How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers?
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0:01 - 0:03Like many teachers,
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0:03 - 0:05every year on the first day of school,
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0:05 - 0:08I lead a sort of icebreaker activity
with my students. -
0:08 - 0:12I teach at Lincoln High School
in Lincoln, Nebraska, -
0:12 - 0:16and we are one of the oldest
and most diverse high schools -
0:16 - 0:17in our state.
-
0:18 - 0:19Also, to our knowledge,
-
0:19 - 0:24we're the only high school in the world
whose mascot is the Links. -
0:24 - 0:26Like, a chain.
-
0:26 - 0:27(Laughter)
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0:27 - 0:29And with that being our mascot,
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0:29 - 0:32we have a statue out front of our building
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0:32 - 0:35of four links connected like a chain.
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0:36 - 0:38And each link means something.
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0:39 - 0:41Our links stand for tradition,
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0:41 - 0:45excellence, unity and diversity.
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0:47 - 0:48So on the first day of school,
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0:48 - 0:53I teach my new ninth-graders
about the meaning behind those links, -
0:53 - 0:55and I give them each a slip of paper.
-
0:56 - 0:59On that paper, I ask them
to write something about themselves. -
0:59 - 1:01It can be something that they love,
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1:01 - 1:04something that they hope for --
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1:04 - 1:06anything that describes their identity.
-
1:08 - 1:10And then I go around
the room with a stapler, -
1:10 - 1:12and I staple each of those slips together
-
1:12 - 1:13to make a chain.
-
1:13 - 1:18And we hang that chain up in our classroom
as a decoration, sure, -
1:18 - 1:21but also as a reminder
that we are all connected. -
1:22 - 1:23We are all links.
-
1:25 - 1:28So what happens when one
of those links feels weak? -
1:29 - 1:32And what happens when that weakness
-
1:32 - 1:35is in the person holding the stapler?
-
1:36 - 1:39The person who's supposed
to make those connections. -
1:40 - 1:41The teacher.
-
1:43 - 1:45As teachers, we work every day
-
1:45 - 1:49to provide support socially,
emotionally and academically -
1:49 - 1:56to our students who come to us
with diverse and tough circumstances. -
1:57 - 1:58Like most teachers,
-
1:58 - 2:00I have students who go home every day,
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2:00 - 2:02and they sit around the kitchen table
-
2:02 - 2:07while one or both parents makes a healthy,
well-rounded meal for them. -
2:09 - 2:12They spend suppertime summarizing
the story they read -
2:12 - 2:14in ninth-grade English that day,
-
2:14 - 2:17or explaining how Newton's
laws of motion work. -
2:19 - 2:23But I also have students
who go to the homeless shelter -
2:23 - 2:25or to the group home.
-
2:26 - 2:29They go to the car that their family
is sleeping in right now. -
2:31 - 2:33They come to school with trauma,
-
2:33 - 2:36and when I go home every day,
that goes home with me. -
2:37 - 2:39And see, that's the hard part
about teaching. -
2:39 - 2:44It's not the grading,
the lesson-planning, the meetings, -
2:44 - 2:48though sure, those things do occupy
a great deal of teachers' time and energy. -
2:49 - 2:50The tough part about teaching
-
2:51 - 2:54is all the things
you can't control for your kids, -
2:55 - 2:59all the things you can't change for them
once they walk out your door. -
3:01 - 3:03And so I wonder
if it's always been this way. -
3:03 - 3:07I think back to my undergraduate training
at the University of Georgia, -
3:07 - 3:09where we were taught
in our methods classes -
3:09 - 3:13that the concept
of good teaching has changed. -
3:13 - 3:15We're not developing learners
-
3:15 - 3:17who are going to go out into a workforce
-
3:17 - 3:20where they'll stand
on a line in a factory. -
3:20 - 3:23Rather, we're sending our kids
out into a workforce -
3:23 - 3:25where they need to be able to communicate,
-
3:25 - 3:27collaborate and problem-solve.
-
3:28 - 3:32And that has caused
teacher-student relationships -
3:32 - 3:35to morph into something stronger
-
3:35 - 3:39than the giver of content
and the receiver of knowledge. -
3:40 - 3:46Lectures and sitting in silent rows
just doesn't cut it anymore. -
3:47 - 3:51We have to be able to build relationships
with and among our students -
3:51 - 3:53to help them feel connected
-
3:53 - 3:56in a world that depends on it.
