Educator Wellness                              

Instructor:  Kelly Moran, Ed.D. 
Cell Phone: (440) 376-0673                               
Email:  kellyannteacher@gmail.com

Office hours:  anytime, simply send an email.  I will respond within 24-48 hours.        

INTRODUCTION

ED594Z is designed to enhance and grow the intellectual capacity of paraprofessionals, teachers, administrators, and district leaders in the domain of Employee Health and Wellness.  Participants will engage in intellectual and reflective experiences that will broaden their knowledge on wellness, wellbeing, and healthy workplace environments.  Participants will consider how wellness impacts teacher and school effectiveness as well as our local, state, and national educational systems.   This course will address how individual educators as well  as school organizations as a whole, can develop and implement evidence based health practices that help to increase and accelerate well being, happiness, and quality of life.

Ohio’s Strategic Plan for Education, ODE’s Each Child, Our Future, includes 10 priority strategies that support accessible and quality learning experiences for children.  Of the ten strategies, three apply specifically to excellent educators and instructional practices.  We cannot expect teachers and leaders to perform their best if they are not in good physical, mental, and emotional health. This course aligns with the three educator strategies in the state’s plan (outlined below) as it affords teacher leaders the skills, content, and experiences necessary in growing and refining their personal and collective health and wellness knowledge and practices.  

The following are the Excellent Educators & Instructional Practices referenced in ODE’s strategic plan:

Strategy 1: Increase the supply of highly effective teachers and leaders and provide supports to ensure they are effective or highly effective.

Strategy 2: Support every principal to be highly effective—especially those leading schools that serve the neediest children

Strategy 3:  Improve targeted supports and professional learning so teachers can deliver excellent instruction today, tomorrow and throughout their careers.

In addition, The Ohio Department of Education has created a Supporting School Wellness Toolkit that reminds educators that “it is okay to ask for help” and that it is important for all educators to “be ready to respond to those who need additional support.”  This course aligns with the Supporting School Wellness Toolkit in that it prioritizes informing educators on the current data and trends surrounding health and wellness alongside viable strategies for support, management, and improvement. 

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Candidates will learn to use analytical practices to critically review and critique data analysts have collected and studied regarding workplace stress.   The course will provide participants with the knowledge and skills needed to understand and support a healthier lifestyle that includes both professional responsibilities and personal choices.   Contents that will be covered include:  burnout and turnover, the link between wellness and performance, and effects of stress on the heart, brain, weight, and relationships.  Participants will learn what the data says about the current teaching force in America in regards to stress, red flags and warning signs, and resources and strategies to experience a healthier state of existence in the workplace. The course will provide educational professionals with the knowledge and skills needed to support individual and/or school wide wellness initiatives and best practices for preventing deteriorating health conditions. 

This is a 100% online asynchronous class and no face to face meetings are required to complete this course. 

INSTRUCTOR’S STATEMENT

This syllabus may be modified at any time by the instructor.  The class will be informed of any changes, but it is the responsibility of the students to make themselves aware of these changes. Please contact me in case of any confusion, concern or question. 

REQUIRED TEXTS

All required readings are linked in the  assignment document.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

