to no surprise the recent round of staff reduction efforts has created a depressing work environment. the stress is palpable. instead of making obvious observations about how this stressful situation is playing out with adults concerned about their jobs, i was thinking about the uncertainty that we inadvertently introduce in to our classrooms. is it possible that a student would ever feel like a person who just lost their job? are there times when teachers create a working environment for their students that is not conducive to work because of other elements at play? would a teacher ever do that on purpose? brain rules by john medina talks about the effects stress has on the brain and how terrible the results can be; while we can claim to keep a stiff upper lip and keep our heads down and work as hard as we can, it’s silly to think that the uncertainty of a stressed environment doesn’t effect productivity.
it’s not breaking news, just news that breaks you
27
Mar
Jeri
March 27, 2011 at 5:59 pm
I wonder how the stress and threat of teachers losing their jobs is affecting the atmosphere in the classroom. I know that in the past, at the central office level– job loss fear create a climate of depression, despair, worry and work shut down. Wondering if that’s happening at the campus level. . If children internalize teacher stress over test taking, I would venture to say it’s the same with the current budget crisis.