Discussing journal contents with a colleague maximizes the impact of reflection. Teachers also benefit when they think about what they most enjoy in teaching. Some teachers, for example, value the service aspect of teaching helping students who have few resources beyond the school. Other teachers see their work as an opportunity for creativity, such as through drama and storytelling. When teachers are in touch with those aspects of teaching that most motivate and energize them, and when they are connected with other teachers who have the same interests and motivations, they are positioned to make a personal and significant statement through their teaching.
Teachers nurture their self-reliance when their teaching becomes personal.
Life Experience Much of the self-reliance teachers need to thrive in the classroom comes from activities and experiences they have outside school. School leaders affirm classroom life when they acknowledge teachers' personal lives. The activities teachers engage in outside the classroom offer unique lessons about learning and the pursuit of knowledge. Perhaps no lessons are more important than those that help teachers develop the skills of endurance and those that help create within teachers an adventurous attitude in the face of adversity and change. Also helpful are experiences that enhance a teacher's sense of compassion and humanity.