Its Christmas 🎄 .The love of Jesus reigns

 

Teacher vs Community Service

 

Teaching teacher vs Serving teacher

 

Teaching is a call to serve—a deliberate commitment to service. As teachers, God equips us with talents and gifts, and by serving others, we offer ourselves as a gift back to Him. If you cannot serve, you cannot teach effectively. When we are called, we are on a mission that requires intentionality, dedication, and commitment to succeed.

Service is a noble pursuit, and through it, we can achieve greatness. As Martin Luther King Jr. once said,

Sometimes, teaching is viewed strictly through the lens of classroom delivery, which can stem from either a lack of understanding of its true meaning or a reluctance to step outside our comfort zones. However, this narrow perspective is limiting. 

Effective teaching transcends the four walls of a classroom. It becomes truly impactful only when it is rooted in service—when learners are not just educated but also inspired, nurtured, and guided to lead meaningful lives.

The roles of teaching and service are essential in cultivating a sense of belonging and responsibility. A serving teacher has the potential to profoundly influence both students and the broader community, fostering a positive environment where growth and understanding flourish.

A serving teacher undoubtedly impacts the lives of learners and the community. While it's essential for students to be mentally alert and grasp the material being taught, teachers must also extend their influence to ensure that are properly raised. I recognise the importance of parental involvement in a child’s development, but we need to focus on our responsibilities as educators.

Being a teacher can undoubtedly be challenging, but it is a rewarding profession. Academic support, mentorship, and personal and professional development often require extra effort and time. The school environment you work in may also present challenges, but it’s important to persevere and strive for excellence. I have experienced a negative teaching environment, but I vowed not to let that deter me. I committed to doing what was necessary and never settled for less.

Are you a dedicated teacher or just filling a role? Is your teaching truly effective? Are your learners experiencing positive growth? Reflect on these questions and consider changing your approach if necessary. Remember, our relationship with God is also reflected in how we serve others. Take your teaching seriously and strive to do your best.

Pay attention to your emotions

 It's essential for teachers to be attuned to their emotions. Tara Meyer Robson captures this perfectly. Emotional intelligence is vital.

Unlocking Potential: The Power of Teacher Response

Response is one of the most powerful tools in our lives and workplaces. Our responses to issues and situations reflect our concerns about both. . Emotional intelligence teaches us how to lead ourselves in all circumstances, whether good or bad. Verbal and non-verbal irrational responses can quickly dismantle relationships, regardless of how much we may want to prove a point.

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a response is defined as an answer or reaction to something that has been said or done. Your answer or reaction should leave something valuable behind once it is expressed. It is within your control how you choose to respond.

As Viktor E. Frankl stated,

Viktor Frankl was an Austrian psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and Holocaust survivor who endured immense suffering with his family in concentration camps. Despite the brutality around him, Frankl was determined to find meaning in his circumstances. He chose to respond positively to the unfavourable conditions he faced.

As a teacher, how do you respond to your students and other members of the teaching and learning community? How impactful is your response?

The teaching and learning environment is filled with stimuli—actions that can prompt behavioural changes, whether positive or negative. These stimuli can arise from students, management, or other members of the community. Since actions will always elicit a reaction, it's important to remember that while teachers may not have control over these actions, they do have control over their responses.

Teachers can choose how to react to various situations and circumstances. By utilizing the gap between the stimulus and the response, educators can make positive choices. A response that fosters growth rather than harm, that celebrates the uniqueness of each student and respects diversity in learning abilities, can significantly enhance the learning experience. In the realm of teaching and learning, how a teacher responds to challenges is one way to assess emotional intelligence.

Teachers have various ways to respond to their students, and one of the most powerful methods is through feedback. Feedback should not be a criticism that damages the self-esteem and abilities of learners and their parents; rather, it should serve as a source of encouragement and a symbol of hope. Through feedback, teachers can address students' behaviour and performance genuinely and constructively. This, in turn, motivates learners to strive for excellence in all aspects of their education. The importance of providing positive responses cannot be overstated. Just as Viktor Frankl emphasised, we should use our ability to respond in ways that promote growth and freedom. Students look forward to this kind of guidance, and it is within our power to ensure that our responses foster an environment of peace and support.

