Personally, I’m not a big fan of setting new year resolutions, I feel happier setting intentions. Whilst these might sound a bit more open ended, intentions emphasise actions and the support or strategies I need to put in place to make them happen. They sound like "This year I want to approach behavioural challenges in the classroom with curiosity". I feel that setting intentions leaves more room for growth and less room for disappointment, which can set us up for a more positive experience considering that fact that we have very demanding jobs as teachers and trainers! Regardless of your word choice, the start of the year seems an excellent opportunity to prioritise what really matters: well-being—not only for yourself but also for your students. So let’s explore the intention of “I want to prioritize my well-being”. 

 

What is Well-being?

Well-being isn’t just about the absence of stress or illness, it can be regarded as “the balance point between an individual’s resource pool and the challenges faced” (Dodge et al., 2012, p. 230). It’s about thriving in various dimensions of life—emotional, social, physical, cognitive, financial, environmental and beyond.

 

 

Too often, discussions about wellbeing are framed from a deficit perspective, focusing on fixing what is wrong. While it’s essential to address challenges, a social strength-based approach emphasises the collective nature of well-being - it’s not something we achieve in isolation but through our connections with others- and builds on what is already working.  For teachers, well-being is crucial, not only for themselves but “also for ensuring that they teach to the best of their abilities” and that optimal conditions for learning are created (Sulis et. al, 2024). This means fostering a classroom environment where everyone learner feels valued, supported, and connected. Well-being, in its truest sense, is a collective journey. I mean, you can only create a classroom environment that supports student well-being when you nurture your own!

For teachers, emotional and social well-being are particularly important. Emotional well-being means having the tools and resilience to navigate the ups and downs of life with balance and self-compassion. Social well-being, on the other hand, revolves around the quality of our relationships and our sense of belonging within a community, the classroom and beyond. Let’s explore how we can make emotional and social well-being a cornerstone of our teaching practices.

 

Start with Self-Compassion

As teachers and trainers we often set high expectations for ourselves, striving to meet the needs of our learners while juggling numerous other responsibilities. This may lead to burnout and self-criticism. Self-compassion—treating yourself with the same kindness and understanding that you treat others with—is a powerful “antidote”.

Below are some ideas that could guide the incorporation of self-compassion into your daily routine:

  1. Pause & check-in: At the start or end of each day, take a moment to sit quietly. Close your eyes, take a few deep breaths, and ask yourself, “How am I feeling right now?” Acknowledge your emotions -whatever they are- without judgment. Remember, there are no ‘good’ or ‘bad’ emotions. They are just data!
  2. Offer kindness: Imagine you are speaking to a close friend who feels the way you are feeling now. What would you say to them? Now, direct those same words of encouragement and understanding to yourself. How does that make you feel now?
  3. Practise gratitude: Identify one thing you appreciate about yourself as a teacher or as a person. It could be something as simple as your dedication to creating personalised activities for your learners or the way you greeted your class today.

 

 

By cultivating self-compassion, you will find it easier to show empathy to your learners in class and be more accepting – without judgment or conditions - of others, learners and colleagues alike! This can have a positive effect on your interactions and learners’ behaviour. In other words, it can create a ripple effect of positivity in your classroom!

 

Foster a Culture of Connection

Social well-being thrives in an environment where people feel seen, heard, and valued. As a teacher or trainer, you have the unique opportunity to create such an environment in your classroom. To strengthen connections with and between learners you could try the activity below:

“Round the clock”: Dedicate 10 minutes of a class time at the end of the session to this activity. Arrange learners into groups of 4 or 5. Invite them to give themselves a number (1 to 4 or 5). Number one pick one item they are happy to pass around the group, e.g. a pencil case or water bottle. Explain that the aim of the activity is to say something nice about each person to celebrate each person’s uniqueness.

    • Learner 1 passes the chosen item to Learner 2 saying something positive about that person (e.g., “I really appreciate how you always help us during group work.” Or “I like how you are always happy to share your textbook with me”).
    • Then, Learner 2 passes the chosen item to Learner 3 saying something positive about them and so on…
    • When the item reaches the last person, pass it back (from 5 to 4, from 4 to 3 etc.), saying some more nice things
    • Ask students at the end how this activity made them feel. You might be surprised be their realisation that we often spend very little time on saying nice things about others!

This activity reminds students that they are valued members of the classroom community and will strengthen crucial social-emotional competences, such as active listening and showing acceptance, and will promote pro-social behaviors, a crucial life skill (Hasper & Pénton Herrera, 2024).

 

 

Wellbeing as a Collective Effort: Let’s remember that well-being is not simply dependent on an individual. It’s about creating a supportive community where everyone—teachers and learners alike—can thrive. By prioritising self-compassion and fostering connection, we do not only enhance our own emotional and social well-being but can also model these competences and values for our learners. Start small, be consistent, and along the way celebrate the progress you make!

This year let’s move forward together. Let’s inspire each other to make 2025 a year of collective growth and care to make the classroom a better place. Now, what will be your first step toward prioritising well-being in your learning and teaching context this year? Together we can build thriving classroom communities and who knows where that might take us in the world…  Here’s hoping to making the world a better place! 

 

 

References

Dodge, R. & Daly, A. & Huyton, J. & Sanders, L. (2012). The challenge of defining wellbeing. International Journal of Wellbeing. 2. 10.5502/ijw.v2i3.4.

Hasper, A. & Pénton Herrera, L.J. (2024). Activities for Social-emotional Learning: Developing social-emotional competences in the ELT Classroom. 

Sulis, G. & Mairitsch, A. & Babic, S.& Mercer, S. & Resnik,P. (2024) ELT teachers’ agency for wellbeing, ELT Journal, Volume 78:2, pp.198–206, https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccad050