A teacher’s account
Preface
I love my students and I believe in them. These teenagers are the most open-minded and socially accepting group of learners to date. They are bold, creative and expressive. They are also the most likely generation to ask for help.
But if we’re speaking honestly, this generation of teenagers as a whole are not the most resilient, and the worst part is that it is no fault of their own.
I am the optimist of all optimists, but I am also a 9th-grade health teacher on the frontlines of teenage life, and my eyes do not deceive me. My classroom at lunch often turns into a drive-thru therapy session for adolescent life. And while I’m more than willing to give my support, I can only do so much. I’ve spent more time than I’d like to admit puzzled by the question, “How do I make my students more resilient? How do I support their social and emotional wellness and build grit? What can I do in the classroom to help them be mentally tougher?”
A Unique Generation
As a Millennial myself, I can see that Generation Z is not cut from the same cloth as those before them. They are growing up in a time of always having the internet in the palm of their hands, Amazon Prime two-day shipping, streaming services, etc., as it is an entirely different world. It is not that they aren’t capable of being more resilient, tough, or gritty, but I’ve theorized that they do not give themselves enough time to learn and realize that they are capable of these vital life skills: the skills of patience, working through challenges, failure and learning, and ultimately teaching themselves self-efficacy. These fundamental skills take time to learn and it is time that today’s teenagers don’t often have practice taking. If you grew up in a world of instant gratification, do you think you would have the patience to persevere and tough things out? Let alone make sense of all of the emotions life throws at you at 14 or 15 years old. Probably not. Life’s innovations and technological advancements have stifled our youth’s patience and ability to work for and through the things that matter. And to this generation’s defense, the adults that are supposed to be helping the youth navigate through this digital instant gratification age, don’t always have the correct direction or answers themselves.
To make things even more complicated, let’s add on what a global pandemic can do to your mental health in the middle of adolescence. According to the US Surgeon General’s 2021 Advisory, “Recent research covering 80,000 youth globally found that depressive and anxiety symptoms doubled during the pandemic, with 25% of youth experiencing depressive symptoms and 20% experiencing anxiety symptoms.” This is why these teenagers need explicit, intentional and culturally relevant Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) integrated into their education. I know that we have become more empathetic as a society and our values towards mental health have changed drastically, but our actions need to match our words, and what better place for it to be done than in the classroom?
Teaching Resilience and SEL
What has worked for me?
I don’t have all of the answers, but teaching in a Post-COVID Classroom has forced all of us educators to try and figure it out. I believe that it starts with being very deliberate with teaching SEL, especially to this generation of students. Here are a few things I’ve implemented in the classroom and the impact I’ve personally observed:
Journaling with Mood Meters & SEL Prompts
Using class time to not only reflect on learning but overall well-being
After journaling 5-6 times a quarter for 20 minutes at a time(15 minutes to write, 5 minutes for a few to share out), it became a routine and my students started to expect it. Also, when you give students a space to write and tell you something about themselves or their lives, they can be brutally honest. Another thing to note is that I did not ask students to share out loud if the prompts were too personal or asked about challenges; but I also did not stop anyone from volunteering either. One of the most significant impacts that I’ve noticed after implementing journaling in my classes is that students have become more comfortable with sharing their emotions and experiences.
Educating students about the teen brain (prefrontal cortex, amygdala, and its ability to adapt and change
A lesson and discussion of how and why the teen brain works differently than the adult brain.
This lesson is a little science-heavy, but worth it. Basically, the human brain develops from back to front, and during adolescence, the prefrontal cortex(decision-making) and its connections to the amygdala(emotional regulation) are not fully formed; therefore teenagers often make decisions purely on emotions and how they feel. When I expressed to them that it isn’t necessarily all their fault when they act impulsively or make not-so-smart decisions out of anger, because their brain is still developing, I got the overall impression from my students that they felt understood – by me and by themselves with the backing of science. (How? We discussed it and I read it in their journals)
Resilience Wall Activity
Students anonymously share examples of their life where they recognized their own resilience; a graphic is made and posted in the classroom for all to read.
We first discuss the concept and meaning of resilience and offer various examples. In the assessment, I assist with sentence starters. I am currently challenged by ___________________. + (one sentence explanation). What will help me get through this is ______________________. + (one sentence explanation). This makes me resilient because ________________. + (explain how you overcome your challenge). Once my students understand what resilience means, almost everyone haa an example of how it applied to their own life. It is an important realization that a student knows they have the ability to overcome one thing and therefore they can do it again and again.
Recognizing and honoring SEL – Student of the Month
Empower and recognize SEL with themed months
I don’t have all of the answers, but teaching in a Post-COVID Classroom has forced me and all of us educators to try and figure it out. I believe that it starts with being very deliberate with teaching SEL with this generation of students. Here are a few things I’ve successfully implemented in my classroom:
The Influence of an Educator
The answer to broadening the impact is a lot closer than we may think, as it could very well start with us. Every educator has a gift to give and it is our individual stories. We all have gone through something in our lives that can offer comfort and reassurance to those we have in class. Personally, as an educator that lives with paralysis and teaches from a wheelchair, I’ve found that leaning into my personal struggle and disability has actually made me more impactful in the classroom. There is huge power in sharing experiences and the things we’ve learned in an open and vulnerable way. By telling stories of our own mistakes, hardships, and tough times in our own childhood, it allows our students to look at challenges as things they could overcome. It is also good to remember that sometimes teachers and educators alike are the only positive adults in some students’ lives. Being intentional about how SEL is taught and aligning it with your own story can have a lasting impact.
I also understand the hesitancy and apprehension to share personal experiences and aspects of our personal lives in the classroom. As teachers and educators there is the expectation that we should always be teaching from a place of strength in order to show that we have control or that we have all the answers all the time. But as we all know, we don’t and vulnerability is a strength. As a side note, in no way am I advocating for us educators to air our dirty laundry and tell our students everything – that is obviously too personal. As with anything else, we use our professional judgment and capitalize on opportunities we see fit.
The Big Picture
Growing up in a fast-paced world doesn’t always allow the time or opportunities to learn resilience, perseverance or patience. Therefore, I wholeheartedly believe that the most vital lessons we teach as educators are not from our content areas but from the stories we tell and the examples we set as people. Whenever I’m struggling with something in education I often ask myself the question, “What is best for kids?” Yes, we all have standards and required curriculum to address, but we can choose not to let that overshadow meeting this generation’s social and emotional learning needs.
Corey is a health and freshman seminar teacher at Castle High School and a Hawaii State Teacher Fellow. He has taught leadership, sports medicine, exercise science, and CTE health careers. He currently serves as the advisor for the graduating class of 2023 and contributes as an advisory board member for the Freshman Academy. Prior to moving back to Oahu, he taught in the Seattle area and served as the Associated Student Body Advisor and coached Track & Field. Corey earned a B.S. in Exercise Science from the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington and is CTE certified through Bates Technical College. He is passionate about building relationships and finding creative ways to integrate social and emotional learning into the classroom.
Hawaii Teacher Voices 
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