You’ve no doubt heard of the saying ‘time is money’. Well, when it comes to school, you can easily modify that to read ‘productivity is knowledge’.
It follows that the more productive an educational institution is, the more likely it is to develop a culture of success in which pupils reach their academic potential and educators meet their professional goals.
But how do you go about improving productivity in your school?
Here are seven potential ways you can do just that.
1. Ban the use of mobile phones
While you can’t stop children from bringing mobile phones to school, you can prevent them from being used during school hours.
Many educational experts believe they can be a real distraction to students, causing them to concentrate less in class and be less productive overall.
Some institutions even insist that their students put their phones in their personal lockers or a teacher-controlled locked cabinet, such as the ones offered by TechXpress, until after the lesson has been completed.
If you do decide to implement this tactic to foster greater productivity among your students, it would be worth getting parental buy-in to make the process smoother.
2. Focus on professional development
Teachers whose knowledge bases are up-to-date with the latest teaching techniques, school curriculum and learning programmes are likely to perform their jobs more effectively than those who are not.
For this reason, you should invest as much resources as you can into their professional development.
There are many different teaching methods your staff can employ. So, it follows that the greater a handle they have on them, the more effective they will become at their job.
3. Improve your staff’s mental health
Teaching can be a very stressful job. Indeed, according to one study, over 50% of teachers experience symptoms of depression that are classed as ‘extremely severe’. This is due in part to 70% of them feeling like they have workloads that are unmanageable.
As a school, it is important that you look after the mental health of your teachers to balance the stresses of their role with any anxieties they might be feeling.
There are several ways you can do this, including helping them set boundaries, manage their workload, and prioritise tasks. You can also provide them with the resources they need to do their jobs as effectively as possible and encourage them to partake in beneficial health and wellness practices such as meditation and regular physical activity.
4. Focus on Nutrition
According to the organisation Healthy Children, between 80% and 90% of Australian school kids bring their own food for lunch. Additionally, for around 13% of them, it’s their first meal of the day.
As nutrition is vitally important for brain function, schools should consider offering nutritious meals to students and teachers through either a canteen or their tuck shop.
If they do this, it is important that they provide them with a good mix of the five food groups, especially fruit, vegetables, dairy, proteins, and whole grains, to ensure they benefit from a balanced diet during school hours.
Ultimately, the better nutrition they get, the more productive your students and staff are likely to be.
5. Shorten lesson times
Typically, school lesson times last between 40 minutes and an hour, although it is not uncommon for students to have double periods.
However, there is a school of thought that suggests children are more responsive to and productive in classes that run for shorter periods overall.
Additionally, research published by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that shorter class times might benefit students in other ways, notably better sleep quality, lower obesity rates, and fewer mental health issues.
Some experts even believe that students are more productive in the middle of the day, so they advocate that school should start and finish later than many currently do.
6. Have less visual classroom stimulus
In any given classroom, there tends to be lots of visual stimulus on the walls. Typically, this includes learning materials, students’ best work, and the odd poster with a motivational quote.
There is no denying that this makes for a vibrant learning environment, but while it’s designed to stimulate students’ minds, it can be counterproductive when a lesson is in full flow.
Some pupils, especially younger ones, might find their minds starting to wander, and they stop concentrating on what the teacher is saying, which can adversely affect their academic performance. Instead train them to embrace deliberate practice, which will help them in the long run to master any skill.
7. Mix things up
Arguably, the best way to keep students motivated, productive and engaged is to mix the lesson up as much as possible.
One way to do this is to allow them to swap seats halfway through the lesson. However, you can also incorporate a mix of learning methods into them, including individual tasks, working in pairs, and a group activity.
Don’t be afraid to throw in online, creative craft and paper-based activities to keep them connected even more.
