Welcome back to a new year!

I am including an article I coauthored with a colleague for a local journal. I am thinking this might be good information for directors and teachers alike. Enjoy.

Teacher Know Thy Self

By Dr. Katie Lawless and Elizabeth M. Engelhardt, M.A.

“Good teaching cannot be reduced to technique; good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher.”  The Courage to Teach, Parker J. Palmer

Much has been written about children’s self-esteem and nurturing children, but what about their teachers? What about the people who care for and educate our children? They are the role models, the guiding force behind what children learn about life and themselves. Besides focusing on children’s self esteem, we should focus on their teacher and his/her self esteem.

Teachers are role models. They lead by example and instill within our children knowledge, values, and virtues.  But people can not model what they do not have. A teacher’s self-esteem has been shown to be critical in developing an environment that fosters learning and helps students develop a healthy and positive self esteem (Maples, 1992 p33). A direct link has been shown between teacher self esteem and student self esteem, and between “teacher self esteem and the quality of the learning environment.” (Le Cornu, 1999 p 3 of 11) Teacher self esteem has also been found to be tied to teacher stress level and is related to teacher burnout. It affects interpersonal skills and a “teacher’s ability/willingness to reflect on their teaching and be committed to ongoing professional development.(Le Cornu, 1999 p 3 of 11)

Teachers are role models and therefore influence student self esteem (Scott, Murray, Mertens, and Dustin, 1996). If a teacher’s self esteem is low, stress level is high, and interpersonal skills are suffering then these are the characteristics or qualities that are modeled to their students. To be a good or even great teacher a teacher needs to have strong self esteem. It behooves all vested parties to work on and encourage teachers to work on developing their self esteem.

Self esteem has been defined in a variety of ways but a common thread in the definition is that self-esteem is the disposition to experience oneself as being competent to cope with the basic challenges of life and of being worthy of happiness. (Branden, 1997) Since teachers are the defining factor in a classroom it makes sense to work towards these values in ourselves and in our teachers.

According to Maples (1992 p35), teachers’ self esteem includes the following five components: 1. Belief in self and others; 2. Encouragement of self as a person and as a professional; 3. Self confidence – innovation in life and in teaching; 4. Personal characteristics – positive and not so positive; and 5. Uniqueness as a person and as a teacher. This article will focus on what you as teachers can do to enhance these five characteristics thereby enhancing your self esteem. 

 1. Belief in self and others:

In order to develop your belief in yourself and others, you must be willing to take risk, develop a sense of purpose and show respect for yourself and others. To develop a belief in yourself and others you must be willing to take risks. So where in your life do you want to take a risk--- a risk to grow and blossom as a teacher of young children? You have the choice to make a difference in your life through stretching and trying new things.

In order to believe in yourself you also need to develop a sense of purpose (Intrator & Kunzman, 2006). Realize that what you do is important and valued by others. You are a role model for all your students and people in your life, which alone gives your life a huge purpose. Your belief in yourself and your sense of purpose is enhanced by showing respect for yourself and others. Showing respect can help us stay connected and honest with ourselves. It can enrich the lives of others and thereby enriching ourselves. (Seymour, 2006 in an interview with Bruce Weinstein) In addition to respect being a characteristic we would like to see in ourselves and others, it is also something that should be modeled and taught to our children.

2. Encouragement of self as a person and as a professional:

Encouraging yourself is also tied to belief in self. If you cannot or do not believe in yourself, it is difficult to encourage yourself but there are things you can do to help.  The most important relationship you can develop is with yourself. Begin with what positive message you would like to give yourself and use positive self talk. It is possible to build your self esteem with your own thoughts. (LeCorne, 1999) Try, “I am a lovable person,” or “I am a good and loving teacher.” Sometimes we have been given negative tapes/messages growing up, and we still live and repeat these messages over and over in our heads. These are self-defeating messages. Try changing these messages to positive ones pasting them on the mirror in your bathroom or in your desk drawer, reciting them on a daily basis. Visualize yourself as that someone positive; practice it, and reward yourself when you are successful. Make sure you are also able to give compliments and, as importantly, be able to receive them. (LeCorne, 1999)

Develop a true support system of both teacher and non teachers and share with them both your positive and negative experiences. Develop and foster relationships, both professionally and personally, that support you and encourage you to take risks and believe in yourself. (Le Cornu, 1999) Remember that enriching the lives of others enriches your own life. (Seymour, 2006 in an interview with Bruce Weinstein)

 “Affirmations are like prescriptions for certain aspects of yourself you want to change. “  Jerry Frankhauser  

3. Self confidence – innovation in life and in teaching:

Everyday tell yourself three positive things that happened (Le Cornu, 1999). These can be things that happened to you or things that you did that benefited another. Reflect on your successes. “Reflections allow teachers to reach a new way of framing a dilemma or a new understanding” and often allow them to “experience a gratifying burst of energy.” (Berl, 2005 p 8) In addition to reflecting, find a mentor you respect. Besides helping you be a more effective teacher, a mentor can also help improve your morale, your professional growth, (Berl, 2005) and help alleviate burnout (Meade, 1996)

Goal setting is also a way to develop self-confidence. Set goals for yourself both personally and professionally. Look for things you want to change or improve on, and take the steps to do so. You will feel better about yourself once you take and acknowledge the steps. These can be baby steps, but make sure you make affirmations to yourself with each successful goal or step toward a goal that you make. It will change your view of yourself.   Then add additional goals based on where you want to go and who you want to be. Act as if or do as the person you would like to be would do, and encourage yourself along the way. ”Set priorities for your goals. A major part of successful living lies in the ability to put first things first. Indeed, the reason most major goals are not achieved is that we spend our time doing second things first.”   Robert J. McKain  