-
3:58 - 4:01I think back to my second year teaching.
-
4:01 - 4:03I had a student who I'll call "David."
-
4:04 - 4:06And I remember feeling like
I'd done a pretty good job -
4:06 - 4:08at teaching that year:
-
4:08 - 4:10"Hey, I ain't no first-year teacher.
-
4:10 - 4:12I know what I'm doing."
-
4:14 - 4:16And it was on the last day of school,
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4:16 - 4:18I told David to have a great summer.
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4:19 - 4:22And I watched him walk down the hall,
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4:22 - 4:23and I thought to myself,
-
4:23 - 4:26I don't even know
what his voice sounds like. -
4:28 - 4:31And that's when I realized
I wasn't doing it right. -
4:31 - 4:34So I changed almost everything
about my teaching. -
4:34 - 4:39I built in plenty of opportunities
for my students to talk to me -
4:39 - 4:41and to talk to each other,
-
4:41 - 4:44to share their writing
and to verbalize their learning. -
4:45 - 4:49And it was through those conversations
I began not only to know their voice -
4:50 - 4:52but to know their pain.
-
4:53 - 4:56I had David in class again that next year,
-
4:56 - 5:00and I learned that his father
was undocumented -
5:00 - 5:01and had been deported.
-
5:03 - 5:05He started acting out in school
-
5:05 - 5:08because all he wanted
was for his family to be together again. -
5:09 - 5:13In so many ways, I felt his pain.
-
5:14 - 5:17And I needed someone to listen,
-
5:18 - 5:21somebody to provide support for me
-
5:21 - 5:26so that I could support him in this thing
that I could not even comprehend. -
5:28 - 5:30And we recognize that need
-
5:30 - 5:34for police officers who've witnessed
a gruesome crime scene -
5:34 - 5:37and nurses who have lost a patient.
-
5:39 - 5:41But when it comes
to teaching professionals, -
5:42 - 5:44that urgency is lagging.
-
5:46 - 5:48I believe it's paramount
-
5:48 - 5:51that students and teachers,
-
5:51 - 5:56administrators, paraprofessionals
and all other support staff -
5:57 - 6:02have convenient and affordable access
to mental wellness supports. -
6:03 - 6:05When we are constantly serving others,
-
6:05 - 6:10often between 25
and 125 students each day, -
6:10 - 6:14our emotional piggy banks
are constantly being drawn upon. -
6:15 - 6:18After a while, it can become so depleted,
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6:18 - 6:22that we just can't bear it anymore.
-
6:23 - 6:27They call it "secondary trauma"
and "compassion fatigue," -
6:27 - 6:33the concept that we absorb the traumas
our students share with us each day. -
6:35 - 6:36And after a while,
-
6:36 - 6:41our souls become weighed down
by the heaviness of it all. -
6:43 - 6:46The Buffett Institute
at the University of Nebraska -
6:46 - 6:49recently found that most teachers --
-
6:49 - 6:5286 percent across
early childhood settings -- -
6:52 - 6:57experienced some depressive symptoms
during the prior week. -
6:58 - 7:00They found that approximately one in 10
-
7:00 - 7:04reported clinically significant
depressive symptoms. -
7:06 - 7:09My interactions with colleagues
and my own experiences -
7:09 - 7:12make me feel like
this is a universal struggle -
7:12 - 7:14across all grade levels.
-
7:17 - 7:18So what are we missing?
-
7:19 - 7:23What are we allowing to break the chain
and how do we repair it? -
7:25 - 7:26In my career,
-
7:26 - 7:29I've experienced the death
by suicide of two students -
7:29 - 7:32and one amazing teacher
-
7:33 - 7:35who loved his kids;
-
7:37 - 7:41countless students
experiencing homelessness; -
7:41 - 7:45and kids entering and exiting
the justice system. -
7:46 - 7:47When these events happen,
-
7:47 - 7:52protocol is to say, "If you need
someone to talk to, then ..." -
7:52 - 7:54And I say that's not enough.
-
7:56 - 7:57I am so lucky.
-
7:57 - 8:01I work in an amazing school
with great leadership. -
8:02 - 8:04I serve a large district
-
8:04 - 8:08with so many healthy partnerships
with community agencies. -
8:08 - 8:11They have provided steadily
increasing numbers -
8:11 - 8:14of school counselors and therapists
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8:14 - 8:18and support staff to help our students.
