The Ecological Systems Theory in Practice

In displacement settings, teachers face enormous challenges to their own wellbeing while supporting their students and communities through crisis. This video explores how teachers in refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar border are prioritising wellbeing for everyone through personal practices, collaborative support, and school-wide initiatives.

Something that stuck with the course design team as we looked through available resources on teacher wellbeing was a quote from a teacher, who was critical of the suggestion to focus on self-care to promote their wellbeing. He/she commented, ‘Breathe? In a war zone?’ The teacher felt that the available guidance dismissed the realities of the situation they were facing. So, while we might promote self-care as a first step towards supporting teacher wellbeing, we clearly need to think about other ways of creating safer and more supportive environments for teachers.

This is again where the social ecological model may be helpful. It raises questions about what actions and strategies might work at the meso and exo system levels to better support teachers. When teachers are left unsupported or facing discrimination or marginalisation due to their backgrounds and experiences, this directly affects their wellbeing. It is also a sign of an uncaring learning environment which will negatively impact the whole school community.

ePortfolio Task on Teacher Wellbeing

What should be done at the whole school level to help transform education so that it promotes teachers’ wellbeing and enhances their professional identities as peacebuilders?

Imagine you are the director/ head of your school. You want to bring about transformations to the whole school in order to improve the wellbeing of teachers.

• What three key changes would you make? Can you label each change with the appropriate system (micro, meso, exo etc)?
• What steps would you need to take to start bringing about these changes?

Write or draw your ideas and add them to the ePortfolio (See ePortfolio template). (300-400 words/ half a page in Burmese and Karen)

Over to you

What are your reflections on how teachers found ways to support each other’s wellbeing in the video?

Tell us about the sorts of things that you and colleagues do within your school to support and care for yourselves and each other.