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Exploring strategies for educator wellbeing

Exploring strategies for educator wellbeing

13 June 2024, 5:15 pm – 6:30 pm AEST

Summary

1. Defining Wellbeing
Alexandra began by defining wellbeing as encompassing the health of the whole person, including physical, mental, social, and emotional aspects. Wellbeing is strongly linked to happiness and life satisfaction, influenced by our surroundings and actions, and can change over time. It’s important to note that wellbeing is not a one-size-fits-all concept and requires long-term, sustainable solutions adapted to individual needs.

2. Frameworks for Understanding Wellbeing at Work
Alexandra introduced the PERMA framework as a tool to understand and enhance wellbeing at work. The PERMA model includes:
Positive Emotions: Experiences that contribute to overall happiness and resilience.
Engagement: Being fully absorbed in activities that balance challenge and skill use.
Relationships: Developing meaningful connections with others.
Meaning: Having a sense of purpose and feeling that one’s work is valuable.
Achievement: Accomplishing goals and feeling a sense of competence and pride.

3. Benefits of Setting Boundaries for Wellbeing
Setting boundaries is crucial for maintaining wellbeing. Alexandra emphasized that boundaries help individuals manage stress, prevent burnout, and maintain a healthy work-life balance. Boundaries allow educators to say ‘no’ when necessary, ensuring they do not take on more than they can handle and protecting their time and energy for activities that support their wellbeing.

4. Strategies for Self-Care to Enhance Job Satisfaction, Resilience, and Wellbeing
Alexandra discussed various self-care strategies, including:
Physical Wellbeing: Engaging in regular physical activity and ensuring adequate rest and nutrition.
Emotional Wellbeing: Practising self-compassion, mindfulness, and seeking support when needed.
Professional Wellbeing: Setting realistic goals, celebrating achievements, and continuing professional development.
Social Wellbeing: Building strong relationships with colleagues and participating in a supportive community.

Alexandra also highlighted the importance of creating sustainable habits and reflecting on individual needs to develop a personalised self-care plan.

By integrating these strategies, educators can improve their job satisfaction, resilience, and overall wellbeing.

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Tensions in the Adult ELT Curriculum – Session 2

Tensions in the Adult ELT Curriculum
28 May 2024. 5:30pm – 6:30pm AEST, Online

Summary

On 28th May 2024 Chris Corbel presented the second of two sessions exploring tensions within the current adult ELT curriculum. Using the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) as a case study, these sessions explore how its curriculum has changed over time, how the current tensions emerged, and the likelihood of change in the future. Session 1, held on 19th March, looked at how the AMEP has gone through three broad curriculum phases, moving from a focus on elements of language forms (structures), to a focus on elements of language use (functions), and then to the current focus on elements of language tasks (competencies).

In Session 2, The Burden of Compliance, Chris looked at how tensions between policy makers and educators have led to the current onerous compliance demands on teachers in the competency environment. It examined what is being done about these demands and how they may change in the immediate future. Chris highlighted the centrality of trust in the relationship between policy makers and educators, noting that the overburden of compliance has arisen alongside lower trust, the rise of the audit culture and competitive tendering. He is hopeful that with a single national curriculum and a new business model, the burden of compliance may come to be reduced.

Recording

Resources

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Non-native English Language Teachers’ Stories: Constructing Cosmopolitan Professional Identities in Australia

Non-native English Language Teachers’ Stories: Constructing Cosmopolitan Professional Identities in Australia
30 April 2024, 4:00 – 5:15pm AEST, Online

Summary

In this professional learning session, Non-native English Language Teachers’ Stories: Constructing Cosmopolitan Professional Identities in Australia, Nashid Nigar shared her recent PhD findings. In her research she interviewed 16 participants, using a hermeneutic phenomenological narrative (HPN) approach, examining the professional identity construction of immigrant English language teachers (ELTs) in Australia, who speak English as a second or additional language. Nashid discussed the concept of “hybrid professional becoming”, which transcends the binary construct of native and non-native ELTs. This allows for a ‘fluid identity shaped over time by transnational professional agency, ideologies of power, race, language, and cultural intersection’.

