Times of crisis may become opportunities for teachers to restate their professional philosophy, to gain agency and to develop ownership of their professional development. I’ll describe the current reality of education in Venezuela and then explore the influence of the crisis on teachers’ performance and their subsequent reactions towards it. From this we’ll assess our own capacity for resilience amidst the challenges we face in the world today.

1. Resilient
Strategies
in Times
of Crisis
The case of Venezuelan
EFL Teachers
Maricarmen Gamero
April, 2019

2. How is
Teacher
Resilience
viewed
here?
- An individual
capacity that
influences the context.
-A construct
influenced by
contextual factors.
-It depends on the
style, personality of
each individual.
-It is dynamic, it
changes according to
the diverse situations
(ups and downs).
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

3. C
O
N
T
E
X
T
ISSUES IN PUBLIC SERVICES
Health system, transportation, Electricity, Connectivity,
Telecommunications, Financial organisation (no cash), Food
SCHOOL CONTEXT
Lack of resources/ School dropout (migration: 3.3 million) /
malnutrition (Reuters/Datanalysis)
LOW MOTIVATION
Years of experience, efforts, further studies are not valued
by the system.
EXTRA INCOME (2-3 JOBS)
Teaching related activities: Spanish teaching
INCREASED INFLATION
1.370.000% (Reuters.com/ Tradingeconomics.com)
OVER 20
YEARS
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

4. Identity
Crisis
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

5. Sometimes I think I am a masochist, but I really
love teaching, I really love being a teacher. It is
something more about passion and vocation that
any other thing. I have a dilemma nowadays,
because I have been offered an opportunity to
have a better income than the one I get by
teaching. I have been thinking a lot about what
decision to make, because my life is teaching. To
make that change and to work on something that
it is not related to education is difficult for me,
because the only thing I know how to do is
teaching, it is the only thing I have done my entire
life.
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

6. Teaching as a
well-being
activity
Life purpose...
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

7. Reflective
Practice
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

8. Connecting with
people
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

9. I am not the same teacher from 2010 who was
stricter, not giving second opportunities, careful
about achieving what was planned. However,
today I think that these circumstances have
transformed me as a teacher, and the vision I had
about the students. In what sense? I am now
more flexible and humanistic. I talk to my
students even more, I try to motivate them in the
sense of giving them advice to come back to
class. So, nowadays you try to find ways to keep
students, supporting them with different
approaches. There is this close relationship
between students and teachers, students see
teachers as humans, as a supporter.
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

10. Situational
Decision-
making
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

11. Use of
available
resources
(Information and Communication
Technologies)
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

12. -Learning
Communities
-PLN
-MOOCS
-Webinars
-EVO
(Free access
resources)
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

13. I try to keep myself updated with
online seminars, I get online and
listen. And of course, reading my
own things, and guiding other
teachers… I am also part of Facebook
groups related to teaching, and a
learning community from one of the
courses I took. I still receive
information. I don’t participate
actively but I do read the
information.
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

14. Personal Learning
Strategies
-Reading
-Writing
-Further Education*
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

15. Collaborative Work
Peer Support
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

16. We support each other at a
pedagogical level. From my own
experience, I give support
concerning assessment strategies,
books, teaching materials. We also
share information about free online
courses, even though it is difficult to
have access because of the
connectivity or lack of technological
devices.
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

17. Mindfulness
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

18. Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

19. Help Others
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

20. … All of this is a dialogic process, I have to do
good, to be able to receive good. What do I get
from staying at home or leave my job? Then,
who is going to teach my son? My son studies
in another school, but you know, it is like this,
you have to do good. If one expects their son
to be taught, to be educated in an institution,
why should I act different from what I expect
his teachers to give him? To receive good, you
have to do good. And I feel that to go through
this “country situation”, to improve this
situation, I think we need to do good, to
receive good.
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

21. EXPERIENCE
Resilience in times
of crisis may
produce different
effects on teachers
depending on their
experience.
Resilient
Strategies
in Times of
Crisis
TEACHING
PHILOSOPHY
-Redefinition of the
teaching and
learning process
AGENCY
-Situational
decision-making
CPD
-Natural learning
experiences
-Ownership of their
development
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

22. thank
you!
a goal setting presentation
by thomas phillips

23. Reflecting
on our
resilience
capacity
as Teachers
-How is language teaching linked to my life
purpose?
- How do I build community with my students,
school administrators and parents?
-What is the role of reflection in my day to day
routine?
-What kind of well-being activity do I practice?
-How do I act in front of challenging
circumstances?
-In what ways do I control negative emotional
reactions in times of crisis?
-What is my perspective about the future?
-What informal and self-directed strategies do I
apply to enhance my professional
development?
Gamero, 2019. Resilient Strategies in Times of Crisis

24. Thank
you!
a presentation
by Maricarmen Gamero