitioner, and looking for new challenges. This points to a need to address career paths, pursue adult learning, and being given greater responsibility.
Late career teachers are not to be considered as close to retirement, the code is somewhat misleading, but instead are those that may have held a middle management position or two and are seeking to help colleagues to be their best. They are ripe for training as coaches and mentors. In some countries such as Singapore, these teachers are termed ‘master teachers’ and are held in high esteem. They take on a more supervisory role and use their experience to mentor ALL levels of teaching. They conduct research, drive initiatives, and spend less time teaching students but more time coaching and mentoring colleagues. The Victorian government's establishment of master teachers is somewhat similar but is more akin to recognition of excellence more than the utilisation of expert supervisors. Needless to say, an educator with a masters in teaching but little to no practical experience, is most certainly not a master teacher.
Professional development for teachers, done as a one-size-fits-all, is a major frustration amongst the participants. Many felt that the appraisal systems did not dove-tail with any effective coaching and mentoring programmes, with the former seen as a tick-in-the-box exercise. Thankfully, one the schools had a stand-out department with a leader that adopted a coach-mentor approach to leadership. The individuals in the team recognised the effect of being coached/mentored as a key determinant of their well-being. This forms the basis of our next article.
Next time: The Impact of a Head of Department who adopts a coach-mentor approach to leadership.
The second part of the investigation was to investigate the effect of the HOD focusing on the individual teacher’s well-being during coaching and mentoring, and how this impacts their perception of self-efficacy and well-being.
Gerad McCann
MBA Coaching, Mentoring and Leadership
Director: kcm80-20
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