Confidence is a great thing to have in life – we look around and seem to see people who have lots of confidence all the time. Yet how do we get that in our lives and more importantly in our chosen profession – TEACHING.
Let me start by saying that no-one is confident naturally – it is not something we are born with…if this is the case then how come some people become confident and others not so?
Confidence is developed – it is a mind-set by the person with a goal to develop and become confident . So how can we achieve this in our teaching and our interactions at school.
For example – lets suppose I am invited to speak at a conference. It is a subject that I know quite well and so I am confident that I can speak with authority. Because of this I only give the topic a cursory glance and little preparation.
The big day arrives and I stand to speak – the first thing that hits me is the size of the audience – which is much bigger that I expected…it is not something I am used to. In addition, because I thought I knew my subject well, I had not prepared many notes and as I progressed in my talk I was conscious that I was omitting some key facts and the pressure was beginning to build. In the question and answer session again I was not prepared fully and so did not perform well.
Not a great result – but why. The speaker was confident that he knew the subject so why did it go wrong. The answer is that this was misplaced confidence not based on fact and reality. The speaker did not adequately prepare for both the talk and the setting / audience that he was about to speak to and as such the talk was a poor standard.
Again we go back to being organised and well prepared – if you have spent some time researching and making notes about your subject then you can speak with confidence – in the knowledge that you have prepared well. Even if the setting or the situation facing you increases the pressure on you , you can fall back confidently on your preparation to pull you through.
Be well prepared – this is a key element of being confident
You can directly apply the above to your classroom teaching – research and plan your lessons well. Make sure they are delivered in a confident, interesting and interactive way and you will find that not only do the children become part of the learning process but its great fun for you as well
Classroom management confidence
Without adequate classroom management then everything you do will be without confidence. There is no worse feeling than trying to teach a class when you are worried that your class control and behaviour management is not effective.
So lets get back to basics – you SHOULD / NEED to have in place your classroom management strategies. If you have not yet read my guide to this and its implementation then hop across now to track it down ! If you have put the work in at the start of the class year then your class will be conversant with how you expect the class to function. Your expectations are high…good for you !
Now having your classroom management strategy in place doesn’t mean your pupils suddenly become angels – it just means that when you need to use it – bang it works. No pressure / no stress…bang!
If you have been using your set classroom management strategies at all times the you will have CONFIDENCE in not only how to use them but how effective they are…..and the children will in turn have confidence in how you use them fairly and firmly.
(The bottom line really is this…if you don’t have the classroom management strategies sorted then it will be difficult to teach anything)
Be adventurous – try new things
Teaching and in fact life is all about new experiences.
If you sit at home and do the same old things day in day out…eat the same food and go to the same locations for holidays think how dull and predictable life would become. Yes it would be safe but wow dull, dull , dull !
So push your self outside your comfort zone and step up for new challenges…..
Let me give you another example – In one of my schools I had both young and more experienced staff (that’s a kind way of saying older!) One of the younger teachers had been a pupil at the school many years ago and was taught by one of the more experienced staff who had been there for a long period of time. …It was a year 2 class. The Younger teacher commented to me ” I remember doing those lessons when Mrs – – taught me !!!
You can draw your own conclusions from this – someone who has become uninspired, in a rut and just going through the motions. Would you really wish your career to be so drab?
It may be just a small thing like taking on a coordinators role – perhaps in one of the “easier” subjects or running an afterschool club or volunteering for a residential trip – they all build your confidence as you learn new skills and acquire new knowledge.
You would be surprised how many teachers find taking a whole school assembly difficult – some will actually say they don’t wish to take one….its not that difficult but maybe ask for your first few times for some colleagues to stay in the hall while you do it – you’ll soon get into the way of it.
Confidence gives success and success promotes confidence – its not always a one way street and at times our confidence can take a knock. But its at times like this we show our character …dust yourself down and get right back out there.
Teaching is a continually changing and challenging journey – be prepared, be confident in what you do and you will succeed.
In the next article we will look at the flip side of confidence building –
Inspiring confidence in others
Primary Practice would like to invite you to join our NQT and trainee teachers Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/1347401775298840/?ref=bookmarks
Charles