Most teachers work in education because they love to see students succeed. They genuinely care about their students as people and future community members. That is why the occasional but inevitable experience of failing a student leads to the intense feeling of guilt. Dealing with this guilt is essential to moving forward as an efficient teacher. This article offers five great tips for overcoming teacher guilt.
1. Double Check The Grades
Guilt is a feeling that arises when we think we are responsible for an unpleasant situation. Logically remind yourself that one of the few ways you could be responsible for a student’s failed grade is faulty grading. Thoroughly review all of the student’s graded assignments, and see if you made any mistakes. Adjust grades if it is appropriate.
2. Consider Your Teaching Methods
The only other way that you could be responsible for a student’s failing grade would be if your teaching methods put that student at a particular disadvantage. If the student approached you for help or clarification with the material, were you available? If the student notified you in advance of a personal circumstance that was hindering his or her academic abilities, did you work with him or her to find balance? Did you provide the student with feedback so that he or she knew what to do to improve? Make adjustments if appropriate.
3. Talk to the Student
If your student does not approach you about the grade, approach the student. Let them know that you double-checked the grades and considered your teaching methods to make sure that you did not miss anything. Explain why they earned the grades they did, but without being punitive. Give the student tips for how to achieve academic success in the future. Point out some of the things you appreciate about the student, and at least one thing the student did well in the class, so that he or she knows one failed grade does not equate to being a failure as a person. Say all of this with warmth and encouragement.
4. Consult Trusted Colleagues
Since all teachers experience guilt of this nature, talk to some other teachers who you respect and trust. Ask them what they do to deal with the teacher guilt. Talk them through your particular situation. These conversations provide you both with helpful advice, goals for improvement, validation, and reassurance. Chances are, you will help the colleagues you speak to as much as they help you.
5. Keep a Teaching Journal
Find time each day or week to write down all of the things you feel you are doing well as a teacher. Write down all of the things you are grateful for about your job. Focusing on confidence and gratitude can combat feelings of guilt. Include processing of your feelings of guilt in your journal, but re-frame the guilt as evidence that you care enough about your students to be bothered by having to fail them!
In order for these five tips to be most effective, it helps to have an understanding of what guilt really is. Guilt is a complicated emotion, and the teacher guilt that you are feeling is but one specific form. Click Here for an informative article published by Psychology Today. If will help you identify the type of guilt you are feeling, understand it, and better apply these five tips to your life as a teacher!
