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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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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

Download (PDF, 4.97MB)

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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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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

Download (PDF, 357KB)

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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/

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NGV at the VicTESOL AGM

NGV at the VicTESOL AGM
Monday 4th December, 2023 from 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm, Virtual Event

Summary

Leah Santilli from the NGV took attendees of the 2023 VicTESOL AGM on a virtual tour of some the NGV’s collection. She showcased the strong relationship between VicTESOL and the NGV by talking about some of the wonderful events we have been involved in together this year. She also gave attendees the opportunity to be students, and try out some activities analysing different artworks.

Many thanks to Leah and her team for all their work putting this together, and we look forward to working with you again in the future!

Recording

Resources

Download (PDF, 2.72MB)

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Steering the Agentic Vehicle

Steering the Agentic Vehicle: Exploring English as an Additional language (EAL) Teachers’ Professional Agency since the 2021 Victorian EAL Curriculum Reform November 22, 2023 from 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm,…

This content is available for VicTESOL members.
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The role of schools in supporting settlement: Focusing on wellbeing in migrant and refugee education.

The role of schools in supporting settlement: Focusing on wellbeing in migrant and refugee education.

August 30 from 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm, Virtual Event

Summary

This session explored the vital role schools play in the settlement journey of migrant and refugee-background students. Mollie Daphne (Secondary School Teacher & PhD candidate, Victoria University) unpacked key frameworks which support the conceptualisation of settlement as a multifaceted, multidirectional process shaped by various factors. Throughout the session, participants were invited to consider the roles schools can play, through collaboration with other services, towards supporting the academic and social and emotional needs of newly arrived children and young people.

The session also including an engaging panel of presenters who all currently work in schools, supporting newly arrived students: Elena Di Mascolo, Sarah Douglas, Meagan Becker and Megan Salter. The panel discussed the challenges schools face in seeking to address settlement needs and shared examples from their own extensive professional experience of practical ways schools can advocate for and support young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds.

Recording

Resources

Download (PDF, 971KB)

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Online LMERC Resourcing Event

Online LMERC Resourcing Event

September 6 from 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm – Virtual Event

Summary

Participants had the opportunity to learn about Languages and Multicultural Education Resource Centre (LMERC) and the resources and assistance available.

Recording

Resources

Resources to Come

 

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LMERC Resourcing Event 

LMERC Resourcing Event

Thursday, 11 May 2023 from 4:30pm – 6:00pm,
Languages and Multicultural Education Resource Centre (LMERC) library, Level 1, 189 Faraday Street, Carlton

This presentation was delivered by Ruth Woolven at the LMERC Resourcing and Networking Event on 11 May 2023. The library holds an extensive collection of over 25,000 resources in all formats for educators across all sectors and at all levels, early childhood to adult. At the session, the attendees were able to browse the resources, sign up for membership to borrow the resources and network with the other participants!

Download (PDF, 5.9MB)