Make Teaching Sustainable

SJ Janjua (they/them), founder of Empowered for Equity, joins us to discuss the importance of validating queer identities in schools. SJ shares stories from their own experience as a Queer educator, and provides educators with simple and sustainable strategies for supporting Queer students in the classroom, even in the areas where Queer identities are especially under threat due to recent legislation.

You can reach out to SJ by following them at @empoweredforequity—and by visiting their website www.empoweredforequity.com. You can also find SJ’s book, TRANSparency: Advocating for Your Transgender Child at School on their website.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visiting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

Vulnerability is one of the six #SustainableTeaching themes in Make Teaching Sustainable. In this episode, we unpack what vulnerability is and how it can manifest in the classroom. Vulnerability is a bit scary, but it's also necessary if we want to make our profession more sustainable.

As referenced in the episode, check out the feelings wheel and unhelpful thinking styles.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visiting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

Time and time again in the #SustainableTeaching Project, teachers shared with Paul stories of mistreatment. In this final episode of Season 1, Paul shares chapters of his own story as a teacher, grappling with the question: Are teachers being mistreated? Or is this just what we signed up for? Regardless, what do we do about it?

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visiting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

At first, many teachers think that giving kids more autonomy in the classroom will be messier and less sustainable, but what if building learner agency was actually more sustainable?

Paul talks with Dr. Catlin R. Tucker, author of The Shift to Student Led, about how building learner agency can actually make teachers’ lives easier. When we give kids responsibility and choice in the classroom, it not only means teachers share the demands of learning with students, it also means that kids learn how to stand on their own two feet. We can support this shift to increase learner agency through assessment practices, technology integration, and mindful curriculum design, Tucker shares.

You can reach out to Dr. Tucker on X at @Catlin_Tucker or on her website at www.catlintucker.com.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

Time is often one of the biggest concerns that teachers have with regard to sustainability. How do we solve this problem?

Paul talks with Alex Tougas this week about some innovative ideas around giving teachers more time. They also unpack societal attitudes towards teaching. Why is it that so many people think teachers are lazy? And what other assumptions do folks make about teachers? Paul and Alex ponder some of the reasons for this, from the implicit biases laid upon a female-dominated profession, in addition to the ancillary systems that make it even harder for teachers to do their jobs. You can reach out to Alex on Twitter at @ajteaches.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

How might bolstering emotional intelligence contribute to #SustainableTeaching?

Paul talks with Jenny Lewis this week about the importance of Positive Intelligence. No, this isn’t a promoting toxic positivity, but instead a way to help students be more emotionally intelligent in our classrooms, so they, too, can carry the emotional demands of learning along with teachers. You can reach out to Jenny by emailing her at [email protected] or on LinkedIn.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

How might building learner agency help to #MakeTeachingSustainable? And how did we get to a place where teachers feel like they have to work themselves ragged to be good teachers?

Paul talks with Emily Dia and Matt Hickson from the Modern Classrooms Project. They challenge us to rethink our teaching, making students partners in the process of assessment and differentiating learning. You can reach out to Emily at [email protected], and you can follow Matt on social media at @MattHicksonMCP.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

What is the impact of grading on sustainability? How might it negatively impact our students, and how does it affect motivation?

Paul talks with David Frangiosa on going gradeless in the classroom, addressing how going gradeless is not only best for kids, it's better for teachers, too. You can reach out to David on social media at @davidfrangiosa.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

What causes teachers to close their doors and work on their own? Which policies or systems incentivize teachers working in silos?

Paul talks with Erin Healey about the importance of collectivism, specifically by intentionally designing communities that help teachers feel supported, especially our newest teachers. You can reach out to Erin on LinkedIn or on social media at @mrserinhealey.

For more information on how to #MakeTeachingSustainable, you can check out Make Teaching Sustainable: Six Shifts Teachers Want and Students Need.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].

How might self-reflection help both teachers and learners? And what is required for teachers and learners to get more time for self-reflection?

Paul talks with JIll Nettels about the immense workload many teachers carry, along with the amount of time it takes to complete it. Not only is it challenging to plan, prepare, and assess learning, it also makes it hard to find time to reflect.

Note: In the episode, the name “Jim Crow” is mistakenly used in reference to John Crow.

You can learn more about Jill on the Mighty Networks app by finding @jillnettels.

You can lend your voice to the Sustainable Teaching project by visiting www.maketeachingsustainable.org.

Looking to be a guest on the podcast? Reach out to [email protected].