The Joy of Teaching: Inspiration for Educators
Teaching is a noble profession, and while many of our nation鈥檚 educators encounter professional challenges in a job that they love, what are some useful strategies for them to implement to sustain joy throughout the academic year?
, 聽Dr. Mamie Pack, 黑料网鈥檚 manager of Healthy Learning, and Milton Collins, principal of Lincoln Elementary School in Salt Lake City, explored the deeper meaning of joy in teaching and how educators can foster it in themselves.
鈥淛oy is a state of being that is not influenced by an event,鈥� said Pack. 鈥淓ven if you鈥檙e in the hard spaces of life, you鈥檙e still able to have joy in the midst of the mess.鈥� She encouraged educators to differentiate between joy and happiness, emphasizing that while happiness may be event-driven, joy is tied to one鈥檚 values and mindset.
Collins, a principal with over two decades of school leadership experience, reinforced this message by encouraging educators to continually revisit their 鈥渨hy.鈥� 鈥淓very year, I ask [my staff] to go back to that why,鈥� said Collins. 鈥淲hy are you here? Because you鈥檙e going to need to go to that often. But if you just keep going back to your why, it鈥檒l help get you through all the difficult times.鈥�
Both Pack and Collins underscored the importance of self-care in maintaining joy. Collins shared how he embedded self-care into his staff鈥檚 professional goals. 鈥淚 need a self-care goal in there,鈥� he said. 鈥淵our self-care could mean something as simple as, at 3:35 p.m., when your contract time ends, you鈥檙e walking out that door and going home to your families.鈥�
Pack added, 鈥淛ust like teachers plan out their lesson plans, where鈥檚 your well-being in the plan for the day?鈥�
A recurring theme was the role of leadership and environment in cultivating joy. Collins detailed his morning routine of personally greeting each teacher. 鈥淏y 8:20 a.m., I leave my office and go to every teacher鈥檚 classroom just to greet them,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his in itself brings some joy to folks.鈥澛�
The webinar concluded with a call to action: teachers need to create joyful spaces that reflect their individual personalities. Whether it鈥檚 posting one鈥檚 鈥渨hy鈥� in the classroom, or facing the sun while at a desk, Pack reminded educators, 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 enjoy being in your classroom, your students won鈥檛 either.鈥�
Take a moment to watch the entire Joy of Teaching webinar here:
