International Women's Day in Teaching: celebrating what you do (and backing yourself)

Introduction: International Women's Day in Teaching

International Women's Day in Teaching isn't about doing more. It's about recognising what's already happening in classrooms, corridors, and nurseries every single day: women holding teams together, guiding children through big feelings, and keeping learning moving forward.

If you're an educator, TA, nursery practitioner, room leader, or supply staff member this day can be a small but meaningful moment to reflect, feel seen, and make choices that support your wellbeing and your career.

The reality: women power the workforce (and that matters)

It can be easy to brush off celebrations when you're busy. But it helps to see the scale.

In state-funded schools in England, the teaching workforce is predominantly female (76%). Explore Education Statistics

Support roles are also largely held by women — for example 92% of teaching assistants are female. Digital Education Resource Archive

In early years, the picture is even more concentrated: in 2024, 98% of staff at group-based providers were female. House of Commons Library

So International Women's Day in Teaching is not a niche moment. It's relevant to most of the people doing the work — and it's worth marking in a way that feels genuine.

What International Women's Day can look like in real school and nursery life

You don't need an assembly, a big speech, or a perfect post.

Here are options that work in the gaps between everything else:

• Name the work out loud. A quick message in your team chat: "I see what you're doing with X child / that parent conversation / that new routine — thank you."
• Share one practical win. A strategy that's helped you lately (behaviour, transitions, SEN support, parent handovers). Keep it specific and usable.
• Make it peer-led, not top-down. A "shout-out board" in the staffroom, a notes jar, or a 10-minute end-of-day check-in.
• Choose something that supports your energy. A protected break, swapping a duty, or agreeing one thing you'll stop doing "because you always do it".

If it doesn't reduce pressure, it's probably not the right kind of celebration.

A gentle career check-in (without spiralling)

International Women's Day in Teaching can also be a quiet reset — especially if you've been running on autopilot.

Try these three questions:

1. What part of my week drains me most — and what would make it 10% easier?
2. Where am I strongest right now? (Behaviour? routines? relationships? planning? SEND support?)
3. What do I want more of next half-term? (Consistency, flexibility, fewer late nights, a different age group, a new setting, a long-term post.)

You don't need a five-year plan. You just need your next sensible move.

Simple ways leaders can make IWD feel meaningful

If you're a room leader, phase lead, or part of SLT, small choices land heavily — especially in people-first environments like schools and nurseries.

A few ideas that don't feel performative:

• Make recognition specific. Praise that names the behaviour is more motivating than generic compliments.
• Spot "invisible labour". Who's calming the room, onboarding new staff, remembering the small details, holding the emotional load?
• Support progression visibly. Encourage women into development opportunities (and protect time for it).
• Ask what would help — then act. One improvement done well beats ten promises.

International Women's Day in Teaching: how to back yourself next

Here's the practical bit: what you do next week matters more than what you post today.

If you want more stability, more choice, or just a bit more control over your working life, make one of these moves:

• Refresh your "what I offer" summary (3–5 lines you can reuse in applications or conversations).
• Pick one setting type to explore (nursery, primary, secondary, SEND, intervention, cover supervision).
• Decide what you're saying no to (extra duties, last-minute changes, unpaid hours that don't move the needle).

And if supply or flexible work is part of your plan, look for options that help you feel confident — clear expectations, reliable support, and the ability to find work that fits your life (not the other way round).