The authors of this inspirational new book were on a mission. While much has been written about teacher burnout and the day-to-day problems teachers face, little has been written about how teachers who deal with these problems overcome them, and continue to enter the classroom each morning with enthusiasm for their calling. To discover such teachers, the authors interviewed over 70 teachers in communities across the country to find teachers who, in a profession characterized by pressure, stress, and little reward, still find teaching an enjoyable, fulfilling career. The book includes over 150 teacher narratives of their real-life classroom experiences. The narratives provide unique insights into creating a teaching mission, setting up a community of learners, discovering the rewards of diversity, balancing personal and professional time, turning mistakes into excellence, using laughter to create rapport with students, and using discipline to create an atmosphere of trust and cooperation in the classroom. From these inspirational stories emerges a vision of the joys and rewards of working with children and a portrait of the teachers who have made a difference in the lives of their students and a contribution to their community. The quotes, stories, and advice written in the teachers' own words are interwoven with practical suggestions for ideas to make the classroom an inspirational environment for students and teachers alike.

Here's help for any school or district that wants struggling first-year and beginning teachers to survive and thrive. Written by seasoned administrators and teacher leaders who know the ropes, this guide covers every aspect of the topic, including: Best ways to support new teachers; Stages they go through in their first year; Effective induction programs that last five days, all summer, or an entire year; Mentoring programs that benefit all teachers involved; Strategies for improving new teachers' teaching skills without damaging their morale; and Systemwide solutions that combine induction and mentoring programs with ongoing assessment and professional development. Case studies of successful programs and insights from veteran and novice teachers give you plenty of fresh insights on how to maintain new teachers' confidence and encourage them to innovate and grow.

Presenting Values Education as a solution to major challenges in education such as student disengagement and teacher burnout, this book provides a wealth of practical advice about how to implement the Education in Human Values approach in schools, promoting wellness and improved educational outcomes. Values Education is a world-wide movement and comes in several forms. This book explains the need for and nature of values education, provides practical, easy strategies for implementing the Education in Human Values (EHV) approach, and outlines the educational theories that underpin it. The practical strategies in this book can be implemented in small increments in all aspects of school life. The focus is on both student and teacher wellbeing. The methods can also be used by teachers to address their own professional and personal challenges and to help them cope with difficult situations that cannot be changed. Written for teachers, teacher educators, and teachers in training, this book is the one-stop-shop for gaining a better understanding of values education, how it can support whole-school wellbeing and how to implement it effectively.

The good, the true and the beautiful-it is for these that our souls long. Though they reside in unity and perfection in God alone, the written word is one place we can discover glimmers of divine light. The writings of great souls can turn our gaze toward God as he is revealed in Jesus Christ. Even authors who do not know Christ or who reject Christ can still point to him, for anyone who seeks the truth finds it; and any one who turns his back on the truth turns away from a someone whose presence can often be more keenly felt in his absence. In this volume, Lucy Beckett illuminates some of the finest writings in the Western tradition and trains our eye to discover in them the Christian vision of God. She masterfully guides us through Sophocles, Plato, Augustine, Dante, Shakespeare, Dostoyevsky and many others, deftly demonstrating each author's worth as a bearer of truth.

This book combines perspectives from psychology, spiritual education and digital teaching pedagogies in a transnational framework to discuss the Education in Human Values Program (EHV) for child development, with a focus on silent sitting, mindfulness, meditation and story-telling as tools in the classroom. Through positive guidance in the early stages of child development using EHV tools, teachers will be better equipped to handle disciplinary issues in primary and secondary schools. These practices are also useful for the higher education community, as teachers and educators from tertiary institutions may adopt these practices in their teaching and become reflective practitioners. Topics such as teacher morale and school climate and its impact on children are discussed in relation to building resilience, reflective capacities, and inner strength (shared values) using an intrinsic and transformational approach. The discussions also include perspectives from the neurosciences. With contributions from teachers and educators from the US, South Africa, Malaysia, Australia, Hong Kong and Mauritius, this edited volume addresses the challenges, strengths and weaknesses associated with daily teaching practices in primary and secondary schools and higher education institutions. The content is relevant to policymakers and researchers in child development studies, with a particular focus on the impact of silent sitting, mindful practices, and meditation on children’s self-regulation and resilience. The authors collectively espouse that silent sitting techniques can help a child to grow and discover their hidden potential, thus enhancing their social, emotional, spiritual and physical capacities.