Crete: Beaches, beauty, and brilliance in the classroom

 

Sunrise over the Venetian lighthouse in Rethymno harbor

Social emotional learning in a third grade language lesson

Social emotional learning in a whole school setting

The island of Crete is, quite simply, gorgeous. So far, I've had the chance to visit two of its towns: Heraklion and Rethymno, and they both have very distinctive characters. Heraklion is a bit grittier and crumbling - owing, I've learned, to earthquakes and severe German bombing during World War II. Despite this, its labyrinthine city streets, Venetian fortifications, and incredibly welcoming people made this city a pleasure to visit. Rethymno is something else. With buildings dating from the 16th century, much of it built during Venetian occupation, it has one of the best preserved old towns in Crete. Add to this delicious food, beautiful beaches, and more of the traditional Greek hospitality and you have a recipe for bliss. I am fully enjoying Greek island life.

I have had the good fortune to be welcomed into a few elementary schools in Crete and the work being done there, in difficult circumstances, is noteworthy. One dynamic fifth grade teacher was trying out group formation of desks and students in her classroom for the first time when I visited, and the way the students collaborated - involving everyone in the group and sharing the task - was impressive. A classroom culture of trust and engagement like this doesn't just happen. When I asked her what she had done to create this with her students, she said that she works with them with "empathy and respect," In her words:

    "I try to work with each student separately and all together as a team. I always tell them that we are a team and I am just the guide. We discuss every single thing about lessons, homework, activities and our feelings. I let them know my lesson goals, each day's structure, my plans and me emotions. Also, they communicate with me their feelings. This happens not only through talking but also through activities. We usually read stories and fairytales, we have learning plays, we have team activities and they have responsibilities such as the food as you saw today or our pet."

Again and again, I have met teachers here in Greece who are skilled practitioners, with highly engaged students who are truly excited to be in school and learn. This is despite some very difficult circumstances. In that same 5th grade classroom who was working so well together, approximately one fourth of them were dealing with learning difficulties such as ADHD and dyslexia, and several had difficult home situations - parents in psychiatric care, families in flux because of illness, financial difficulties. The teacher spoke to me of the progress many of her students had made since the beginning of the school year - emotionally, behaviorally, academically. 

These challenges are not limited to students, though. Teachers face steep roadblocks. Many of them are paying well over half to one third of their salaries just to pay for housing. Also, although teachers in the public schools are ensured of a job, they can be transferred to a different school from year to year involuntarily. This on top of all of the other challenges presented by subsequent years of COVID have led to problems with teacher morale very similar to those in the U.S.  

I spoke about these issues with Anastassios Matsopoulos, permanently certified school psychologist since 1991 and Associate Professor of School Psychology at the University of Crete, who kindly made time to meet with me and some people in the Rethymno education office that works on assessing students for learning and emotional needs. The challenge they face is how to support students and teachers within this system. I shared one of the solutions we've been trying out at Paradise High - a group of teachers who meet regularly to collaborate and share ideas for how to better support our students. Over my 25 years of teaching, I've learned that teachers need community. Teaching can be an incredibly isolating pursuit, and connecting with other teachers is the lifeblood of not only learning how to be a better teacher, but also making teaching a joyful pursuit. Just as in Greece, there are some incredibly effective learning going on in teachers' classrooms and it is incredibly empowering for teachers to share their challenges and triumphs with other teachers. And so, the professor and the other educators I met with decided to pilot a teacher connection group in Greece that I will help out with. There are, of course, cultural considerations - for all our commonalities, the Greek education system is definitely different than the U.S. one - but I truly believe that all teachers can benefit from connection with colleagues.  In my experience, other teachers have always been the best professional development.

Bonus: I was interviewed for a Greek podcast a few weeks ago and it just came out. I talk about PHS, poetry, and how I teach research skills through podcasting. Here it is if you're interested. I don't think it gets really good until around the 8 minute mark.