“How can I deal with first-day anxiety?” Teacher Anxiety and Managing a Classroom with Confidence

When I first worked as a therapist in a local public mental health agency, I tended to wake up around 4 a.m. every workday. With the jitters. Or, more generally, with inescapable anxiety about the coming day. What would come at me? Could I handle it? Did I actually know what I was doing? It is of course normal to feel this way about jobs that involve humans, who are so unpredictable! First-day jitters are no exception. But so are second-day jitters, and third-day, and eightieth-day jitters. Stuff can happen in a classroom (and therapy office) that suddenly throws you off your game and shakes your confidence as a teacher. What do you do when teacher anxiety hits on any day of the school year? That’s what today’s episode is about. We discuss * Going Out-of-Body: What causes us to decenter and how to get back in control of ourselves and our classroom management * The Emotional Rollercoaster: How easy it is to get on and how hard it can be to get off, and what that means for teacher stress * Chasing Popularity: Student evaluations of faculty and how they affect teacher mental health * Mirroring: How and when to respond to incorrect answers and inappropriate comments Great stuff for every teacher to think about, from first-year teachers to college faculty! External links Donald A. Schön, The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action Teaching through Emotions What type of teacher are you? Take the quiz! Connect & Share Got a story to share? What takes you out of your body? What gets you back in? I’d love to hear! Leave me a voicemail at (413) 239-4158 and we might feature your perspective in a future episode! Or send me an email! [email protected]. Support the Show: If this conversation resonated, please consider leaving a rating or review on your podcast app. Your feedback helps others find us. Get full access to the community: www.teachingthroughemotions.com/subscribe Credits: Founder and Host: Betsy Burris Producer: Jullian Androkae of PodVision Audience Development: Andreea Coscai of PodVision Podcast Editor: Jasper Chua Theme Music: Tom Burris/Jabbering Trout Interstitial Music: Brad Wells Chapters: 00:00 Featured in Apple Podcasts 01:18 Nerves the Night Before Teaching 03:48 Check-In: Week Two of the Semester 07:27 A 25-Minute Meeting in the Wrong Room 12:48 Enrollment Pressure and FactTrack 18:04 Teaching as a Popularity Contest 20:38 What Pulls You Out of Your Body 22:59 Whispering Students and a Sea of Faces 25:40 Bluffing Through an AI Policy 29:57 Getting Back by Leveling With Students 32:34 Correct It in Front of Everyone? 35:04 Reflecting in Action and Mirroring 38:01 Takeaways: Slow Down, Just Notice 41:20 Sasha a Month Later: Body Snatching 44:38 Recap and Next Episode: Disruptive Boys This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.teachingthroughemotions.com/subscribe