5 Proven Ways School Leaders Can Support Teachers in 2025

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Introduction

School Leaders have a huge impact on the success of every teacher in the building. From training to evaluating to supporting, administrators reach educators at every stage of their career.

We know that educator efficacy changes outcomes for students. As a school leader, your most vital priority is to empower educators to empower their students. A positive environment that fosters learning opportunities, effective training, and timely support will have a ripple effect on every teacher and student in your charge.

Recently, an NEA survey found that 90% of school leaders say staffing shortages and teacher burnout are the biggest challenges they face. If you want to beat the statistics, it’s important to add key supports to your school staff today.

Here are 5 strategies you can implement today to bring out the best in your teachers and set your students up for learning growth and achievement.

1. Lead from the Halls - Invest in a Rolling Desk

The paperwork can be overwhelming. Every year seems to bring about an increase in paperwork, online communications, and necessary documentation. It is tempting to bury away in your office to confront the ever mounting tasks on your computer.

Rolling desks are an incredible opportunity to keep you present and available to support your teachers. These desks on wheels give you freedom to roam the halls while carrying out your most pressing computer responsibilities. It is easier and more impactful to lead from the field, so grab a new desk and get out there!

2. Expand Course Offerings - Virtual Electives for Schools

School is much more than the basic STEM/STEAM offerings. It is a place for students to explore their passions and interests while pondering the life they will one day live. When those offerings are limited, students feel stifled and educators feel stuck. 

The more you spark student creativity, the more engaged they are in all of their classes. Teachers will suddenly find that their students are more inquisitive, excited, and prepared to learn. That’s why it’s important to expand your schedule beyond the constraints of the three R’s of old.

Not sure how to bring a wider variety of course offerings to your school? Check out Whizara’s 12 Months of Virtual Enrichment guide, available for download here: (Link to form subscribing them to email list in exchange for a free 12 month virtual enrichment guide)

3. Build Visibility and Trust with Students — It Helps Teachers Too

Do the students in your school know who you are? More importantly, do they know what you represent as a resource to them? Is there a level of trust and understanding that you are a support for their academic success?

Teachers need their school leaders to be accessible to students. It is easy as an educator to feel isolated and on an island while dealing with difficult student behaviors. The more you are seen and visible as another point of contact for students, the more support teachers will feel.

This can come from simple steps like high fives in the hallway, or more complex moments like reading a story to a class and relating with them. You can stay within your personality and comfort zone, while showing students that you are present and available to them. When your teachers know that is true, they feel like they have a real partner in bringing about student achievement.

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4. Develop Relationships with Teachers

Do you know every teacher in your school? Even if you are a leader of a certain academic area, every educator is a professional who advances your school’s goals and deserves to be known and understood. Just like student relationships build trust and support, teacher relationships allow you to make the most impactful and empowering adjustments throughout the school year.

Ask yourself this. For the teachers in your school, do you have a clear vision of each individual’s professional goals? What do they want to accomplish and why?

Answering that will help you understand their motivations and utilize it to position them for success. You may find that some teachers need to swap subjects or grade levels, or may need to be positioned in certain electives or after school activities, to truly fulfill their calling and feel the rewards of the profession.

5. Solve Overcrowding with Flexible Staffing Solutions

How are you addressing staffing shortages? Overcrowded classrooms are one of the largest stressors facing teachers today. From extra grading to increased classroom management needs, every student added creates an exponential challenge to a teacher’s success.

We have spoken with school leaders across the country who feel the weight of the challenge in staffing. Often, there are few suitable candidates and difficulty filling certain subject areas. This leads to an increase in class size as a temporary fix, burning out the current teaching staff and causing additional staffing shortages.

Instead of dealing with hiring woes, drastic budget changes, or pushing more responsibilities onto your best teachers, switch to a virtual solution. Head to the Whizara budgeting tool and plan out your hard-to-staff courses.

You can plan class by class to ensure you are fully staffed with lower class sizes, providing immediate relief to the teachers who need it most.

Bring it all together

There are many ways to support teacher success in your school. The most important step you can take is to be proactive. If you wait for teachers to bring up issues, you risk them bringing it up in a resignation letter. Often, professional educators will produce their best work in spite of the challenges, up until those challenges overwhelm them completely.

Implement these five steps now, not later, and watch the impact on your entire school community. Your staff will notice the effort you are putting in, and the output will be present throughout the entire school year.

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