Building an Attractive School

Abstract

It is a common belief that a first-class education is a prerequisite for cultivating high-quality personnel and building a great country. To obtain a satisfactory education, I assert that talented professionals, teachers, play the leading role among all the related elements, for they directly influence the next generation. As a veteran teacher and a school administrator, I have personally experienced the growth and the decline in teaching and administrative work in my school. This was the result of a group of excellent teachers and their transfer to other schools that they admired. Reflecting upon the situation, I am motivated to explore the elements that attracted our talented teachers to other schools. In this paper, I will attempt to explore the following questions: What are the essential elements a teacher looks for when deciding to serve a school, or what are the crucial factors in a school that attract teachers? Furthermore, rather than simply focusing on keeping teachers, I would like to go beyond responding to the immediate problem, to explore, by referring to the change theories, some more positive, “aggressive,” assertive, or ambitious ways to improve. These approaches would not only prevent good teachers from transferring, but also have an enormous appeal for them; consequently these ways would inspire teachers’ ongoing passionate commitment to their school. To do this, another question must be answered: How can we foster a change to make a “regular” school attractive?