Black Americans in Higher Education

Africana Studies: A Review of Social Science Research, Volume 8

James Conyers, Jr., James L. Conyers, Jr.

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• eBook ISBN: 9781000757484
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Higher Education
• Index: Social Sciences

Narrating the realities of teacher burnout, the reception of a Black intelligentsia, and HIV awareness in local communities, Black Americans in Higher Education, the eighth volume of Africana Studies, explores higher education across the United States as inextricably related to contemporary issues facing African Americans.

Featuring the work of Terrell M. Thomas, Gwendolyn D. Alfred, Kevin B. Thompson, Jasmine Williams, TaNeisha R. Page, Drew D. Brown, Grace A. Loudd, Derek Wilson, DaVonte Lyons, Jacqueline Gerard, Tanisha Stanford, Lanetta Dickens, Brittany C. Slatton, and James L. Conyers, Jr., this collection presents a deeper, cross-cultural understanding of higher education that conveys the many ways its intersections can promote the agency of Black Americans.

1

THE THRILL IS GONE

A Romance Gone Bad, a Teacher’s Story of Burnout, and the Signs Principals Should Look Out For

Terrell M. Thomas

We’ve all been there. You’ve just met the most amazing person in the world, and you love spending time with him or her. You’re on cloud 9. Everything about them is perfect. However, as time goes on, you learn more about them and notice subtle signs that things aren’t perfect. Then, it happens. You realize things aren’t as great as they seem, and the relationship begins to sour. This plot may sound like another Hollywood romance script or the newest network sitcom, but this story is actually about something worse.

This storyline is about how a couple of teachers became disenchanted with teaching and how they left their passion and the profession behind. As an educational leader, there are a number of daily duties and situations that you are required to handle. It is easy to miss signs of a frustrated teacher or teachers on the verge of burning out. Once a teacher loses his or her passion, the educational leadership on campus needs to come together and support that teacher in his or her time of need. The teachers cited issues with communication, feeling unappreciated and the displeasure of being in a test-driven environment as some of the reasons for leaving teaching. The following narratives provide administrators some insight on ineffective leadership behaviors and signs of a teacher at risk of leaving.

Communication

One topic that many of the teachers complain about is communication. One teacher explains how little contact she had with her administration and her lack of support. “There was rarely any administrative support/feedback outside of the mandated semi-annual observation which sometimes didn’t happen, and often happened in a very rushed manner.” She felt a growing disconnect between her and the administration, and there was little time for them to form a relationship. Another teacher explains how her campus mentor had no relationship with her and provided no real support. She explains, “I only saw her mentor once and the support was worthless.” Another teacher stated, “In terms of concrete support, there was very little given.” Another teacher shared how inappropriate communication was a problem on her campus.

Administrators, other administrators, assistant principals in meetings would curse about teachers and just complain, and talk about how busy and angry they were. And, I mean, I thought that their focus would have been on, like, what can we do? We are busy, here’s the action items, like let’s do this, but instead time was taken us with, you know, angry and mean and really, really rude comments about teachers—lewd comments about teachers. And the principal would sit there in silence, cause she seemed, like scared of dealing with that.

How can we expect our students to succeed in the classroom when the teachers do not feel they have an open line of communication with the leadership on campus or when there is unprofessional communication among administrators and teachers? It is important that early career teachers establish healthy and open relationships with their fellow teachers and administration. Growth-fostering connections are characterized by mutuality, empowerment, and the development of courage (Le Cornu, 2013). Although a lack of communication may not seem like a big problem, it can lead to more serious problems in the administration-and-teacher relationship if unsettled.

Feeling Undervalued

Lack of communication in a relationship can lead to uncertainty, and feelings can be hurt. The former teachers also mentioned their feeling unappreciated by their principal and other administrators as another factor in their dissatisfaction with teaching. As an administrative leader, one must be mindful of the needs of teachers and staff on campus. You can never be too busy to neglect those that are looking to you for support and growth. Aoki (1990) states, “The word principal was at one time understood as ‘principal teacher’-first or leading teacher.” The teachers spoke on feelings of little to no support from their principals and other administrators. Once teacher explained, “In general, there was a lack of support outside of support received from other teachers.” One teacher shared his feelings of frustration and disappointment with the way he was supported by his administrative team. He came into his campus thinking that he had the support of the school leadership and fellow teachers but soon found out that it was not the case. He shared,

There were plenty of times when I felt like I was an expendable tool. Our administrators felt they could ask anything of you because you were new. The veteran teachers weren’t any better. They were very disrespectful and didn’t want to listen to anything that I had to share.

