Tanned faces, kisses and embraces, exchange of holiday tales and a general hubbub of energetic enthusiasm, with a mild undercurrent of grumbling, will soon fill the school staffrooms around the country; it must be the teachers’ return from summer holidays. Like most teaching staff I both dread and enjoy this day. It seems to sneak around quicker every year creeping further into August; many schools opting to deplete our summer holidays in exchange for a few precious days off during term when we’ll need that time to catch up on work or recharge our batteries.
At the start of term most teachers return fully charged and refreshed from their holidays and have a positive outlook and enthusiasm for the year ahead. Teachers are one of the few professionals who can enjoy a ‘clean slate’ or a ‘fresh start’ that each new academic year brings. As is normal for humankind a fresh start usually brings with it new intentions or resolutions on how this year will be different. I’ll be more organised. I’ll get in to work earlier. I’ll stay on top of my corrections. In order to meet all these new targets and standards, September becomes a hectic month and by October old habits creep back in and good intentions are little more than leaves floating away from us on a downward stream.
In truth the newness and energy of September is short-lived and despite good ‘new year’ resolutions, the workload piles up, the energy dissipates and we soon find ourselves back to the bedraggled state we were in at the end of May when we craved the summer holidays.
So how can we make this year different? How can we stay on top of the workload and still maintain a level of calmness in our lives? The first step is to acknowledge just how much we are doing already.
Schools are hectic environments and the teaching profession is demanding. The teaching landscape had changed dramatically in the last decade with the introduction of new teaching methodologies replacing ‘chalk and talk’, the move from the clár dubh to the digital classroom, the added pressure of department inspections and the dreaded extra after school hours. These changes have been fast paced and have placed huge demands on our time and energy levels. If you are managing to meet and implement these changes, congratulations, you are a high performing teacher.
This year it might be an idea to make small improvements that you will benefit from. In a child centred environment, we as teachers are conditioned to put ourselves last. I invite you to rate yourself higher. As the airlines say to passengers travelling with children ‘Attend to your oxygen mask first.’ It is only through looking after ourselves that we can fully attend to our students’ needs. Think how much happier and more enjoyable your classroom climate would be if you were less stressed and calm. This surely is of greater benefit to students than an extra paper corrected or an extra handout prepared.
Take advantage of the ‘clean slate’ you get this September and look to better your inner-self and this will enhance the quality of your teaching. Through improving your own wellbeing you will inevitably improve your health both physically and mentally and this will have a positive effect on your teaching. Rather than putting more pressure on yourself to get more work done this year, take your foot off the pedal a little and nourish your own inner calm.
Try to remember why you wanted to be a teacher? Was it the passion you held for your subject? The enjoyment you got from working with young people? The value you placed on the importance of education? Whatever your motivator, reconnect with it. Give time to exploring this motivation to rekindle the passion that brought you to this career. Due to the many distractions in school our motivations can get overlooked or forgotten leading us to question why we ever entered the profession. To keep your career relevant for you, reconnect with why you want to teach.
Be social - whether this means making the time to enjoy a cuppa with another staff member, taking the full lunch break and chatting to your colleagues or engaging in an extra-curricular activity with the students. Taking the time to be social with work colleagues or students (outside of the classroom) will bring a more positive outlook to your day. Being social gives you the opportunity to laugh (a great stress buster) and have meaningful relationships at work. Having positive relationships in the workplace fosters good collegiality and allows us to feel a sense of belonging and attachment to our workplace. So when given the chance to correct a bunch of copies or grab a coffee with a friend – reach for the cup; believe me the copybooks will always be there.
This year, I for one will be embracing the positivity September brings and I will set myself new goals. I will acknowledge that I’m already doing a good job and resist the temptation to constantly reinvent myself. I’ll head to the staffroom more often to spend more time with my colleagues. When the workload gets intense and stress levels start rising I hope to have the good sense to take some breathing space and ask for help if required. Through little steps I hope to look after my wellbeing to make my work life happier and improve the quality of the work I do. It’s a different challenge – are you up for it?
At the start of term most teachers return fully charged and refreshed from their holidays and have a positive outlook and enthusiasm for the year ahead. Teachers are one of the few professionals who can enjoy a ‘clean slate’ or a ‘fresh start’ that each new academic year brings. As is normal for humankind a fresh start usually brings with it new intentions or resolutions on how this year will be different. I’ll be more organised. I’ll get in to work earlier. I’ll stay on top of my corrections. In order to meet all these new targets and standards, September becomes a hectic month and by October old habits creep back in and good intentions are little more than leaves floating away from us on a downward stream.
In truth the newness and energy of September is short-lived and despite good ‘new year’ resolutions, the workload piles up, the energy dissipates and we soon find ourselves back to the bedraggled state we were in at the end of May when we craved the summer holidays.
So how can we make this year different? How can we stay on top of the workload and still maintain a level of calmness in our lives? The first step is to acknowledge just how much we are doing already.
Schools are hectic environments and the teaching profession is demanding. The teaching landscape had changed dramatically in the last decade with the introduction of new teaching methodologies replacing ‘chalk and talk’, the move from the clár dubh to the digital classroom, the added pressure of department inspections and the dreaded extra after school hours. These changes have been fast paced and have placed huge demands on our time and energy levels. If you are managing to meet and implement these changes, congratulations, you are a high performing teacher.
This year it might be an idea to make small improvements that you will benefit from. In a child centred environment, we as teachers are conditioned to put ourselves last. I invite you to rate yourself higher. As the airlines say to passengers travelling with children ‘Attend to your oxygen mask first.’ It is only through looking after ourselves that we can fully attend to our students’ needs. Think how much happier and more enjoyable your classroom climate would be if you were less stressed and calm. This surely is of greater benefit to students than an extra paper corrected or an extra handout prepared.
Take advantage of the ‘clean slate’ you get this September and look to better your inner-self and this will enhance the quality of your teaching. Through improving your own wellbeing you will inevitably improve your health both physically and mentally and this will have a positive effect on your teaching. Rather than putting more pressure on yourself to get more work done this year, take your foot off the pedal a little and nourish your own inner calm.
Try to remember why you wanted to be a teacher? Was it the passion you held for your subject? The enjoyment you got from working with young people? The value you placed on the importance of education? Whatever your motivator, reconnect with it. Give time to exploring this motivation to rekindle the passion that brought you to this career. Due to the many distractions in school our motivations can get overlooked or forgotten leading us to question why we ever entered the profession. To keep your career relevant for you, reconnect with why you want to teach.
Be social - whether this means making the time to enjoy a cuppa with another staff member, taking the full lunch break and chatting to your colleagues or engaging in an extra-curricular activity with the students. Taking the time to be social with work colleagues or students (outside of the classroom) will bring a more positive outlook to your day. Being social gives you the opportunity to laugh (a great stress buster) and have meaningful relationships at work. Having positive relationships in the workplace fosters good collegiality and allows us to feel a sense of belonging and attachment to our workplace. So when given the chance to correct a bunch of copies or grab a coffee with a friend – reach for the cup; believe me the copybooks will always be there.
This year, I for one will be embracing the positivity September brings and I will set myself new goals. I will acknowledge that I’m already doing a good job and resist the temptation to constantly reinvent myself. I’ll head to the staffroom more often to spend more time with my colleagues. When the workload gets intense and stress levels start rising I hope to have the good sense to take some breathing space and ask for help if required. Through little steps I hope to look after my wellbeing to make my work life happier and improve the quality of the work I do. It’s a different challenge – are you up for it?