Educator Resilience

adversity in our lives, we personalize the struggle, making it hard to separate ourselves from the shame we feel about the struggle itself.

Do you often find that you blame yourself for the hard knocks you experience in life? 2. Permanence (“I will always feel this way”): Permanence is the belief that things will stay static and will never change, and that, somehow, you will always feel the way that you do in this moment. When it comes to challenging moments, permanence can take the form of despair. Despair is the belief that things will always be as bad as they are now (Bell, 2020). When we are struggling, it can feel impossible to believe that the struggle will ever end. When you believe that your circumstances can change, you develop a more resilient mindset. Hope is the belief that there will be a better tomorrow. Where you are right now in your life does not have to be where you remain. Tell yourself,

“This is temporary. This will not last forever. I can get through this tough period.” 3. Pervasiveness (“Bad things always happen to me”): Pervasiveness within the context of adversity is the belief that “bad luck always happens to me.” It is the deeply held belief that bad luck will permeate every corner of your life and that you are predestined to be a victim to it. To be resilient, we need to find the sliver of what’s good in our lives and cling to that with intention. What’s good in your life right now?

When it comes to addressing the pervasiveness of teacher stress and retention, resilience is important (Harmsen, Helms-Lorenz, Maulana, & van Veen, 2018; Kelchtermans, 2017). Educator resilience depends on a few key factors, including gratification on the job, dedication to the role, effectiveness, ability to stay engaged and motivated, overall healthy mindset, and optimism (Mansfield & Beltman, 2019). Additionally, teachers can develop many of these indicators of resilience during their preservice training (Gibbs & Miller, 2013). Therefore, it is important for postsecondary institutions to provide explicit resilience training and extensive social supports during teacher education programs (Mansfield, Beltman, Weatherby-Fell, & Broadley, 2016). (BRiTE, which is available at www.brite.edu .au, is an example of an online resilience-building tool that offers resilience training.) Researchers find that preservice teachers with strong social support networks,

positive connections with colleagues, and good relationships with their students demonstrate a higher degree of resilience, job satisfaction, commitment, efficacy, sense of optimism, and overall motivation (Mansfield & Beltman, 2019). As they moved into their independent, professional roles as classroom teachers, mentorship (pairing between new teachers and experienced teachers) also had a positive impact on educator resilience (Day & Gu, 2014).

Finally, the long-term resilience of educators depends largely on their own social-emotional competence and the culture and climate of the school in which they work (Mansfield & Beltman, 2019). This means, in part, it depends on strong postsecondary instruction, social networks, and mentorship at the preservice level. As educators move into their role as professional classroom teachers, self-efficacy, social-emotional competence, and school culture contribute to their resilience, which means teachers need to make time to develop these behaviors that support resiliency through ongoing professional work.

Recalibrating After a Crash

It was November 2010, and Janelle Morrison, a teacher turned ultramarathoner and pro-athlete, was driving down the highway on her way from Kelowna to Calgary for a Spin-a-Thon fundraiser. As she drove, an oncoming van plowed head-on into her vehicle and hurled it (with her inside) thirty feet down an embankment. Janelle lay unconscious for three and a half hours as paramedics worked to extract her from the wreckage. She was airlifted to the ICU, where she was placed into a medically induced coma for ten days. When she awoke from her coma, she learned that surgeons had performed miracles on her body. She recounted, “I had a shattered tibia and ankle, a broken pelvis and femur, and a fractured vertebrae. My stomach had moved into my chest and moved my heart over, and I had a ruptured diaphragm, punctured lung, a broken arm, and a concussion. I was a mess. I was really broken” (Michael, 2019h).

Some moments can dramatically shift the trajectory of the lives we imagine for ourselves, and we need more than gratitude to pull us through into a place of growth. Racing and teaching had been a lifeline for Janelle. Now, she was just lucky to be alive. She told me, “The surgeon said, you’re not going to race again, Janelle, and you’d be lucky if you walk again.”