The session was a powerful showcase of the challenges and opportunities that exist within the Australian education system. It provided valuable insights into the experiences of immigrant ELTs and how we can foster a ‘richer, more inclusive teaching and learning environment’. Attendees were grateful for the learning opportunity and were given the chance to share their own personal and professional experiences.

VicTESOL would like to thank Nashid for generously sharing her research and for her valuable contribution to the VicTESOL professional learning community.

Recording

Resources

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Growing Together and Sustaining Practice

Growing Together and Sustaining Practice

VicTESOL Symposium 2023.
Friday 13th October, 2023, The Academy of Teaching and Leadership

Presenter: Simone Cassidy (Department of Families, Fairness and Housing), Merrilyn Gaulke (Bendigo Crusoe College), and Belinda Gillie Kemmer (Bendigo Crusoe College)

Summary

Summary to Come

Recording

Resources

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Tensions in the Adult ELT Curriculum – Session 1

Tensions in the Adult ELT Curriculum – Session 1
March 19 from 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm

Summary

In this presentation Dr Chris Corbel talked about how The Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) evolved through three curriculum eras:

  • Initially, the focus was on specific language structures.
  • Later, the emphasis shifted to language proficiency.
  • Currently, the AMEP emphasises language competencies.

These changes reflect broader shifts in language education. Compliance requirements have adapted accordingly, with a move toward outcomes-based models.

Recording

Resources

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LWA, ESL Reads, and LMERC at the 2023 Symposium

LWA, ESL Reads, and LMERC 

VicTESOL Symposium 2023.
Friday 13th October, 2023, The Academy of Teaching and Leadership

Alfredo Landeros, Lauren Piovesan, and Ruth Woolven

LWA

Summary to Come

ESL Reads

It was a delight to participate in the Symposium and to engage with so many passionate EAL educators. I thoroughly enjoyed speaking to many EAL educators about the challenges of sourcing age-appropriate texts for their secondary and adult EAL learners, and being able to share our resources with teachers. Learning about the different EAL settings across Victoria and attending the interesting sessions was a highlight!

ESL Reads is a Digital Resource Library for EAL Teachers, providing relatable reading material in both digital and printable formats, accompanied by teacher notes, worksheets and EAL curriculum mapping.

If you are seeking new resources for your classroom, please see our website eslreads.com or feel free to get in touch at admin@eslreads.com.

Languages & Multicultural Education Resource Centre (LMERC)

LMERC is a specialist resource centre for educators across all sectors with both digital and physical resources to support EAL teaching and learning. This includes academic and practical teacher resources; culturally inclusive fiction and non-fiction; games and storytelling kits and realia (puppets, masks, clothes and toys).

We regularly provide bi-lingual dictionaries and picture books, readers and other resources to support your students in schools across Victoria. If you need any resources, you can visit us in Carlton, email for suggestions or look through our catalogue and request items. We have a growing collection of ebooks and audio books that you can access through the catalogue.

We send a newsletter once a term with information about our new resources, professional learning opportunities and relevant articles. Please email if you would like to receive the newsletter.

Telephone: (03) 9349 1418
Catalogue: lmerc.softlinkhosting.com.au
Opening hours: weekdays 9am-5pm, including school holidays

How to Join LMERC and select Register in the top right-hand corner

How to get to LMERC

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The new EAL Framework Curriculum – Adult sector

The new EAL Framework Curriculum – Adult sector

VicTESOL Symposium 2023.
Friday 13th October, 2023, The Academy of Teaching and Leadership

Presenter: Nadia Casarotto (Victoria University), Margaret Corrigan (Carringbush Adult Education), Angela DiSciascio (Gordon Institute of TAFE)

Summary

In “The New EAL Framework Curriculum” session participants learnt about the new Victorian EAL Framework curriculum and how to apply it to their teaching.

Nadia Casarotto, the Curriculum Maintenance Manager, presented a comprehensive overview of the curriculum, emphasizing significant modifications from the current version.

Subsequently, Angela Di Sciascio delved into a detailed analysis of a unit of competency from Certificate II EAL (Access), elucidating the methodical process of unpacking such units. Angela also provided insights into the pertinent sections of the revamped unit structure tailored for educators, along with practical suggestions on seamlessly incorporating units, skills, and knowledge into assessment practices.

