Event Date: 26th August 2022

Abstract:

Language teaching is intrinsically emotional and can produce feelings of anger, frustration, disappointment, and anxiety; but it can also unleash feelings of happiness, pride, excitement, delight, and utter joy.

In this webinar, we explore the importance of feeling and acknowledging an array of emotions in teachers’ lives so that we can nurture our own wellbeing.

Among the topics we address are socio-emotional competence, the role of positive and negative emotions, emotional self-regulation, and how to combat negativity bias and harmful emotional labour via self-compassion and positivity.

Building on these notions, we turn to conscious strategies for teachers to find joy, meaning and purpose in their professional and personal lives.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Tammy Gregersen, a professor of TESOL at the American University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, received her MA in Education and PhD in Linguistics in Chile, where she began her academic career.

She is co-author, with Sarah Mercer, of Language Teacher Wellbeing, published by Oxford University Press. Together with Peter MacIntyre, she wrote the books, Capitalizing on Language Learner Individuality and Optimizing Language Learners’ Nonverbal Communication in the Language Classroom. She is also a co-editor with Peter and Sarah Mercer of Positive Psychology in SLA and Innovations in Language Teacher Education.

She has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and contributed several chapters in applied linguistics anthologies on individual differences, teacher education, language teaching methodology and nonverbal communication in language classrooms.