“Teachers play a beautiful and enriching profession, but also a very demanding one. Right now we live in a social context in which it is particularly difficult to educate, because students are subject to many external influences, such as social networks or the Internet, which determine their behavior and not always for the better,” Dean Amador Sanchez says the college. Teachers’ Officers of Madrid, the entity that organizes the next Meeting on ‘Welfare in Education’ on 19th and 20th April,
What is the purpose of the meeting?
-We want to consider the real situation of educational centers regarding welfare and address possible actions that can be taken to prevent conflicts and achieve safe and friendly educational environments.
We will talk about strategies to enhance well-being and mental health, conflict situations, the role of educational centers in detecting emotional imbalances and how to achieve their prevention. In short, care for all members of the educational community, teachers, but also – and especially – students. We believe that school should be a second home, a place of interaction where we can establish relationships; A place where everyone can live properly and that is the purpose of the meeting.
To whom is this addressed?
-The meeting is aimed at professionals in education, teaching and pedagogy at any educational level and in the educational community in general. It will be held in the IES San Isidro, a privileged location in Madrid, but it will also have an online methodology that will allow teachers from other autonomous communities to participate. We have designed it around a Friday afternoon and Saturday morning schedule (April 19 and 20) to facilitate attendance, knowing that teachers have a lot of work during the week and little time available.
Tell me about the material that will be discussed…
-We will address the development of emotional competencies as strategies to enhance well-being and mental health; Importance of imparting education with norms; Caring for teachers; and the development of a culture that fosters positive relationships between students and teachers. We’ll also talk about caring for others through language, gratitude, evaluation and validation, and healthy use of technology to respond to problematic situations like digital stress or addictions. And all this, with the help of experts such as Rafael Bisquera, Javier Urra, José Antonio Luengo, Elvira Congosto, Guillermo Cánovas and Jaime Buhigas, who guarantee quality.
Rates of emotional disorders are very high among students and teachers at this time
In your opinion, what is the situation schools are experiencing in terms of mental health, co-existence, discipline etc.? How to improve it?
-At present the rate of emotional disorders among students and teachers is very high. The latest report of the SM Foundation, “Teachers in Spain 2023”, and other similar studies, alert us to this situation. At the school we are concerned about this situation, which is why we have organized this meeting, in which leading experts help us prevent and address conflicts from the perspective of psychology, pedagogy and neuroeducation.
We believe that the first step is the prevention of these difficult situations, but, once they occur, we must promote measures that support the authority of the teacher or the greater complexity of families. For example, the figure of the welfare coordinator is very important; In fact, at the Official Teachers College we have been pioneers in addressing this profile in the Permanent Training Program for Teachers.
Do you think teachers are in a particularly complex position in their relationships with students, parents, and the rest of society? What is it about?
-Teachers play a beautiful and enriching profession, but also a very demanding one. Right now we live in a social context in which it is particularly difficult to educate, since students are subject to many external influences, such as social networks or the Internet, which determine their behavior and not always for the better. Therefore, the role of the teacher today is not just to transmit knowledge, but to promote the comprehensive training and values of students, and these values are not always present on social networks or the Internet.
In this sense, we support some measures aimed at protecting students from access to certain content on the Internet and we commend, for example, the initiative of the Madrid Education Department regarding the limitation of the use of mobile phones in classrooms . But when it comes to safety, it is very important not to forget about teachers who must have adequate and appropriate resources to deal with certain situations and not find themselves alone in serious mental health situations, for example. That said, I believe that, in general, families and society as a whole recognize and value the work that teachers do in classrooms.
,What measures does the Official College of Teachers propose in favor of the well-being of the entire educational community?
-The measures I mentioned at the beginning: prevention, education in values, authority and discipline, support of families… But, in any case, only the experts will provide us at this meeting on well-being in education. The best thoughts and thinking on the topic. This is our goal: to pioneer solutions that enhance the school environment to ensure that teachers enjoy their work and, above all, that students learn in a safe, enjoyable and enriching environment.
Learn more: Wellbeing in Education Meeting (bienestareducación.com). April 19 and 20, 2024. IES San Isidro de Madrid.
Organized by: Official Teachers College of the Community of Madrid (https://cdlmadrid.org/).
E-mail: hello@bienestarneducación.com
