Teachers are critical to student success, but the profession of teaching is in crisis. When teachers feel a sense of purpose or meaningful significance, it leads to better student achievement, less burnout, and higher job satisfaction. Drawing from original research, this practical resource introduces eight essential elements of mattering that schools need to have for teachers to feel they matter.
This book will help K–12 teachers: - Learn how to integrate less pleasant aspects of the job with one’s values to achieve a goal
- Use the foundational elements of mattering survey and other tools to effect substantive school change
- Make smaller-scale changes to the work environment to meet individual needs
- Understand the purpose and importance of each element of mattering
- Learn about leaders’ obligations when it comes to mattering and what teachers should expect from them
- Explore the implications of all eight elements of mattering for teachers and leaders
Contents: Introduction: A Blinding Flash of the Obvious―The What and Why of Mattering
Chapter 1: Celebrating the Team, Not Just the Score―Community
Chapter 2: Embracing What You See, and That’s a Whole Lot of Me―Authenticity
Chapter 3: Getting Lost in the Moment, With a Good Crowd Around―Flow
Chapter 4: Staying the Course, En Route to My Why―Purpose
Chapter 5: Seeing the Downside as a Necessary Upside―Assimilation
Chapter 6: Getting Real With How We Stack Up―Compensation
Chapter 7: Taking Care to Take Care―Stability
Chapter 8: Letting Things Be Loose–Tight―Job Crafting
Chapter 9: Putting It All Together―Smarter Stuff That Matters
Epilogue: A Fair Adieu
References and Resources
Index
Shelly Wilfong, PhD, is the assistant superintendent at Wawasee Community Schools in Syracuse, Indiana. She has been an educational professional for thirty years, with nineteen of those years as a classroom teacher. Dr. Wilfong’s main responsibilities include all aspects of curriculum, instruction, and assessment. She also enjoys working with education professionals as an adjunct for Indiana State University and the University of Indianapolis. Prior to her current role, she served as a district chief analytics officer. Her main responsibilities included assessment and data analysis, support to staff in understanding and interpreting data, program evaluation, and leading initiatives to improve student achievement.
Throughout her career, she has presented at multiple conferences, both nationally and internationally, including ASCD, International Baccalaureate Americas, and Indiana Association of School Principals. Dr. Wilfong became a National Board Certified Teacher in 2000. While a teacher, she was a guest panelist for National Public Radio’s Talk of the Nation on the topics of teaching students about the presidential election (2000) and student reactions to the Iraq War (2003).
Dr. Wilfong received a bachelor’s degree in history and education from Huntington University in Indiana, a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from Indiana Wesleyan University, and a doctorate from Indiana State University.
Ryan Donlan, EdD, professor in the Department of Educational Leadership in the Bayh College of Education at Indiana State University, served for twenty years in traditional and charter schools in K–12 education―in teaching as well as school building and district leadership. Donlan has taught for years at the college and university level in the areas of leadership, communication, and education, and conducts and offers school program reviews, a variety of training opportunities, consulting services, and professional presentations for educators, stakeholder groups, and organizational leaders.
Donlan, a member of various professional organizations, enjoys robust teaching, scholarship, and service and has been awarded the Holmstedt Distinguished Professorship and the Faculty Distinguished Service Award. He has presented through the United States and abroad on topics such as adaptive communication, leadership agility, and leveraging relationships for professional and personal success, and has served on numerous boards, committees, and task forces and as a frequent faculty sponsor for doctoral dissertations.
Donlan has published articles in a variety of magazines and professional journals, and his books include Minds Unleashed: How Principals Can Lead the Right-Brained Way, The Hero Maker: How Superintendents Can Get Their Boards to Do the Right Thing, The School Board Member Guidebook: Becoming a Difference Maker for Your District, and All Other Duties as Assigned: The Assistant Principal’s Critical Role in Supporting Schools Inside and Out.
Donlan received a bachelor’s degree in social sciences and English from the University of Michigan–Flint, a master’s degree in curriculum design and classroom teaching from Michigan State University, an educational specialist’s degree from Central Michigan University, and a doctorate of education from Central Michigan University.
