Event Date: 30th September 2022

Abstract:

The world of education is increasingly concerned with issues surrounding the emotional wellbeing of students and teachers. However, there is still much that we do not know about how the specific challenges faced by English language teachers affect their wellbeing and how teachers can be supported in practice.

This talk provides an understanding of teacher wellbeing and reflect on how teacher education could best address the topic of wellbeing for both pre-service and in-service teachers. Raising awareness of wellbeing does not only help to prevent stress among teachers, but also enables teachers of diverse backgrounds and levels of experience to teach effectively and help other members of the school community to flourish and thrive too.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Christina Gkonou is Associate Professor of TESOL and MA TESOL Programme Leader in the Department of Language and Linguistics at the University of Essex, UK. She convenes postgraduate modules on language teacher education and development, and on psychological aspects surrounding the foreign language learning and teaching experience.

She is co-editor of New Directions in Language Learning Psychology (with Sarah Mercer and Dietmar Tatzl), New Insights into Language Anxiety: Theory, Research and Educational Implications (with Jean-Marc Dewaele and Mark Daubney), and The Emotional Rollercoaster of Language Teaching (with Jean-Marc Dewaele and Jim King). She is also co-author of MYE: Managing Your Emotions Questionnaire (with Rebecca L. Oxford) and has published a number of research articles in international, peer-reviewed journals. Her new co-authored book (with Kate Brierton) for Cambridge University Press is on Cultivating Teacher Wellbeing and will be out in October 2022.