Another teacher expressed a similar feeling,

I was like the low man on the totem-pole. It kind of made me want to rethink exactly what I wanted to do and where I wanted to do it at. I mean, when they say “give back to the community and, you know, work with people who really need your help,” it’s not as easy as it sounds.

The early career teachers expressed the difficulty they had in trying to receive the support they needed to help their children.

Neither my teacher preparation program nor my administrators offered the support I needed when I was in the classroom. I also didn’t have the greatest relationship with my fellow teachers. School wasn’t exactly the greatest place for me. I didn’t feel empowered or valued on the campus. My input wasn’t important.

The teachers mentioned how the administrators on their campus lost track of how difficult it is to be a teacher in the classroom. She later went on to state, “I also felt like the institution I worked for generally didn’t value the work of teachers, and felt teachers were expendable.” One teacher shared,

I didn’t have a mentor or any kind of support to help me. The only support I received as a teacher was through verbal acknowledgement and praise for certain actions. In terms of concrete support or feedback outside of the mandated semi-annual observation which sometimes didn’t happen, and often happened in a very rushed manner. There were no relevant professional development sessions aimed at supporting teachers to better achieve student goals. In general, there was a lack of support outside of support received from other teachers.

An additional teacher expressed similar sentiments, “I didn’t feel valued as a teacher. My input was not well received. It wasn’t a positive place to work.” One teacher explained,

We had an extremely dysfunctional administrative team. It was a divisive environment. It wasn’t a team environment. …the bigger picture of the school itself being pretty severely dysfunctional at times was harder to deal with. I always tell people when they ask why I left teaching, it wasn’t the kids, it was the adults. We had an extremely dysfunctional administrative team that I then strangely tried to join in my last year to try to correct things from the inside, but that’s another story. It was kind of an “every man for himself” type of thing. And it wasn’t benefiting the students in the way that it should have been.

This type of dissatisfaction not only affects the students in the classroom but also the campus climate. Cress (2008) explains, “Campus climate is the metaphorical temperature gauge by which we measure a welcoming and receptive, versus a cool and alienating learning environment.”

The teachers felt that they did not have much of relationship with their administration and felt very unrecognized. Le Cornu (2013) states, “…in order for the new teachers to feel confident and competent they needed to be sustained by—and able to sustain—relationships based on mutual trust, respect, care and integrity.” Teaching is a highly complex profession, involving not only the intellectual but also the physical and emotional. It is important that teachers prepare themselves for the rigorous demands of teaching. Research has identified resiliency as a key factor in promoting teacher persistence, acceptance to feedback, and professional development (Le Cornu, 2013; Day et al., 2011; Freeman et al., 2007; Bullough, 2005). What is resiliency and where does it come from? Is it something that is learned or is it something one is inherently born with? Le Cornu (2013) explains that resiliency is not inherent in the individual but rests in one’s ability to make connections. Relational-cultural theory (Jordan, 2006) suggests that resilience resides not in the individual but in the capacity for connection. Jordan’s (2006) model of relational resilience has its theoretical foundations in relational-cultural theory, which has as its core the belief that all psychological growth occurs in relationships.

Displeasure with the Test-Driven Environment

The former teachers also mentioned the displeasure with the test-driven environment as a reason for leaving teaching. The pressure of high stakes testing is placing a strain on our children and the teachers giving the lessons. Teachers feel pressured to teach only the material that is relevant to tests and the strategies that are approved by the administration. One teacher clarified,

The administration set very low standards for student achievement but constantly wanted high results, which created a conflict. I also felt like the institution I worked for generally didn’t value the work of teachers, and felt teachers were expendable. I also didn’t like being in such a test driven environment, and most importantly, I wasn’t teaching what and how I wanted to teach, given very little autonomy. There was a lack of support from administration, unwillingness to make necessary changes and nepotism within the organization.

The feeling of lack of control was a deterrent to stay in teaching. It was considered just another issue in a long list of problems that teachers experience and another issue that teachers feel is neglected by the administrators. One teacher bellowed, “The administration set very low standards…but constantly wanted high student results, which created a conflict.” “There were no relevant P.D. sessions aimed at supporting teachers to better achieve student goals.” Another teacher shared, “Administration was not very concerned with my development more or so due to the fact that my students wouldn’t take statewide tests in the subject I taught.” She believed that she was not able to make the type of difference that she wanted in public education. “I want to work with children of all ages and not be plagued by the politics of the education system.” The expectation of students’ success and the lack of the resources to help students’ achievement led to discontent. If students were not performing to the expectation of the administration, it was considered to be a failure by the teacher. How can any campus leader expect students and teachers to succeed when these types of pressures pervade through the school? Where the early career teachers had access to ongoing professional learning opportunities and were supported in the development of their pedagogical beliefs, values, and practices, their confidence in their capabilities as a teacher were enhanced (Le Cornu, 2013).