4. Personal characteristics – positive and not so positive:

Take responsibility for the choices and mistakes you make in your life and in your work.  Contrary to what messages you may have received growing up, mistakes are okay--in fact, they are how we learn. We learn by making mistakes. It’s okay to make mistakes. Give yourself permission to make mistakes; if you accidentally harm someone, own it, apologize (yes, we know it is hard to do, but change takes work), and move on from there. Don’t stay stuck beating yourself up for making a mistake, everyone, and we mean everyone, makes mistakes. People with strong self-esteem can apologize and move forward. You can do it! It takes practice and it might even be painful at times, but you can succeed. Believe in yourself!   “Character - the willingness to accept responsibility for one's own life - is the source from which self respect springs.”   Joan Didion  (1934 - ) 

Do no harm. (NAEYC) You hear this often in reference to NAEYC’s code of ethics and in reference to educating students. However, what about “do no harm” to ourselves.  Take care of ourselves -- in doing so we choose to be kind to ourselves and to others.  Think twice before saying something that might hurt you or someone else. Recall the old adage like your mother said, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.”  Think about what you can do to take care of yourself. If we don’t take care of ourselves what will we have left to give to others, our children?   We need to fill up our own cup in order to have enough to share.   How do we do this you ask? We can exercise, develop our spiritual life, collaborate with others, continue to learn and grow professionally, and give ourselves daily affirmations. It’s no different with adults: develop the physical, spiritual, emotional, cognitive, and social development. “To say something nice about yourself, this is the hardest thing in the world for people to do. They'd rather take their clothes off.”   Nancy Friday

5. Uniqueness as a person and as a teacher:

Everyone is unique and that is a trait that should be celebrated and enhanced. By developing our uniqueness and inner lives we can develop a greater understanding of ourselves and our thinking which then may lead to “effective reform and personal growth” within ourselves. (Intrator & Kunzman, 2006 p 40) It is important that we learn to evoke our inner lives by engaging in activities that “cultivate [our]capacity to teach with the greater consciousness, self awareness, and integrity” which is necessary for personal development (Intrator & Kunzman, 2006 p 39).

It is also important that we care for ourselves in order to care for children. Our behavior is affected by how we feel and when we feel good it is easier to be positive. Caring for yourself also helps restore your energy; low levels of energy may lead to low self esteem (Le Cornu, 1999). Also, remember that the ability to relax is necessary for optimal performance and helps improve attention and concentration. (Liebertz, 2005 p88)

We need a sense of purpose, a reason for being. Teaching can be a thankless job and our rewards come from the children. We need to feel as if we belong and are accepted for the unique gifts that we bring to the classroom.  Know that you are needed; quality teachers are the backbone of our education system. Celebrate who you are and what you have to offer. The evidence is in the results you see everyday with the steps children take in their own personal growth. “Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself and know that everything in this life has a purpose.“ Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

So, make a decision to start the school year with a new you, a better you.   Be kind to yourself and to others. As we say to all our classes, it’s your job to be kind to every child every day. (Vivian Gussin Paley) Take that one-step further and be kind to yourself. Take the challenge to recognize that you have a purpose and it is a commitment to the children in your classroom. Dedicate yourself to being the best teacher you can be. Program yourself with positive messages, surround yourself with positive people, and shelter yourself from those who would take it away.  Stand up for your rights and for who you are; take responsibility for the actions and the words you use. And remember to set goals-- these can be short term and long term goals. They can be professional or personal goals.  The only way to get different results is to do things differently, not the same old way. If you continue to do things the same way, you will get the same results. Change begins with you; it’s an inside job.

References

www.naeyc.org

http://www.quotationspage.com/

Branden, Nathaniel, PhD. (1997)”What Self-Esteem Is and Is Not.” The Art of Living Consciously. Simon & Schuster.

Shindler, John V., PhD. Creating a Psychology of Success in the Classroom: Enhancing Academic Achievement by Systematically Promoting Student Self- Esteem.

Berl, Patricia Scallan (2005). Developing early to mid career teachers. Exchange March/April 6-10

Intrator, Sam, & Kunzman, Robert (2006). Starting with the soul Educational Leadership. 63(6) p 38-42

Le Cornu, Rosie (1999). Teacher self-esteem. Primary Educator, 5(3) p8-18

Liebertz, Charmaine (2005). Want clear thinking? Relax. Scientific American Mind, 16(3) p 88-90

Maples, Mary Finn. (1992). Teachers need self-esteem too: A counseling workshop for elementary school teachers. Elementary School Guidance & Counseling 27(1) p33-38.

Meade, Jeff (1996). Burnout. Teacher Magazine, 8(1) p38 p4

Palmer, Parker J. (????). The Courage to Teach, p??.

Scott, Cynthia G (1999). Modeling self-esteem: The potential impact of school personnel on students. Professional School Counseling, 2(5) p 367

Scott, C.G, Murray, J.C, Mertens, C. & Dustin, E.R. (1996). Student self-esteem and the school system: Perceptions and implications. Journal of Educational Research. 89(5). 286-293.

Seymour, Liz (2006) Bruce Weinstein: The “ethics guy” tells why our choices define the quality of our lives. US Airways Magazine June. p. 58-64

Published in the DAYC Journal