This series critically explores the self-awareness, training and the mental well being of professionals. In this episode, Libby and I discuss the need for self-reflection, feedback and the mental health of education professionals in an FE context. 

 1:50 I start the show by asking Libby how she would define self-awareness in the context of professional development. In Libby’s opinion it’s ‘being able to reflect upon yourself in the moment or post moment, reflecting on your practice as an individual and knowing where you are without the pre-tense of anything else’. We then discuss how we are trained to reflect on our practice but not on our own self-awareness.

 2:47 Libby continues by highlighting when something is a-miss outside of working hours, this can be enough to impact upon teaching ability or teaching practice. She gives an example of this before we take it further into what is missing from training programs and offer strategies that can be developed for centring oneself. 

 4:25 Self-awareness or self-development is about learning and learning is an ongoing process, for example, learning how to be empathetic is a key part of teaching but understanding yourself and why empathy matters results in sustainable relationships and more effective outcomes in general. That is something that needs teaching.

 5:46 One key area for Libby is feedback. Not just feedback for students but how we as professionals give and receive feedback from colleagues. It’s something she struggles with and believes this should be part of teacher training. Libby provides a personal experience of what she felt was negative feedback. I take this on board as I discuss personal experiences of school reports, how the feeling is internalised and then how this can play out in practice.  

 9:49 Libby relates this to the students who have had their own struggles and provides an overview of what this looks like. It is here where being trauma informed is beneficial. I continue with an example of students who were viewed as challenging for teachers and as disruptive to the learners of others. Being trauma informed and having empathy is useful for adapting practice.

 11:00 I ask Libby how can others can learn to accept and move on with feedback. She begins by discussing the challenges with written feedback and suggests a way forward as being shown what to do and how to address what hasn’t been effective rather than just being told something is wrong. It’s about meeting the student where they are at, taking the time to learn about them as individuals but also in a group dynamic. 

 14:24 I ask Libby why feedback is crucial for professional growth. She believes we need to learn how to accept feedback, and the learning needs to be supported and nurtured in a humanist way.

 Training programs have the opportunity to bring professionals together to understand themselves and others. It’s not about getting it right first time or right now, it’s how you move forward with it.