The Importance Of Holding High Expectations Of Yourself As A Teacher.

Holding high expectations for all students plays an important role in creating an environment in which every student can thrive.

Teachers who hold high expectations for their students are able to find a balance between rigour and compassion. The key to achieving this is to believe that students can meet high standards… without forgetting that the process of meeting such standards might be challenging, scary, or frustrating.

Great teachers help each of their students set high goals for themselves and do so in ways that are infused with warmth and care.

But what about the expectations that we set for ourselves as teachers? Do our personal narratives and internal self-talk support the belief that we are capable of achieving great things within our role as educators, or are we getting in our own way?

There is no lack of external factors that can cause you to lower the expectations that you hold of yourself as a physical educator. From being referred to as “just a gym teacher”, to having minutes taken away from your instructional time, to seeing administrators pile class upon class of students in your gym all at once.

External factors may influence your beliefs, but the power to set expectations for yourself has always resided within you.

To take charge of who you want to be as an educator, grab a piece of paper, divide it into three columns, and follow this three step process:

Take inventory of your personal narratives. What are the beliefs you currently hold about yourself as a teacher? What are the stories that are shaping your mindset? Write each of these down under the lefthand column.

Set high expectations. For any stories that you identify as dragging you down, decide what the high version of that narrative would be and write that down in the righthand column. For example, if you wrote “I am bad at discipline”, try writing “I am effective at classroom management”.

Identify your actions. In the middle column, write down the daily actions you can take to move closer towards the high expectations you’ve now set for yourself. Getting crystal clear about the behaviours that will help you meet your goals will allow you to recognize when you are on the right track (and adjust your sails as needed).

As you go about this transformative work, don’t forget to balance: hold yourself to the expectations you’ve set and remember to practice self-compassion as you do the hard work to grow.

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