Standard 17: Support and Supervision

Teachers and other education personnel need adequate and appropriate resources to allow them to teach and work effectively. When these resources are not available, teachers may experience more stress and job burnout. Under such conditions, teachers may be able to draw from their own knowledge, or training can be organized on how to adapt materials that are readily available in the environment in a creative and safe way. If a digital approach will be used in a distance education model, a needs assessment will be needed to determine what access learners have to mobile technologies and whether they have electricity, internet connectivity, and the skills to use digital devices. The needs assessment should target parents and caregivers, teachers, and learners and should include questions on any social or cultural sensitivities around access to technology, particularly for women and girls. Learners’ ages and developmental levels will need to be considered when designing both print and digital learning materials to ensure that they are relevant and inclusive (for more guidance, see INEE Background Paper on Distance Education in Emergencies).

Receiving ongoing professional development is key for teachers, as it can improve their ability to deliver quality, safe, and inclusive education. It also can increase their motivation, confidence, and overall wellbeing. Professional development needs to start at the teachers’ level of training and experience. It should be relevant to their needs, delivered by qualified trainers, and inclusive and non-discriminatory. Professional development should include awareness raising and skills building on gender-responsive pedagogy, inclusive education practices, and how to support learners’ psychosocial needs during times of crisis.

Teacher training should be feasible in terms of the logistics, such as venue, timing, frequency, and resources needed, including digital. Stakeholders can put in place a framework for teacher professional development that will help to achieve coherence, consistent quality, and efficient funding. This will help determine the training needs for teachers and other education personnel at different levels and maximize existing materials to support the training. Under-trained and under-qualified teachers should have access to training that pays special attention to the foundational concepts around pedagogy and children’s and young people’s learning and wellbeing. Professional development for these teachers should be followed up with regular training and support to build their skills. Teachers’, head teachers’, and other education personnel’s thoughts and priorities about their own support needs should be at the center of any professional development planning (for more guidance, see Teachers in Crisis Contexts Training for Primary School Teachers).

Effective management, supervision, and accountability are important to providing professional support and maintaining teacher motivation and teaching quality. Teachers require ongoing professional support which should be available at different levels, from the learning environment (peers, head teachers, senior teachers, etc.), to education authority support systems (advisors, education specialists, teacher training institutes, etc.). If management and support systems already exist, they should be built on and strengthened as needed. Support systems are likely to operate at different levels—national, sub-national, and local. If no support mechanism systems are in place, education authorities, teachers unions, community members, relevant committees or associations, UN agencies, donors, and NGOs should work together to design and establish them. Higher education institutions may need to give special attention to ensuring that their standard support and supervision structures cover EiE programs and the faculty involved (full-time, part-time, contract-based, or short-term).

To ensure complementarity and avoid confusion or duplication of support systems, all those who provide support should have clear roles, responsibilities, and accountability. Support from peers and communities of practice can motivate teachers and other education personnel and help them improve their teaching practice. They can provide a safe space for teachers to reflect on their work, set goals, and discuss new practices. When face-to-face meetings are not possible, mobile technologies can be useful to promote teacher collaboration and set up professional discussion and support groups (for more guidance, see the Teachers in Crisis Contexts Peer Coaching Pack).

During emergencies, well-designed and managed performance appraisals support good teacher performance and education quality. Education stakeholders should use existing education authority appraisal frameworks during emergencies when possible, and the appraisal criteria should be transparent and known to the teachers. If an appraisal framework must be developed, it should be clearly linked to the job description and code of conduct. It should include classroom observations of teachers to determine if their practices are inclusive and support the learning of all students. Performance appraisals also should be linked to key safeguarding procedures, including monitoring teachers’ adherence to the code of conduct. After they are observed in the classroom, teachers should be given feedback and the opportunity to discuss what actions they can take to improve their teaching practice, set goals, and establish a time frame for working to reach them.

Assessment of other education personnel can be done by observing them as they carry out a key activity, through a review of their planning, and following up on meetings or classroom observations. A performance appraisal system for teachers and other education personnel should identify key areas to focus on and include self-evaluation.

Any teacher or other education personnel can feel overwhelmed by a crisis. They and their families are likely to have concerns about their own security and safety and uncertainty about the future. How well teachers can support learners will depend on their own wellbeing and the support they receive. Having access to information on what emergency, protection, and safeguarding measures are in place can empower teachers and other education personnel. Holding peer group meetings to discuss and share concerns can also be helpful. Those who support and supervise teachers should be trained in protection and safeguarding, including the do no harm principle, and be familiar with the principles and tools for providing MHPSS. It is also important that non-specialized personnel are recruited and trained to provide individual and group support, and that specialists are on hand to offer MHPSS. Education stakeholders, teachers, and communities should work together to address stigma around mental health issues in culturally appropriate ways, such as sharing information, raising community awareness, and advocacy (for more guidance, see the INEE Guidance Note on Teacher Wellbeing in Emergency Settings).

It is important to include learners in the evaluation of teaching and learning and to get their feedback on their education experience. Their participation will help them understand the learning environment more fully and contribute to the quality and safety of education. Learner participation is particularly important in tertiary education to ensure that programs meet their current and future needs. Teachers and other education personnel should create a supportive learning environment that encourages learners to share their thoughts on their own learning, the teaching approaches their teacher uses, their own wellbeing, and issues of behavior, protection, safety, and security. Helping young learners share this feedback can be done both in the learning environment and at home using simple questionnaires. Stakeholders should make sure to use child-friendly strategies when engaging children for feedback (see the EiE Glossary for a definition of child-friendly). Engaging learners in the evaluation of teaching and learning will help build their confidence and enable them to understand their strengths, as well as what challenges they face. It will also help teachers reflect on their own practice and strengthen the links between home and the learning environment.