Resources

Download (PDF, 251KB)

Download (PDF, 676KB)

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2023 VicTESOL Symposium Unpacking of Keynote and panel sessions

2023 VicTESOL Symposium
Unpacking of Keynote and panel sessions

Facilitated by various VicTESOL Committee Members

Summary

Following the keynote video presentation and panel discussion, symposium participants broke into groups to unpack the ideas and concepts presented. This acted a teacher-sharing and networking session, facilitated by VicTESOL committee members, where participants worked in small, multi-sectorial groups to discuss their learnings and how this applied to their context.

Groups captured their discussion using a shared Padlet page, guided by the following questions:
1) Reflect on your own learning-to-teach experiences – what was the most memorable experience and why?
2) What do you see as the relationship between theory and practice?
3) Consider a memorable student you have taught in the past – describe what his/her learning ‘looked and felt’ like, and why?
4) How do you think professional learning has shaped or continues to shape your knowledge and practice?
5) How prepared were you for the classroom? What did you learn once you were a practicing teacher that you didn’t in your ITE?
6) How important are mentors and experienced colleagues to the development of you as a teacher?
7) What does a dialogic approach mean for you in your practice? Within/between schools/ different institutional settings/sectors?
8) Is the transition between ITE and the classroom different for different sectors – eg schools vs adult?

After the Padlet activity, the small groups then reported back to the facilitator and larger group, which enabled a rich discussion that drew on a wealth of experience and knowledge. It was a valuable opportunity to explore the formative experiences of everyone’s early teaching careers. VicTESOL extends their gratitude to the participants for sharing their expertise and experience and their contributions to this resource.

Resources

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Meeting the needs of English as an Additional Language (EAL) learners in the VCE Vocational major and Victorian pathway certificate.

Meeting the needs of English as an Additional Language (EAL) learners in the VCE Vocational major and Victorian pathway certificate.

VicTESOL Symposium 2023.
Friday 13th October, 2023, The Academy of Teaching and Leadership

Presenter: Sarah Douglas, Leading Teacher: EAL/Literacy/Numeracy, River Nile School

Summary

This session introduced how schools can cater for EAL learners within the VCE vocational major (VM) and Victorian Pathway Certificate (VCP). Drawing from principles of applied learning and informed by VCAA EAL curriculum the session covered ways to effectively plan for EAL learners based on VCAA language levels. The session demonstrated both how language can be developed through the VM required units; Literacy or VCE English, VCE VM Numeracy or VCE Mathematics, VCE VM Work Related Skills and VCE VM Personal Development Skills. This included focusing on key vocabulary required for each unit scaffolding text and language to support English language development and utilising principles of communicative language scaffolding. The session also unpacked the ways VM units can be designed to be culturally responsive to EAL learners such as including relevant topics for leaners cultural context including health, financial and civic literacy, and  the use of authentic assessment tasks.

The session provided practical examples of how EAL learners can be catered for within the VM pathway and the ways in which teachers of VM can user understanding of learners’ language progression to inform units that support language development.

Resources

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Multilingual authors ‘standing taller’ in arts-rich translanguaging spaces

Multilingual authors ‘standing taller’ in arts-rich translanguaging spaces
15 February 2024, 4:30pm – 5:30pm, Online

Summary

In this professional learning webinar, Dr Julie Choi and Dr Rafaela Cleeve Gerkens introduced us to some of their recent work around translanguaging in collaboration with community organisation Kids’ Own Publishing. They began with a discussion around what teachers might already do in their own classrooms to bring students’ home language into their learning. They then provided us with some practical and visual examples of a 6-week case study that involved year 4 EAL students participating in a bookmaking experience. Julie and Rafaela discussed how to foster students’ identities as resourceful multilingual writers and the importance of using arts-rich experiences. They also allowed participants to reflect on any challenges they have encountered when drawing on plurilingual strategies. The evidence highlighted how translanguaging and playful multimodal opportunities can support and lead language interactions where students can build their identities in the classroom. Thank you to both Julie and Rafaela on a very informative and useful session!

Recording

Resources

Download (PDF, 18.69MB)

TQ article: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/tesq.3279

Kids Own Publishing: https://kidsownpublishing.org.au/