The teacher reset: how our past can help educators recharge today

Many years ago, I read the log books of Victorian Village schools in rural districts of Bedfordshire, fifty miles north of London. These log books had been written during the first few years of compulsory schooling in the county. I’d call the school to ask whether they had a Victorian log book and after explaining my interest in rhythm-based teaching and learning, would then accept the school’s kind invitation to drop by and search for 'hidden treasure' to help my research project. These log books belonged to the archive of each school and contained handwritten daily records of the work of the school teacher. They were written out in meticulous copperplate script. So, in my spare moments, I travelled from school to school and I scoured these log books looking for references to rhythm-based learning such ‘drill’ or singing or reciting poetry or chanting times tables.

Inside the log books

My efforts went largely unrewarded, but instead I found a different kind of rhythm. The seasonal rhythms of spring, summer, autumn and winter. The summer and autumn frustrated the despairing schoolteachers the most because the school room would be absolutely empty. If the children were needed for tasks on the land such as picking fruit, harvesting crops and more aggravating of all, taking part in three-day festivals. The locals celebrated the name day of every saint imaginable. These were the traditions that tied the local community to the land, as well as to traditional singing, dancing and celebration. Each schoolteacher was left helpless and unable to persuade families to send their children to school during these times. Attendance was very low for these reasons and the school teachers would pour their anguish into the pages of their log book.

In school after school, I read entires that simply shared the dread of facing the school inspector and receiving his criticism. Each schoolteacher knew the news would be bad - very bad in fact. In every school, I read log book entires that told this same story. The teacher was blamed for low attendance and received no support whatsoever.

'Shadow labour'

One hundred years later, Arlie Hochschild dissected the role of emotion in the workplace in her incredible book, ‘The Managed Heart’ Commercialization of human feeling. This book is about working for airlines as flight crew personnel in the 1980s, but the message can be applied more broadly. In the book, Hochschild identified and illuminated a particular aspect of people-facing work which she coined ‘shadow labour’ - the unseen and unacknowledged effort which is not in the contract, but is an essential part of getting the job done.

I think we have all been in a situation where we discover that what is being asked of us goes beyond the remit. I speak to educators for example, who are always saying that teachers are being asked to do so much more now. So, if you find yourself doing something that is completely new, for example supporting a child with 'toileting', rather than teaching them phonics, you might wonder to what extent you are being asked to give a 'personal' service. Hochschild asked this question, ‘What is my work role and what is me?’ p. 181. In my opinion this question speaks to the repositioning of the blurred line between professional and personal services.

It’s striking that the context of Hochschild’s 'shadow labour' also speaks to a power dynamic. This power relationship amplified the status of the person in power and diminished that of the subordinate. The Victorian school log books illustrated this beautifully. We know from neuroscience that repetition in the context of emotional intensity strengthens neural wiring. I saw repeated descriptions of fear and anguish documented week after week in all the log books I read. I am in no doubt that the school teachers suffered from the effects of scrutiny not only from the inspectors and the school board but they also felt the disrespect from parents, and perhaps even the children.

Serotonin levels and social status

Research by Raleigh and colleagues (1984) into the power dynamics of monkeys showed that the monkeys who were positioned near the top of the social hierarchy were calm and had higher impulse control. These behaviors were associated with their higher levels of serotonin. Lower status moneys had lower serotonin levels and were more reactive. The more socially privileged monkeys maintained their status by looking the lower status monkeys in the eye. As soon as researchers blocked the monkeys’ eye contact, the dominance and serotonin levels of high status monkeys began to drop. Lower ranking moneys rose to prominence when they were given serotonin supplements. And when researchers manipulated the status of the monkeys, their serotonin levels spontaneously adjusted to reflect their new position in monkey 'society'.

From social expectation to social deception and self-defeat

It seems that neurochemistry can be dialed up and down through a few simple steps. Hochschild investigated this and drilled into the underlying mechanics of power dynamics and 'shadow' labour, drawing on the work of Stanislawski, the founder of ‘Method Acting’. He distinguished between the immediate effect of surface acting versus the powerful impact of deep acting (aka method acting). Pointing to this, Hochschild said, ‘We are capable of disguising what we feel, of pretending to feel what we do not - of doing surface acting.’ 2. Deep acting.. ‘involves deceiving oneself as much as deceiving others. In surface acting we may deceive others about what we really feel, but we do not deceive ourselves.’(p.33).

If 'shadow' labour demanded a certain amount of tolerance - for example, supporting a particular child with toileting day after day, and the natural way to manage this would be to pretend that you don’t mind, then that would amount to 'surface acting'. But if one person takes on the toileting role for a group of children day after day, the repetition and intense emotion (resentment, frustration, suppression of anger) could eventually give way to a deeper form of acting - one in which the self 'gives way' to the pressure of the situation.

Professional dignity

Perhaps the Victorian school teachers, experienced similar frustration and resentment. They were isolated and pushing hard against the tide of local farming traditions and the rural calendar of festivals and religious celebrations that had been in place for many generations. Reading those logs, it seemed obvious to me that these teachers were dedicated. They cared, and they remained absolutely professional because they wanted every child to learn to read, write and excel in arithmetics (and sewing). The inspectors of those days would not hesitate to sack a teacher and appoint a replacement. I remember holding my breath as I turned the page in one log book and then, feeling so moved. It was heartbreaking to see the words on the page - she'd recorded so beautifully that her employment at the school had been terminated.

The post-pandemic mask

At the end of term, keeping going and finishing strong are such admirable qualities that can build character as well as professionalism. At the same time, I think Hochschild’s shattering work on 'shadow labour' shines a light on the power dynamics that can become very stressful in education, especially as the system adapts to a new context post-pandemic.

How many times have you needed to put on a cheerful mask, just to keep going, especially in the last few weeks? If this resonates, please understand the profound importance of resting deeply from so much sustained emotional effort and 'shadow labour'. Remember how incredible you are, no matter what has been asked of you this year.

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RFERENCES

M.J. Raleigh et al. (1984) Social and environmental influences on blood serotonin concentrations in monkeys. Archives of General Psychiatry, 41, 505-10 cited from, Van Der Kolk, (2014) The body keeps the Score: Brain Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma, Penguin

Arlie Russell Hochschild (2012) The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling. Second edition, published by University of California Press