The biggest source of teacher stress is unrealistic expectations of themselves, contends author Rick Smith in Conscious Classroom Management. Hear, hear! That and huge classes, too many papers to grade, too many administrative tasks to accomplish, and… well, ok, perfectionism. I’ll admit it, I am a perfectionist. I have it refined to the level of an art. I have an MA in my subject matter, and a second honorary MA in perfectionism! I earned it all by myself!

Honestly, though, a teacher has to be a perfectionist. We have to be knowledgeable of our subject matter and of pedagogical practices, of classroom management, of child psychology, of criminal investigation, of parenting, of first aid, of advice, of management techniques… Do I have stress? You bet I do. And sometimes, it makes me want to scream – and sometimes it makes my wife and kids want to scream as well. But… what else can I do? I MUST teach – I am compelled to do this work. If I don’t do it, I will fade away.

So how do I handle it all? Sometimes I don’t handle it well at all. Other times I do by following my son’s advice, and setting aside time just to “chill”, have a glass of wine, sit in the hot tub at the gym, watch a movie, or best of all, read a novel. We all need a moment to escape – and books are my favorite escape (well, actually, travel is my favorite, but that doesn’t happen frequently enough to be a pressure release).

The thing about teaching is that our work is never finished. Rick Smith points this out – and helps us see that it is part of accomplished teaching to accept it, to relish in it, to delight in it! And, to take a moment away from it regularly – for our own sanity, and for the sake of our students. After all, the reason I teach is because I love kids, and I love what I teach. There is a great sense of accomplishment in that, of course, but really, teaching is mostly about relationships – so the highest priority of all should be to focus on the people we have the privilege to spend the day with – students. So, I guess I’ll take the stress and learn to deal with it.

“Education is the abililty to listen to almost
anything without losing your temper or your
self-confidence.” – Robert Frost

I have enjoyed Robert Frost’s poetry since 4th grade
when my teacher, Mrs. Green, acquainted our class with
his work. She did a unit (as I remember it these almost 40
years later!) on New England – I see images of Andrew
Wyeth’s paintings and remember reading Robert Frost’s
poetry as literary extensions of those images. We were
encouraged to write our own poetry in response to the
paintings – a very cool way of teaching art
appreiciation and literature!

One painting I remember well is called “Christina’s
World” – depicting a woman on a grassy hillside
looking toward a house – I always imagined her as
paralyzed, unable to walk, longing to do so,
incapacitaed by something… I connect this to a
hopeful (paraphrased) passage in Frost – “two paths
diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled
by, and that has made all the difference…” How are
these two images linked? In my meandering mind, the
connection is that despite what disadvantages we may
be given in this life, there is always hope. Christina
looks toward the house – a symbol of home, of
belonging. of acceptance…, of connection? The divergent
path, though not clear, leads to a positive outcome -
taking it has made all the difference between what
might have been and what has actually come to pass, a
good outcome though the author was not able to see
ahead into the territory beyond…

I have embarked on a new journey lately – changing
schools after 21 years at the last one. Sometimes
being at my new school feels like I have been
parachuted into a strange new country, where I am
learning the new language and culture, immersed in it,
but not drowning in it! The change has been good, has
given me new life professionally, envigorating my
spirit. Like Frost, I took a divergent path – it has
cost me something, but like Christina, I am looking to
the undiscovered country, the home that awaits, and I
am filled with hope.

As for the quote on education… well, I digressed to
a different line of thinking! That too is the
undiscovered country – that of my meandering mind!
Still, I am prompted to reflect about Frost’s
statement on education, and why Rick Smith
incorporates this quote in his text. Both authors
refer to the inner authority of the teacher. This
inner authority which, once we have acquired it,
enables us to keep cool, to remember who we are, to
exude the confidence from within that results from it,
and allows us to be a safe place for our students. It
is my aspiration to take care of my students – they
are often unsure of who they are, or of their
abilities to do what I expect of them. Part of my job
is to keep calm in the midst of stress, to remain in
charge when things seem to be falling apart, to
reassure when anxiety strikes. Perhaps in so doing, I
can be like that house on the hill for my students – a
home, a place of hope and acceptance. Perhaps as
students come across divergent paths, I will be able
to help them have hope as they embark on the journey
into the territory ahead with confident expectation
that good things await. That will make all the difference!

I have begun reading a book intitled Conscious
Classroom Management, by Rick Smith. My prinicpal has
been giving this book out to teachers on staff at my
school, and although I am a verteran teacher of 23
years, I have found it stimulating to engage in
reflective practice about management issues once
again. Even after all these years, it is important to
pause for a while and think about how I think about my
students (how’s that for meta-cognitive discourse – or
is it meta-mish-mash?).

Why do I teach? The quote above gets at the heart of
the issue. Teaching is a joy, not just a job. In fact,
given what they pay me to do this, it better be more
than just a job, because otherwise, I ought to work
somewhere else! Anyway, teaching truly is a joy, and I
cannot imagine doing anything else! I love what I
teach, and I love young people. Sure they drive me
crazy at times, but I am confident that I drive them
crazy as well – so we’re even (even though it isn’t
ever about being even).

Among the things that matter most in this profession,
it is who were are and how we relate to one another
that ought to captivate our attention. It is truly all
about relationships. Students can and will learn
anything we put before them when they know and trust
us, when they feel connected to us, valued by us,
cared for and nurtured. This is my ambition – to take
care of kids. That is a real privilege!