Teacher Recruitment: Mistakes You Must Avoid

When it comes to teacher recruitment, a lot of school administrators or the school’s hiring team make a lot of mistakes without realizing it. These mistakes are so costly that they backfire on them within a short time. With years of experience in teacher recruitment, I observed that lots of schools make the mistake of;

Where to Recruit Teachers from

One such recruitment mistake is where to recruit teachers from. It makes the recruiters waste more time, and resources in hiring than ever. It also makes the recruiters hire incompetent teachers in most cases. There is a common business saying that says ‘Meet the customers where they are.’ So where are the teachers? – they are on the internet. The first place most teachers look for jobs is on the Internet. This idea is not new and it’s not stopping anytime soon. Teachers check job boards almost on a daily basis for new job postings and ones with better offers. Below is what teachers say;

What teachers say

“To find openings, I check the job service website multiple times a week (every 1-2 days!). Another reason I check the website is to see the questions teachers are asking and the solutions to some of those questions. Indeed it helps me to stay up to date”…Aisha

“Searching for jobs sometimes to me is part of learning and I do it most times to see what recruiters are looking for and to update myself. I use passbuttons most times because it helps me to view new job opportunities and the schools/organizations hiring. I live in a somewhat rural area and have done a Google search for hiring. I hardly see a genuine and new job opening unlike passbuttons.com which publishes job openings from known schools other than the blogs”….Blessing

What this means for you

It’s more important than ever that your school and job opening can easily be found online, giving you two benefits such as promotion and advertising.

The teacher to recruit

The Internet might be loved by job-seekers for sheer convenience and accessibility, but that doesn’t mean that people who apply for teaching jobs online are trained and competent teachers. Some are not even passionate about their career but looking for where to fix themselves. This is why many schools change teachers on a monthly or yearly basis. If you’re a school administrator, I believe you understand the consequences of this flow.

What school administrators say

“I have hired between 10-15 times via the internet but I had to spend a lot of time on training and monitoring the teachers. The situation changed when I hired teachers through Passbuttons, I love what these guys do and I recommend them to schools that want passionate teachers. These guys created a community of passionate teachers….”..Blessed (Trinity Schools)

“Your best bet is to look for job applicants who know what the job is about and whom you won’t spend a lot of resources in training again”…Whitewood schools

What this means for you

Recruiting teachers in the teachers’ community saves you a lot of stress.

Underestimating the power of network

Though can’t be compared to publishing job openings on relevant job boards, leveraging your network is another sure way of getting competent teachers. Do not make the mistake of taking your network for granted while hiring.

What this means for you

Keep building those existing relationships with your teachers and substitutes — they could be wonderful full-time teachers in the future. When it comes to your substitute pool, in particular, you can help grow their classroom skills with professional development opportunities and encourage full-time teachers to leave substitutes constructive feedback after an absence.

Teachers are not always waiting for you – Make sure to remove obstacles in the application process

No matter how an applicant finds your school, you can be sure that you’re not the only one receiving their resume. Many teachers said they sent out resumes and applications to dozens of schools (or more), as if they were taking a page out of Oprah’s playbook — “You get an application, and you get an application, everyone gets an application!”

What teachers say

• “I sent out to over 7 schools.”
• “I sent a cover letter and resume to every one of the 12 schools.”
• “I sent out about 40 resumes (and this is for music = not many jobs)”

What this means for you

When job applications are pouring in, make sure you have a system to help you stay afloat. You need to be able to easily collect and store the resumes coming in (without them cluttering up your desk), sort through them, painlessly find candidates with the most potential, and keep all of their materials together. Find a way to make the entire process work for you with online applicant tracking software like passbuttons.com — otherwise, hiring is going to take over your every waking moment.

Just in: Polac Past questions and answers

SMART RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES SCHOOLS CAN EMPLOY

It is not new to you as a school administrator that teachers are leaving the profession as such you need to employ smart recruitment and retention strategies in your school.

First strategy: Teachers are not waiting for you – therefore start the recruitment process on time.

Second strategy: Teachers are leaving the profession and they are constantly looking for better opportunities. Treat the teachers you have with respect. A bird at hand is better than millions in the bush.

Third strategy: Partner with a teacher recruitment agency like passbuttons.com. You will always have a teacher to fill a particular position for a chosen time.

Fourth strategy: Create programs and policies that support and challenge the teachers to do their best at work. It will help you a lot.