Teachers often respond to learners' questions during classroom discussions. However, some teachers find this moment uncomfortable because, in traditional teaching methods, students were not encouraged to ask questions during lessons. In student-centered learning environments, the ability to ask questions is a key priority. Unfortunately, this traditional mindset has hindered some teachers and their teaching effectiveness.

To avoid challenging situations, some teachers may react negatively to students' questions, which can instil fear and discourage participation. Instead of responding negatively, teachers should embrace questions as opportunities for growth. If a teacher does not have an immediate answer, he or she can request additional time to research the topic and provide a thoughtful response later. It is crucial to avoid shutting down students’ inquiries.

The skill of questioning has been valued since the time of Socrates. Rather than being seen as a threat, questioning should be viewed as a means to promote deeper learning, understanding, and the construction of knowledge.

Another way a teacher can respond is through the correction of wrongdoing. While discipline is crucial, our approach should focus on improving learners rather than discouraging them. When addressing a learner's misbehaviour, it is essential to keep the purpose in mind: to help the learner grow.

 As a teacher, I have witnessed the impact of response to outcomes. I've seen teachers make progress through positive feedback, while I’ve also observed learners feeling discouraged and teachers becoming stagnant as a result of negative responses. This ability to respond effectively is a powerful tool we possess; let’s use it positively to encourage our learners and instil hope.

 

 Some red flags of poor teacher-emotional intelligence 
 

Pay attention to this teachers

 

To value our learners and the learning is a huge thing in teaching and learning. This cannot be without emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence brings you to the place of love where you are empowered within to value your learners and the learning. Until we get to this point, there will be no meaningful result.

You got to pay attention to your emotional intelligence as a teacher

Strong Emotional Intelligence is crucial in all aspects of our lives.Cultivate it,nurture and growth it and you will win with your learners.

You must tap into the power.Trust me 

 

Emotional intelligence......

 

Additional resources 

What is Emotional Intelligence and how does it apply to the workplace?

Why Emotional Intelligence is Important in Leadership

Teacher and Emotional Intelligence(EI)

  

             

As an experienced teacher, I've come to realize that our emotions, behavior, actions, and reactions can greatly influence individuals, generations, and society as a whole. I've also learned that our success in teaching is closely linked to our emotional intelligence.

 So, what exactly is emotional intelligence? According to Mental Health America (MHA), emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability to manage both your own emotions and understand the emotions of people around you.

I particularly like how Travis Bradberry and Jean Greaves see emotional intelligence

“Emotional intelligence is the “something” in each of us that is a bit intangible .It affects how we manage behavior, navigate social complexities, and make personal decisions that achieve positive results”

Research has shown that individuals with strong emotional intelligence don't make impulsive decisions; instead, they think critically and objectively before acting. This approach helps them avoid harming themselves and those around them. They also strive to understand their strengths, weaknesses, and their impact on the environment.

Emotional intelligence is crucial in our personal, social, and professional lives to prevent negative effects on learning and learners. Teachers serve as leaders and role models, and as such, they must act in ways that support the smooth flow of teaching and learning.

 Qualities like hard work, honesty, discipline, and punctuality are all important, but emotional intelligence is particularly crucial. It's vital to consider the long-term impact of your actions, reactions, and responses in the teaching and learning environment, especially towards your students. How do you handle learners with questionable character, poor handwriting, low-ability learners, , abused learners, and learners dealing with life issues such as sickness?  Do your learners fear you?. Consider how people feel after interacting with you – do they feel hurt, intimidated, or empowered? These questions call for a moment of reflection. Also, how do you respond to  line managers with their impulsive decisions? How do you handle unpleasant situations at home, in your relationships, and in the workplace? Do you transfer aggression and let unpleasant situations tear down the walls? These questions call for a moment of reflection.

A parent once told me about a teacher who constantly encouraged her children despite facing family challenges. This teacher was homeless at the time due to an issue, but she never let it affect her excellent delivery during home lessons. She was always punctual, diligent with her work, composed, and never asked for anything from the family, even though they were wealthy with mansions. The parent also shared that the youngest son loved this teacher because of her exemplary behaviour. In conclusion, the teacher's actions demonstrated high emotional intelligence.

