[Promising Dramatic Growth] To My Former Self as a First-Year Teacher 22 Years Ago: 4 Habits That Will Change Your Teaching Career
“I’m just barely getting through the tasks right in front of me every day.”
“I’m not growing at all. Is it okay to just keep going like this?”
Don’t you have nights where you feel exactly like that?
When you lose sight of where you currently stand, it’s only natural to feel anxious, isn’t it? 🤔
(Actually, this is the very real anxiety I felt almost every night 22 years ago...)
For first-year teachers, there is an endless stream of “new teacher training” sessions organized by the Board of Education.
(You’re already so busy, so thank you for all your hard work.)
However, unfortunately, there was absolutely nothing that truly inspired me or that I could use in my classroom the next day.
Gradually, the training sessions themselves became painful.
My life became a cycle of working on one of my weekend days and just sleeping like the dead on the other.
Back then, I spent my days flustered in front of the children, never feeling any confidence in my own teaching.
I would like to introduce the 4 small habits that became the catalyst for me to struggle my way out of that quagmire.4 small habitsI would like to introduce.
No special talent is required at all, and these are all things you can start doing today.
📚 1. Pay out of your own pocket to experience the “super-elite”
If you want to break through your current situation, first try heading to the education section of a large bookstore.
There, you will find a row of solutions that our predecessors painstakingly devised through blood, sweat, and tears.
Try looking for phrases that resonate with you right now, as if you were on a treasure hunt.
To see the world outside, I also recommend using your weekends todive into private study groups or seminars at your own expense.
You might be thinking, “I’ve already had enough training with the ‘new teacher training’ sessions...”
However, the level of passion is completely different between teachers who attend because it is an administrative obligation and teachers who gather at these venues. 🔥
(I remember like it was yesterday the shock I felt, thinking, 'There are so few people at my workplace who attend training on their days off, yet there are so many people here.')
I was also surprised that among the participants were teachers who had traveled from all over the country on their precious days off, paying out of their own pockets just to attend that training.
The reason so many participants gathered was that the instructors' abilities and the practical experience levels varied greatly.
When I actually observed a class taught by a top-tier teacher, I was so stunned by how incredible it was that I held my breath.
Can children really grow this much if the teacher changes? That was the moment my heart was shaken to its core.
(I have written about the 'top-tier teacher' I met during my student teaching, so please read that as well if you'd like.)
🙋♂️ 2. The 'Output-First' Mindset of Raising Your Hand First
A colleague once taught me, 'Always be the first to raise your hand during the Q&A session at training.' he said.
He told me that even if I hadn't thought of a question yet, I should just raise my hand, even if it was just to share a comment.
(That was 16 years ago, and I remember thinking, 'I'll do my best too!' because of that colleague's passion. I still remember this scene even now...)
However, when I tried imitating this, my attitude toward listening changed fundamentally.
I became eager, determined to ask something, and the resolution of my input skyrocketed.
In my late 30s, I also started posting on X (formerly Twitter) to gather and organize information. 📝
Since I made it mandatory to post every day, I absorbed people's words like a sponge in order to find material for my posts.
📱 3. 'Recording' Turns Your Commute Home Into the Best Training Room
A senior teacher taught me to record my classes, either by video or audio, and review them.
Since I couldn't keep up with watching videos, I decided to use the standard 'Voice Memos' app on my iPhone to record my entire class.
This way, I could play it back and listen to it like an audio program while on the train home or walking to the station. 🎧
When I listened to a recording of my own class for the first time, I was so embarrassed that I felt despair.
I notice how often I use filler words, give unnecessary instructions, and above all, how much I am talking too much.
The children were making important observations that got to the heart of the math, but I was completely ignoring them.
(Just remembering it now makes me break out in a cold sweat from embarrassment...)
A recording app is the ultimate tool that visualizes your own immaturity in a brutally honest way.
⚾ 4. Don't fear striking out; keep stepping up to the "plate"
For a teacher, stepping up to the plate means having other teachers observe your lessons.
No matter how many high-quality books you read, you won't learn how to swing the bat unless you step up to the plate.
Only by receiving objective guidance and advice can you truly know where you currently stand.
I think you should be the first to volunteer for research lessons at your school, as well as for public lessons at other schools or city/prefectural study groups.
Even now, after more than 20 years of teaching, I make sure to conduct research lessons and presentations every year.
Since the number of research lessons for the entire school is limited to three per year, you have to share the opportunity with others.
That is why I use the "self-improvement lesson" system rooted in our school to open my classes to others, hoping to give back even a little to the younger teachers.💡
No one is born with special skills from the very beginning.
Go to bookstores, workshops, study groups, and research presentations
Be the first to raise your hand
Press the record button on your smartphone
Have others observe your lessons
These are all things you can start doing tomorrow with just a little bit of courage.
Let's step up to the plate and keep swinging the bat together, without fear of failure.
Even if you strike out spectacularly, that experience will surely become part of who you are tomorrow.
I am rooting for your challenges with all my heart so that tomorrow's classroom will be even a little more enjoyable.