A positive school culture is critical to the success of any school. As educators, we know that staying positive in the wake of planning, paperwork, meetings, grading, and all of the other administrative tasks is tough, especially when we got into this business because we love to work with students. It takes more effort than simply "putting on a happy face," as the musical number goes. The bigger question is always, "How do you do it?"
I served on the committee that chooses the American School Counselor Association School Counselor of the Year for several years and read hundreds of applications about dynamic counselors who made an impact on the school they served. In some cases, the finalists were high school counselors juggling college applications processes and difficult teenage situations while others were elementary counselors who worked through challenges that would test the mettle of any adult, not to mention seven and eight-year-olds. The common denominator was that it is through simple, informal actions that these counselors connected to their communities: greeting students at the front door of the building every day to give them a simple hello or high five; sitting with them at lunch; holding regular classroom meetings about grief, empathy, or peer counseling; and staying in touch with parents and teachers. These are just a few of the things we read about and I'm sure there are examples similar to these close to home for you as you read this.
As a middle school teacher, I learned quickly that no class or experience in graduate school would prepare me to be part of a school with low morale. I was never trained on how to work with a student who was gay and confident about it at 12 years old, for example, and how other students would react to that reality, not to
2-21-14 THE WHOLE CHILD BLOG - Every School Has Its Challenging Students
Every School Has Its Challenging Students — Whole Child Education: THE WHOLE CHILD BLOGEvery School Has Its Challenging StudentsFebruary 21, 2014 by Klea ScharbergAs educators, we are the gatekeepers for society and the nurturers of individuals. We have an obligation to teach all students, but some are really hard to teach. How can we promote safety and success for all, while supporting our challe