Blog # 5: Teacher Well-Being and Teaching About Microaggressions

Section #1

“One of the most powerful things about compassion,” she says, “is it makes you feel safe and calmer. Instead of just feeling empathy for your students—which is essentially feeling their pain—self-compassion allows you to embrace that pain with loving-kindness, which makes it bearable,” (Zakrzewski, 2012).

 

Through engaging in self-talk and taking the time to reflect on self-compassion exercise, I discovered how important it is to set aside some time to check in with myself and be my own cheerleader. I am very much a people pleaser and have been told by people that I need to get a backbone. Through these exercises and self-talk, I was able to come to terms with the notion that I will not be able to say yes to everything and please everyone and that there is no need to go down the anxiety spiral as a result. When I take on too many things for others on top of what I need to do I often find myself not in a happy or peaceful place. When I took the time to go on walks or just sit with myself, I was able to find a moment of still and ask myself what is best for me. I realized that I need to schedule a chunk of time each day for myself to make sure that I look at how I am truly doing and take note of what I need to be successful not just in work, but in mind and body as well.

So often teachers are asked to do so much on top of teaching. If they don’t take the time to collect themselves, their ability to notice the needs of students and meet them with compassion decreases. When I, as a teacher am not at my best, how can I expect my students to be? It’s important as a teacher to find small ways to check in and ground oneself to avoid burnout. In the article on self-compassion by Vicki Zakrzewski, she touches on this saying, “With the burnout issues teachers face, taking care of themselves through work/life balance is important, but it isn’t enough,” says Neff, “Teachers need to give themselves permission to be self-compassionate for the stress they’re under,” (Zakrzewski, 2012). It’s important to label the stress and anxiety that teachers feel instead of feeling shame for having these feelings. As a future teacher, I know that I will have these moments but that it’s in how I respond to them that matters. In my ability to name them and work on self-compassion, I can help students on their journey to finding ways to increase self-talk and compassion for themselves. Instead of feeling like I couldn’t do something and listening to the negative self-talk, I was able to instead change my thinking and listen to the self-talk that acknowledged that things are hard but that I can do hard things. Along with noticing and naming comes how we frame self-talk to create self-compassion. I know I still need to work on this, but it’s getting better. I want to be at my best for my students while also remaining true to myself and acknowledging that I am human.

Section #2

“Naming the difference between microaggressions and other hurtful comments is a transparent way to support children in their efforts to be anti-racist, thoughtful, courageous upstanders,” (Turner & Heise, 2019).

I believe that intentional practice of self-compassion and self-kindness can positively influence my mindset and the language I use to in the classroom with students. I believe this because if I am able to be in a place where I believe what I am saying and am grounded, I will better be able to find ways to convey things to my students in a meaningful and truthful way. When teachers are not at their best, they are not always helping their students in the best way. I want to be able to give my all to my students without losing myself in the process. When I take the time to practice self-compassion and self-kindness, I am more apt to take the necessary processing time in a classroom setting. I also believe that if students witness teachers practicing self-compassion and self-kindness, it may help them to practice as well or ask questions that can help open up conversations about the topic.

When it comes to microaggressions in schools, we want to be on top of stopping them in the correct manner and teaching students why and how they are wrong.  By simply getting upset and telling a student to stop we lose the teaching moment, and the affected student may not feel truly supported. My practicing of self-kindness can help me see how a student may be feeling and can help me take the necessary steps to make sure that they are ok. It also can help me feel grounded in having those tough but necessary conversations with my students. In Bret Turner’s article that looks at teaching microaggressions to young children, he states, “As our students work out how to be together, they should be the beneficiaries of as many words, concepts and strategies as we can give them,” (Turner & Heise, 2019). As a teacher, it is my job to be in the right mindset and use the appropriate language when talking about this topic with my students. By showing and educating my students on how to intervene appropriately when they see or hear microaggressions, it helps to put an end to them and allows them to not be bystanders in these situations. As a teacher, I need to be aware of the possible microaggressions that may arise in my classroom or school and appropriately address them. In modeling for my students, I help show them that it is alright to intervene. I want each student that walks into my classroom to feel accepted and valued by their peers as well as me.  

References

Turner, B., & Heise, S. (2019, March 26). Teaching First-Graders About Microaggressions: The Small Moments Add Up. Learning for Justice. https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/teaching-firstgraders-about-microaggressions-the-small-moments-add-up

Zakrzewski, V. (2012, September 11). How Self-Compassion Can Help Prevent Teacher Burnout. Greater Good Science Center. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/self_compassion_for_teachers