Standing at the Crossroads: Navigating Mindfulness, Teacher Self-Care, and Transformative Social Justice Pedagogy

Format

Individual Presentation

Location

Vereist

Strand #1

Mental & Physical Health

Strand #2

Social & Emotional Skills

Relevance

Blending a solid research foundation of social justice pedagogy, critical theory, teacher self-efficacy, and teaching underrepresented student populations with a pragmatic look at the impact of mindfulness and self-care on our ability to function as both empowered and empowering educators, this workshop will both encourage participants to question some deeply held beliefs about who they are in relation to the work they do and provide practical strategies for increased mindfulness and self-care both within and beyond the professional setting.

This workshop will also look at how mindfulness and self-care can be an answer to addressing issues of both teacher and student stress that affect everything from executive functioning to social-emotional competencies and academic achievement and will bridge the connection between our mental and physical health as educators and the impact this has on the lives of the youth we serve daily.

Brief Program Description

This interactive workshop will take a critically reflective look at who we are as educators and how we show up in our work to serve (or dis-serve) some of our most underserved students. We will examine some deeply held beliefs about who we are in relation to the work we do and will explore practical strategies for fostering mindfulness, self-care, and wellness in our own lives and the lives of those we serve daily.

Summary

Workshop Objectives:

  • Participants will leave this workshop with a better understanding of how to care for themselves and, in turn, care for all students – including those students most disenfranchised by existing structures that perpetuate class, race, and gender inequities – in way that promote justice, peace, and student happiness and success.
  • Participants will develop a solid understanding of why the intersection of mindfulness, teacher self-care, and transformative social justice pedagogy matters in education (for both educators and students).
  • Participants will learn specific strategies for improving mindfulness and self-care in their own lives and the lives of their students, and explore practical ways to implement these strategies immediately in their own professional and personal contexts.

Target Audience:

K-12 educators and youth service providers

Instructional Goals:

The primary goal of this workshop is to facilitate a deeper understanding of who we are as educators and demonstrate some ways in which we can show up in our work with more authenticity in order to create learning environments that are more transformative and socially just.

Planned Workshop Activities:

As part of this workshop, participants will:

  • Through journaling and collaborative dialogue with other workshop participants, reflectively analyze their own practices related to self-care and mindfulness and work on a concrete plan to incorporate more mindfulness into both their personal and professional lives
  • Rate their wellness in different areas of their lives, both personal and professional, and then connect their current reality to a concrete plan to improve their own wellness and, likewise, their own professional practices.
  • Prioritize the different areas of their lives and work on a plan to create more balance in order to increase their own self-efficacy in their life and work goals.

Evidence

This workshop is deeply rooted in both scholarship and practice. The research foundations of this work include, but are not limited to, the areas of:

  • Crafting personal narratives as a form of empowerment (Bell, Washington, Weinstein, & Love, 2003; Greene, 2003; Gay, 2000; McLaren, 1998; Peterson, 2003; Shapiro & Stefkovich, 2005; Starratt, 1994);
  • Teacher beliefs and how they impact the negotiations of power structures in educational spaces (Darder, 2003; Delpit, 1996; England, 2005; Freire, 1970; Noddings, 2006; Palmer, 1998; Paul & Smith, 2000);
  • How teachers shape belief and self-identity (Chavez & O’Donnell, 1998; Colucci, 2000; Greene, 2003; Kagan, 1992; Solomona, Portell, Daniel & Campbell, 2005; Strong-Wilson, 2008; Tatum, 1997; Warren, 2002).

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Marina Gillmore has built her professional career around working with youth and teaching, researching, and writing about the transformative power of stories. She has taught English and English Language Development at the high school level and educational and academic research courses at the college level. Marina also has experience as a publications chair, literary journal editor, leadership advisor, head coach, and program and curriculum developer.

Dr. Gillmore holds a doctorate in Leadership for Educational Justice from the University of Redlands. Her research, situated in the field of social and educational justice, investigated the ways in which teachers' life stories and beliefs inform their teaching practices. Marina earned a master's in Teacher Education with an English Teaching Credential from Claremont Graduate University, where she was awarded a BA/MA fellowship and conducted award-winning research on the experiences of underserved youth in urban environments. She also earned an honors bachelor's in Literature and History from Claremont McKenna College.

Marina co-founded and directs the Institute for Educational and Social Justice, an organization dedicated to advancing educational and social justice causes through writing, publishing, and educational outreach projects that build awareness and understanding of pressing educational and social issues. She - along with Dr. LaMarr Shields - is also the co-founder of SPARK Retreats, an initiative dedicated to helping educators, non-profit professionals, and social entrepreneurs foster greater wellness, mindfulness, and purpose-to-profession alignment in their life and work.

She has co-authored three books to date, the most recent of which focused on teacher mindfulness, wellness, and balance. She has three additional books slated for publication in late 2015.

She currently resides with her family in Southern California.

Keyword Descriptors

teacher self-care; at-risk youth; social justice pedagogy; mindfulness; teacher education; professional development; pedagogy of care; wellness

Presentation Year

2016

Start Date

3-8-2016 10:15 AM

End Date

3-8-2016 11:30 AM

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Mar 8th, 10:15 AM Mar 8th, 11:30 AM

Standing at the Crossroads: Navigating Mindfulness, Teacher Self-Care, and Transformative Social Justice Pedagogy

Vereist

This interactive workshop will take a critically reflective look at who we are as educators and how we show up in our work to serve (or dis-serve) some of our most underserved students. We will examine some deeply held beliefs about who we are in relation to the work we do and will explore practical strategies for fostering mindfulness, self-care, and wellness in our own lives and the lives of those we serve daily.