“When I stand in front of my students in a positive emotional state, I can increase their cognition, effort, and long-term retention of information. Dr. Timothy Canold He says excitedly, ” Brain Research The importance of emotional intelligence as it relates to student learning is clear.”
As Canold explains, the mental and emotional health of teachers and administrators is essential to student learning, and research shows that teacher wellness has a direct impact. Quality of Education, Student Grades and School atmosphere. and Teacher burnout and turnover rates are a concernPrioritizing educator wellness is critical to the sustainability and success of our education system.
EdSurge recently spoke with Kanold, Dr. Tina Boegrenanother leading authority on educator wellness. An award-winning educator, author, and national thought leader in mathematics and professional learning communities (PLCs), Canold has co-authored multiple best-selling books and presents professional development seminars around the world. Bougren, an award-winning educator and best-selling author, Top 30 people in education In the Wall Street Journal Roster of notable leaders.
During the pandemic, Kanold and Bougren pooled their expertise to develop the solution tree. Wellness Solutions for Educatorsis a comprehensive approach to supporting the physical, mental, emotional and social well-being of educators. This collaboration has resulted in practical strategies and actionable steps designed to help educators avoid burnout and maintain a healthy work-life balance.
EdSurge: What is educator wellness?
Dr. Tim Canold: We define educator wellness as an ongoing process. It is not a one-off event, but something we should be working towards forever. It is an active process of achieving four dimensions of good health and improved physical, mental, emotional and social well-being.
Dr. Tina Boegren: When we think about the fourth dimension, we imagine it as a circle that represents a continuous process. If we had to choose where to start, Physical Health Because when you feel good, you perform better, and when your physical health is strong, you’re in a better position to approach every other aspect of your life. Maslow’s Hierarchy of NeedsLevel 1 is physiological needs, which includes your physical routines: eating, exercising, and sleeping. We’re not advocating any particular diet, and we want you to stop thinking of exercise as a “punishment” for what you’ve eaten. Instead, you should think about: We have the right to eat lunch. We have the right to rest. There is an important difference between sleep and rest. We need to treat ourselves like we would a house plant or a puppy: what they need is love, water, exercise, regular meals, sleep, and sunlight.
I have a funny slogan that I tell myself: Just drink stupid water! When we’re not feeling great, we often pause to consider whether we’re drinking enough water. We think of drinking water as a “no-brainer.” It’s such a small thing, but it can have a huge impact on how we feel. Sometimes it’s the smallest changes that make the biggest impact: drinking a glass of water, taking a walk around the block, or putting your phone in another room when you go to sleep at night.
Canold: When I first started working on my physical health routine, I didn’t understand the difference between sleep and rest as clearly as Tina did. I now see sleep as avoiding physical fatigue, and rest as avoiding everyday mental fatigue. The three components of a physical health routine – food, exercise, and sleep – are: Mental health.
Initially, we struggled with how to promote discussion around mental health because people didn’t talk about it. It was treated like a mental illness. And then the World Health Organization Definition of Mental Health“A state of mental health that enables people to cope with life’s stresses, reach their potential, learn well, work well, and contribute to their community.” This definition helped us build three routines around mental health: determination, balance, and self-efficacy.
Self-efficacy is the confidence and ability to meet expectations in our daily work. As educators, we have the best job in the world because we serve our communities. But to do that job well, [self-care] You need to have a routine in place.
Boegren: In three dimensions, Emotional healthRoutines are built on the interplay of awareness, understanding and mindfulness. We need the mindfulness to notice our emotions, understand where they come from and respond rather than react.
Canold: The fourth aspect of the Wellness Framework is Social WellnessHoning your social skills is key to collaborating and communicating with colleagues, parents, and students. Our profession is about building relationships through active listening. But social wellness is about more than that. It’s about our purpose.
To stay committed to the positive relationships you need at work and not get lost in the day-to-day grind, it’s helpful to remember the following: Ah, yes, that’s why I’m here! I think I can contribute to a collective purpose that is bigger than myself. When we do that, when we’re in a workplace that’s connected to a greater purpose, everyone thrives. why Burnout sets in when you get caught up in the difficulties and subtleties of your day-to-day work.
What advice can you give to teachers to start healthy habits?
Canold: Being intentional is a key component, and it’s a daily ongoing effort. There are days when you need to cut yourself some slack, but you need to stay intentional. For example, on Sundays, my wife and I sit down in front of our calendars and block time for our exercise routine. And we support each other to make sure we follow through. If we’re not intentional, that routine will get hijacked. Being intentional might mean asking others for help in completing our health routine.
Boegren: Different strategies work for different people, but it’s important to take the first step, no matter how small. Start with your physical health. Once your physical health is better, it’ll be easier to move on to other aspects. That first small step will become a big one, because it will create momentum for you to continue working on other aspects of your health.
What can school leaders do to support teacher wellbeing in their schools?
Canold: One of the first things administrators can do is to engage with the idea of developing professional wellness plans for all teachers in their sphere of influence. Administrators need to provide a forum for teachers to discuss what they need to achieve wellness promotion. Administrators also need to understand that this is not a one-size-fits-all solution.
As a school leader, I need to ask questions like: How can I contribute to achieving your wellness goals? What does that look like for you? What can I do to support you and provide mechanisms to protect your time and opportunities?
Boegren: We sometimes hear leaders suggest providing wellness support through jeans or coffee carts. That’s great, but it’s not healthy. It’s a Band-Aid solution. Don’t get us wrong, we love coffee carts and jeans, but that’s not the real wellness we’re proposing. Instead, we ask leaders to consider how they can support their staff (and themselves) in all four dimensions of teacher wellness: physical, mental, emotional, and social.
Leaders can start by asking what might change structurally, such as setting boundaries in schools. What are the expectations across the school about parents being able to reach out to teachers? This is a boundary that has been lost during COVID, and perhaps rightly so. But if schools don’t redefine that boundary, teachers could be doomed. We hear stories of parents calling teachers home on weekends. School leaders can help define stronger boundaries to protect teachers.
Canold: It is important to remember that administrators are teachers too. Administrators are the lead teachers in their school buildings. Administrators can teach about wellness by first modeling their own wellness goals. By prioritizing wellness and providing mechanisms for teachers to have time away from the noise of school work, administrators can create an improved culture that makes it easier for teachers to achieve their wellness goals.
