Every newspaper/ magazine article I read at the moment seems to be a countdown of one sort or another: 10 best fiction books of the year, 20 top gifts for the men in your life, 10 best Christmas movies you should absolutely watch now.
Last week, as the first term of the PGCE drew to a close, I asked my beginning teachers to consider how much progress they had made since September. I wanted them to recognise and celebrate the many things they can now do that seemed like huge, almost insurmountable, goals in the first weeks of the course. From running a classroom to nailing their subject knowledge, planning a lesson or forming a positive relationship with the young people in their care, I wanted them to see the positives. I wanted them to create their own festive countdown of successes and strengths.
Why do teachers need a countdown of positives and a celebration of success?
The January blues and the dark days of February
Blue Monday (usually the third Monday in January) is widely regarded as the most depressing date of the year. While the Autumn term is long and demanding, for teachers the cold and rainy dark days of February and the melancholy days of March hit hard (especially for beginning teachers). In moments like this teachers need support to recognise their development ‘enabling them to put difficult experiences into perspective’ (Hobson et. al.,2009, p.209). Counting the positives can create a much needed reminder and boost during those times where it feels like a slog and too much to handle. Having a list of successes at the back of a planner, to be recalled and named, can bolster resilience by providing confidence in your strengths and abilities enabling you to keep on keeping on. To make our own countdown of successes can, in some small way, fortify us against the coming winter.
Replication of strengths
Teachers are generally very good at reflecting and identifying their areas for development but not so good at identifying their strengths in the classroom. Engaging in accurate self-reflection is an important step in challenging limiting beliefs (Korthagen, 2014) and continuing to make progress as a teacher. Naming your positives acts as a boost to self-confidence and also act as a much needed stimulus to improve your practice too – if you can articulate what aspects of your practice have been successful, it makes it much easier to repeat them!
New beginnings
For beginning teachers, the new term often means the start of a new placements. Moving placement can often be destabilising, and it can easily feel like the positive gains of the first placement have been lost when placed in a new context. Beginning teachers who count their positives are better equipped to remind themselves that they inducted and grew into a new context before and so will surely do it again. Mentors can also help make the transition between placements and schools that little bit easier by noticing the positives in their mentee’s early observations too.
Of course, this perception of a regression in practice can be equally felt by experienced teachers moving schools. Departments who value the prior experience of their new colleague can really help remind them that they are appreciated for what they are bringing to the team.
Teacher Festive Countdown
So I will be taking my own advice and making my list of positives from the year to prepare me for the challenges of the next one – relationships and new connections formed, the stories of success from individuals in whose journey I played a small part, a new curriculum designed and taught, a resource made that did exactly what I hoped it would, the cinnamon buns that actually rose and tasted great (ok, that one is not strictly about teaching, but it needs to be on my list!)
I hope you too will make your own festive countdown, and I hope it brings you joy as you write it, and reminds you of your successes when you need it most.
References:
Hobson, A.J., Ashby, P., Malderez, A. & Tomlinson, P.D. (2009), Mentoring beginning teachers: What we know and what we don’t, Teaching and Teacher Education, Vol. 25, Issue 1, 207-216.
Korthagen, F. A. (2014). Promoting core reflection in teacher education: Deepening professional growth. In L. Orland-Barak, & C. (. C. J. Craig, International Teacher Education: Promising pedagogies (Part A) (pp. 73-89). Bingley: Emerald.
Becoming a History Teacher 