Beyond Academics: Emotional Regulation in Education Ideas, Real Impact.

The art of teaching as always (should have)  been focusing on great leadership from principals, seasoned teachers, support staff, and a curriculum that focuses on best practices and newest strategies and curriculum. Classroom spaces with the newest smart screens, laptops for teachers, ipads for students. Rooms are designed with new wiggle chairs and bouncy chairs to help students with movement needs. Cubbies to help organize students' lives.  The content and space are well organized and dialed. However, since the start of the first one-room schoolhouse, three variables are forever changing, and that is the emotional regulation of the teacher, student, and the needed relationship between the teacher and the guardian in the development of the student. In my future professional development, I plan to deepen my understanding of three areas: adult emotional regulation in educators, student emotional regulation strategies that improve academic performance, and effective collaboration between teachers and guardians. Developing knowledge and skills in these areas will help create stronger learning environments for students.

Topic 1: Develop strategies for improving emotional regulation and co-regulation among educators.

As a professional, it is easy to say when I walk into the classroom, the stressors of being an adult and bills, husband, etc are left at the door. I can ignore the serious discussion that was left on hold. Many days, I see coworkers who complain they can not sleep and are up at three am, stress of trying to get their kids ready, or hearing one say this student is hopeless, a mess, is lazy, etc. All of these coworkers give their all day in and day out and have to give more at home. There is only so much.  There are studies showing that a student's experience learning math from a teacher who is excited to teach this subject carries the students’ positive view of math years down the line (Frenzel et al., 2021). Our breath, energy, verbal, paraverbals, and nonverbal cues get shared with the learners as much as our lessons do. Giving staff the tools and opportunities to recharge to regulate will lead to less teacher burnout (Donker et al., 2020). To support educator regulation, I want to learn strategies such as mindfulness practices, stress management techniques for teachers, and school leadership approaches that reduce burnout.

Topic 2: Learn evidence-based methods to teach emotional regulation skills to students.

One of the statements a fellow teacher shared with me was that children experience all the feelings of life we do, without the tools to deal with them. They do not have the time and experience in life school to be able to self-regulate their emotions while being asked to learn new concepts, sit focused, and participate in their learning. Studies continue to show that students who are emotionally regulated perform better academically and show more independent learning behaviors (Graziano et al., 2007). Teachers have the weight of the scope and pacing of teaching their lessons in a certain amount of time. Many times, topics have to be retaught or revisited because information was not absorbed. I argue that taking the time to teach students how to regulate their emotions and working on co-regulation with the students will save time and increase performance. A Harvard paper stated that co-regulated students have the ability to organize their time better and also help with problem-solving (Salamon, 2024).

Topic 3: Strengthen communication strategies that improve teacher–guardian collaboration.

I was at the doctor’s office the other week, and the first thing we did while waiting was to look at the college the doctor went to, what they studied, and when they graduated. Doctors go to school for years and study and practice their science. Teachers also spend years learning and practicing their science. Countless professional development, and yet many parents do not look at teachers as professionals or, at a minimum, as equals. I have heard parents say to teachers who do not have children, how can you teach and understand. I argue that we are both needed. There is a delicate tension between the lived experience of a parent and the professional experience of a teacher. However, when a teacher and parent can bridge this gap, students have higher academic success (Van Der Wal, 2020).  There is an opinion amongst some teachers that they are experts and parents should follow, and a view among some parents that they should be able to choose what is being taught. This is a gap that needs to be bridged for the sake of the learners.

Conclusion:

During these years, I have learned much. Much on curriculum and best practices. However, the variables that seem to need to be focused more on are the stakeholders in education, the teachers, the students, and the parents. Respecting them and all that happens inside and outside the classroom, and giving them the tools to help them succeed, especially from a regulatory and emotional perspective. Learning to view both the parent and teacher as experts and that they both have the same goal in helping the learner be the best they can be. 

Works Cited

Donker, M. H., Erisman, M. C., Gog, T. van, & Mainhard, T. (2020, May 28). Teachers’ emotional exhaustion: Associations with their typical use of and implicit attitudes toward emotion regulation strategies. Frontiers. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00867/full

Frenzel, A., Daniels, L., & Buric, I. (2021). Full article: Teacher emotions in the classroom and their implications for students. Taylor & Francis Online. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00461520.2021.1985501

Graziano, P. A., Reavis, R. D., Keane, S. P., & Calkins, S. D. (2007, February 1). The role of emotion regulation and children’s early academic success. Journal of school psychology. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3004175/

Salamon, M. (2024, April 3). Co-regulation: Helping Children and teens navigate big emotions. Harvard Health. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/co-regulation-helping-children-and-teens-navigate-big-emotions-202404033030

Van Der Wal, L. (2020). Parent-teacher relationships and the effect on student success. NWCommons. https://nwcommons.nwciowa.edu/education_masters/247/