from Terry Hayek
A simple premise, as it is titled: what kinds of “things” make teaching unsustainable, and what kind of advice can help teachers consider these ideas to mitigate any damage and make the profession more enjoyable and thus sustainable.
10. Develop a healthy and useful professional learning network.
See also 10 Reasons Every Teacher Needs a Professional Learning Network
Human connections sustain people.
9. The school year is a marathon, not a sprint.
And this should have significant implications for instructional design—spiraling, for example. Some ideas students may “get” right away, while others will take a whole year. Continually develop these ideas sufficiently complex so that students have a chance to master them.
8. You don’t need a million tools and strategies to teach well.
You don’t need a million tools and strategies to teach well, so use a few that are flexible and powerful.
The 40/40/40 rule is a wonderful on-the-go measuring stick to help prioritize content, teaching and assessment. Other useful tools that might be helpful? Metaphors, similes and teaching with analogies (using them to teach complex ideas – “the thesis is the _____ of essay a…”; “The civil rights movement was like…”; RAFT tasks. Choice boards.
Be picky.
7. Never take it personally.
Teaching is a deeply human endeavour, and so of course it is natural to ‘take it personally’. Definitely do it. But as much as possible, try to be professional in the same way that the surgeon is. While surgeons undoubtedly care about their patients because they care, they must be professional, calculated and objective. You never know what a student is going through or “where they are” in their development as human beings. You have a short memory and be their best chance to become something great.
6. Tstudents should talk more than you.
This is easy to forget, especially when you have so much to teach. There is a shift though – try to focus on what students are learning and how, rather than what you ‘teach’.
See also 7 Differences Between Good and Great Teachers
5. How you frame your thinking is everything.
It’s not much different than a relationship, marriage, money or any other career.
You can’t teach if you’re exhausted, misinformed, too hard on yourself, disconnected, or misunderstand your role in some critical way (as a colleague, colleague, teacher, department head, etc.) That’s not your job to save the world. Every child needs something different. In response, try to adopt learning models, tools, teaching strategiesand more – and use them in a way that doesn’t require superhuman effort on your part to make it work.
They have to work harder than you.
4. You are professional and in control of your own attitude.
You see what you want to see, so choose to see and accept the best in people and circumstances and move on from there. Schools can be places full of bad politics and absurd bureaucracy. There is too much pressure to achieve too much from too many different places. You probably can’t change most of it, so focus on what you can change—and that starts with how you think.
Students are always looking at you. How you treat people (even “problem students”); how you show compassion or model accountability. Where do you go for resources. How do you define ‘success’? What do you do when you are frustrated or upset? Your dedication, skills and experience. They may not see everything every time, but they never stop looking.
This means your voice is heard outside the classroom, where they will continue to talk about you – for years to come if you’ve done it right.
3. How you make students feel can last a lifetime. Carefully.
You are a bigger figure to most students. You are a teacher – you may be the loudest voice in their already busy mind. Think about the character you play in that mind accordingly. Furthermore, the way you frame students in your mind completely changes the way you will think about, respond to, and teach students.
2. You come first
This goes against what teachers have long practiced – and been conditioned to believe.
While student-centered classrooms are what we strive to provide, they absolutely cannot come at the expense of teacher well-being. Indeed, any teaching or education practices in general that are at the expense of teachers’ well-being are inherently unsustainable.
And any system (eg, public education) that abuses and “destroys” the parts (eg, teachers) it depends on to function is at best flawed and irrational, and at worst destructive and unsustainable. Just as airlines remind elderly passengers to put the oxygen mask on themselves before their children, educators must also put themselves first. You can’t teach if you’re not “good” – and you can’t be consistently “great” if you’re not thriving as a human being and a professional educator.
See also Examples of student-centered learning
1. Find your thing
Although teachers must possess and demonstrate skills and expertise in a wide range of areas, from psychology to technology to content areas and people and communities, we also often have “something.”
Whatever “it” is, it is equal parts identity, purpose, love, and curiosity. Whether it’s your students, your craft, your content, your community, or something else entirely—be aware of your own mind as to why you do what you do, and never let it go.
Advice for teachers? 10 things not to lose sight of this year; Adapted image credit flickr user sparkfunelectronics