As a campus leader, you have many tasks and obligations. It is easy to lose oneself in the mundane responsibilities and the mire of paperwork. However, one cannot forget that the most important vow a principal makes it to the children. One must do whatever they can to ensure students’ achievement and success. The most important way to accomplish this is by safeguarding their teachers. It was through developing and nurturing relationships that were mutual, empowering, and encouraging and by being the recipient of relationships that had these attributes that the early career teachers’ resilience appeared to be enhanced (Le Cornu, 2013).

Aspects of Resiliency

Mutuality

Mutuality is at the core of resilience (Le Cornu, 2013). Johnson et al. (2012) explain that mutuality resonates with the notion of reciprocity and reinforces many of the professional relationships that early career teachers engage in. Relationships with students and fellow teachers are significant for early career teachers and their resilience; teachers are both sustained and drained by the relationships that they develop with their students because they spend much time and effort trying to get to know their students and trying to form democratic relationships with them (Le Cornu, 2013). Hartling (2008) expresses that resilience can be strengthened through engagement in relationships that enhance one’s sense of worth and sense of competence. Teachers also develop a stronger sense of resiliency when they feel a sense of connectedness and community with their fellow teachers; when they receive emotional and professional support from their peers, their sense of resiliency grows (Le Cornu, 2013). Teachers also feel a greater sense of validation professionally when their ideas are respected. When teachers feel that their ideas are respected and see those ideas being used by teachers who have been teaching longer than them, they feel that they are making contributions to their peers and that the relationship is not a one-way relationship (Le Cornu, 2013). Additionally, teachers feel affirmed by the feedback they receive from their support network and value feeling a part of a support group.

Empowerment

Another aspect of resiliency is empowerment. When early career teachers are able to establish trusting, respectful, and reciprocal relationships, they perceive themselves as more confident and competent, which enables them to feel more empowered (Le Cornu, 2013; Hartling, 2008). It is important that teachers form healthy relationships with their administrative leaders. Teachers’ ability to form these types of relationships with administrative leaders, their peers, and themselves are important in establishing a teacher’s resiliency (Le Cornu, 2013).

Courage

It is essential that teachers develop a sense of courage. Courage is defined as the capacity to move into situations when we feel fear or hesitation (Le Cornu, 2013). Teachers draw on the support of their peers and family to motivate them and to affirm them in their efforts to continue teaching. School leaders, mentors, and support staff such as education officers and advisory staff are also important in developing an early career teacher’s courage in their abilities (Le Cornu, 2013). Family and peers provide the emotional support that teachers need to combat difficulties, while school administrators and staff provide the encouragement needed to feel competent in the classroom (Le Cornu, 2013). These relationships are important to forge for early career t...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• List of Contributors
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• 1 The Thrill Is Gone: A Romance Gone Bad, a Teacher’s Story of Burnout, and the Signs Principals Should Look Out For
• 2 A Dark Past and a Promising Future: The Historical Reception of William Grant Still’s Troubled Island
• 3 The Black Male Teacher: America’s Newest Slave Driver
• 4 Cultured Pearls: An Investigation of Culturally Responsive Pedagogical Practices Used by White Teachers in Urban Settings
• 5 African Americans in Higher Education: Understanding the Significance of Culture, Identity and Media
• 6 Kemet-kA: The African Spirit in Sport
• 7 Feminist Standpoint Theory and Women’s Sexuality: Implications for HIV Prevention
• 8 Evaluation of the Relationship among Moral Foundations, Criminal Justice, and Perceptions of Terrorism in College Students Attending Historically Black College and University
• 9 Africana Philosophy: A Preliminary Study of the Nature of Spirit and Soul
• 10 Black Identity and White Culture
• 11 Critical Analysis of Reclaiming the Black Psyche through Research Methods in Africana Studies
• 12 Taking Action on Hope: An Analysis on Culture-Based Education in the School Districts of New Orleans
• 13 Race Talk at the Intersections of Gender and Class: Examining White Men’s Intersectional Talk
• 14 The Thirteenth Amendment
• Index