-
8:19 - 8:23They even provide staff members
with access to free counseling -
8:23 - 8:25as part of our employment plan.
-
8:27 - 8:30But many small districts
and even some large ones -
8:30 - 8:33simply cannot foot the bill without aid.
-
8:37 - 8:38(Exhales)
-
8:41 - 8:47Not only does every school need
social and emotional support staff, -
8:47 - 8:51trained professionals who can navigate
the needs of the building -- -
8:51 - 8:56not just the students,
not just the teachers, but both -- -
8:57 - 8:59we also need these trained professionals
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8:59 - 9:03to intentionally seek out
those closest to the trauma -
9:03 - 9:04and check in with them.
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9:06 - 9:09Many schools are doing what they can
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9:09 - 9:10to fill in the gaps,
-
9:10 - 9:13starting with acknowledging
that the work that we do -
9:13 - 9:14is downright hard.
-
9:16 - 9:18Another school in Lincoln,
Schoo Middle School, -
9:18 - 9:20has what they call "Wellness Wednesdays."
-
9:21 - 9:23They invite in community yoga teachers,
-
9:24 - 9:27they sponsor walks around
the neighborhood during lunch -
9:27 - 9:28and organize social events
-
9:28 - 9:31that are all meant
to bring people together. -
9:32 - 9:35Zachary Elementary School
in Zachary, Louisiana, -
9:35 - 9:38has something they call
a "Midweek Meetup," -
9:38 - 9:40where they invite teachers to share lunch
-
9:40 - 9:43and to talk about the things
that are going well -
9:43 - 9:46and the things that are weighing
heavy on their hearts. -
9:48 - 9:53These schools are making space
for conversations that matter. -
9:54 - 9:57Finally, my friend
and colleague Jen Highstreet -
9:57 - 9:59takes five minutes out of each day
-
9:59 - 10:01to write an encouraging
note to a colleague, -
10:01 - 10:04letting them know
that she sees their hard work -
10:04 - 10:06and the heart that they share with others.
-
10:07 - 10:09She knows that those five minutes
-
10:09 - 10:12can have an invaluable
and powerful ripple effect -
10:12 - 10:14across our school.
-
10:16 - 10:22The chain that hangs in my classroom
is more than just a decoration. -
10:24 - 10:25Those links hang over our heads
-
10:25 - 10:29for the entire four years
that our students walk our halls. -
10:30 - 10:31And every year,
-
10:31 - 10:36I have seniors come back
to my classroom, room 340, -
10:36 - 10:39and they can still point out
where their link hangs. -
10:40 - 10:42They remember what they wrote on it.
-
10:43 - 10:47They feel connected and supported.
-
10:47 - 10:49And they have hope.
-
10:50 - 10:52Isn't that what we all need?
-
10:53 - 10:56Somebody to reach out
and make sure that we're OK. -
10:57 - 10:59To check in with us
-
10:59 - 11:03and remind us that we are a link.
-
11:05 - 11:08Every now and then,
we all just need a little help -
11:08 - 11:10holding the stapler.
-
11:11 - 11:13Thank you.
-
11:13 - 11:18(Applause)
- Title:
- How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers?
- Speaker:
- Sydney Jensen
- Description:
-
Teachers emotionally support our kids -- but who’s supporting our teachers? In this eye-opening talk, educator Sydney Jensen explores how teachers are at risk of "secondary trauma" -- the idea that they absorb the emotional weight of their students' experiences -- and shows how schools can get creative in supporting everyone's mental health and wellness.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDTalks
- Duration:
- 11:31
Camille Martínez commented on English subtitles for How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers? | ||
Camille Martínez edited English subtitles for How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers? | ||
marialadias edited English subtitles for How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers? | ||
marialadias edited English subtitles for How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers? | ||
marialadias edited English subtitles for How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers? | ||
Oliver Friedman approved English subtitles for How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers? | ||
Oliver Friedman edited English subtitles for How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers? | ||
Camille Martínez accepted English subtitles for How can we support the emotional well-being of teachers? |
Camille Martínez
The English transcript was updated on 12/11/19.
In the talk description:
wellbeing --> well-being
Thank you!