"Sometimes, when I observe the situations in the classroom, the actions of learners, and their responses sometimes, I realize that my reactions are not accidental. The sense of peace I experience amidst the challenges with some learners is a result of my emotional intelligence. Teachers should understand the impact of emotional intelligence as it affects every aspect of their being.

 Dealing with learners requires a high level of emotional intelligence because teachers need to be self-aware of their emotions, strengths, and weaknesses, and manage them to authentically lead their learners. Our emotional intelligence is inherent and is reflected in our decisions, actions, reactions, and responses.

It's important to develop and nurture your emotional intelligence for your benefit and the broader society because a single decision, action, reaction, or response can either improve or harm a society, not just yourself. As an example, King Rehoboam lost 10 tribes for two as a result of one single decision, action, and response. Be cautious and elevate the standard of your emotional intelligence, for the present and the future."

Five Key elements of Emotinal intelligence

In the book "Why You Act the Way You Do," Tim LaHaye discusses the importance of self-awareness in understanding our strengths, weaknesses, and emotions. He emphasizes that our temperaments have a significant influence on everything we do. Self-awareness allows us to better understand how our actions and emotions impact others.

Self-regulation is also crucial as it helps us manage our emotions in a healthy and composed manner, without causing friction. It enables us to express our feelings appropriately, handle conflicts and difficult situations, and adapt to change effectively.

Empathy is a crucial element of emotional intelligence. With empathy, we can understand and share other people's feelings and see things from their perspective. It is all about understanding the emotional state of others and responding appropriately. Empathy rejects selfishness and embraces selflessness and service.

Motivation is also crucial in emotional intelligence. Emotionally intelligent people are motivated not by material things such as money or recognition, but by intrinsic values. They are committed, action-oriented, and always striving to do better, often working in obscurity but their good work will eventually be recognized.

 Social skills are also an important aspect of emotional intelligence. It involves not only understanding your own emotions but also understanding and connecting with others. Effective communication and interaction with others are essential for team spirit and collaboration to thrive, both in personal and professional environments. Cultivating purposeful relationships and connections is essential for greater achievements.

Building strong emotional intelligence can profoundly affect the personal and professional life of a teacher. Strong emotional intelligence promotes self-awareness, helping teachers discover their identity in Christ. With this intelligence, teachers can value and lead themselves in a way that allows them to live meaningfully outside of their profession.

 Strong emotional intelligence also enhances a teacher's influence on learners. Teachers with strong emotional intelligence tend to lead well because they model leadership in their decisions, actions, and reactions. They understand their own emotions as well as those of their learners and can act appropriately.

Moreover, strong emotional intelligence promotes a purposeful teacher-learner relationship. A positive teacher-learner relationship creates an enabling atmosphere for effective learning. This is because the teacher understands the uniqueness and diversities of learners and respects them using the power of inclusion, empathy, and humility.

Additionally, stress management is a significant benefit of strong emotional intelligence for teachers. It allow teachers to manage their own emotions and those of their learners, enabling them to exert control over situations and act appropriately.

Furthermore, strong emotional intelligence enables a teacher to act objectively, avoiding impulsive decisions that can disrupt the flow of learning.

As part of your personal and professional growth, I highly recommend building your emotional intelligence because it is the totality of being. It reveals who you are by informing your decisions, actions, and reactions. Here are some tips to help you work on your emotional intelligence:

 

·         Discover your identity in Christ.

·         Discover your purpose and live meaningfully.

·         Discover your temperaments (strengths and weaknesses).

·         View situations objectively – know when to make decisions, when and how to act and respond to issues.

·         Know when to say yes and when to say no politely.

·         Communicate well and watch your tone and expressions (verbal and non-verbal).

·         Stay around people who are ahead of you professionally.

·         Stay around people with integrity.

·         Stay around positive people.

·         Increase your success by not journeying alone.

·         Get a mentor, counsellor, or coach if you need to.

·         Above all,