National and State Standards	Knowledge Objectives	Learning Tasks	Assessment Tasks
Standard Alignment (OSTP, ILA)	Evidence that demonstrates competence includes the ability to:	Course objectives are  introduced & explored through:	Course objectives are assessed through:
OSTP 1 ILA 1.1 ILA 4.2	Define stress and burnout	Video Lecture Article Readings Discussion Posts	Assigned Readings Discussion Posts Lesson Quizzes Graphic Organizers Written Reflections
OSTP 2              ILA 2.3	Restate a minimum of three facts about educator wellness and teacher turnover	Video Lecture Article Readings Discussion Posts	Assigned Readings Discussion Posts Lesson Quizzes Graphic Organizers Written Reflections
OSTP 2 ILA 2.3	Differentiate between workplace stress effects on the brain and workplace stress effects on the heart	Video Lecture Article Readings Discussion Posts	Assigned Readings Discussion Posts Lesson Quizzes Graphic Organizers Written Reflections
OSTP 2 ILA 2.3	Disprove widely held myths that mental health supports are only for those who are labeled as clinically depressed	Video Lecture Article Readings Discussion Posts	Assigned Readings Discussion Posts Lesson Quizzes Graphic Organizers Written Reflections
OSTP 1 ILA 2.2	List (a min of) three red flags /warning signs of physical effects of workplace stress	Video Lecture Article Readings Discussion Posts	Assigned Readings Discussion Posts Lesson Quizzes Graphic Organizers Written Reflections
OSTP 2,4,5 ILA 2.2                ILA 4.3	Explore tools to improve workplace wellbeing	Video Lecture Article Readings Discussion Posts	Assigned Readings Discussion Posts Lesson Quizzes Graphic Organizers Written Reflections
OSTP 1,2,4 ILA 1.1	Identify elements in the workplace that can be amended to promote healthier living and greater wellbeing	Video Lecture Article Readings Discussion Posts	Assigned Readings Discussion Posts Lesson Quizzes Graphic Organizers Written Reflections
OSTP 2, 4         ILA 2.3	State what to avoid in a school setting to help prevent and remediate increased cases of teachers burnout	Video Lecture Article Readings Discussion Posts	Assigned Readings Discussion Posts Lesson Quizzes Graphic Organizers Written Reflections

 

CLASS PARTICIPATION

Students are expected to actively engage in online class discussions, article readings, online tasks, and individual assignments.  Students are also encouraged to ask questions and use analytical reflection and conceptual skills to develop their own thoughts and conclusions on how to apply learned concepts to their respective work environments. 

Class participation rubric:  3 Credit Educator Wellness Participation Rubric

 

ASSIGNMENTS    

➤Assignment one (read) - a  reading assignment.

➤Assignment two (lecture) - an assignment in which you will watch a short recorded lecture by the professor.

➤Assignment three (watch) - a viewing assignment in which you will watch a posted video.

➤Assignment four (create)- an artifact posting assignment.  You  will be required to post an artifact you create related to a given prompt or participate in a discussion post with classmates.

➤Assignment five (session quiz)- a knowledge check on the content covered.  This Google form will consist of 3 questions. 

 

GRADING - ASSIGNMENT POINTS

Participation	30  points
Artifact Assignments (12 total)	12 points each / 144 points total
Session Quizzes (11 total)	6 points each / 66 points total
Post Test	66 points
Final Project	80 points
	Total course points available - 386

References:

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2. Well Being In the Nation Network. (n.d.). Vital conditions. Retrieved from https:// winnetwork.org/vital-conditions

3. Kleine, A.-K., Rudolph, C. W., & Zacher, H. (2019). Thriving at work: A meta-analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 40(9-10), 973-999. https://doi. org/10.1002/job.2375

4. Adams, J. M. (2019). The value of worker well-being. Public Health Reports, 134(6), 583–586. Sagepub. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033354919878434

5. Peters, S. E., Dennerlein, J. T., Wagner, G. R., & Sorensen, G. (2022). Work and worker health in the post-pandemic world: A public health perspective. The Lancet Public Health, 7(2). https://doi.org/10.1016/s2468-2667(21)00259-0

6. Reddy, K. P., Schult, T. M., Whitehead, A. M., & Bokhour, B. G. (2021). Veterans Health Administration’s whole health system of care: Supporting the health, well-being, and resiliency of employees. Global Advances in Health and Medicine, 10, 21649561211022698. https://doi.org/10.1177/21649561211022698

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12. Office for Civil Rights. (2009, January 15). Civil rights requirements – federal employment discrimination laws. Retrieved from: https://www.hhs.gov/civil-rights/ for-individuals/special-topics/needy-families

13. U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division. (2012). Fact sheet #28: The family and medical leave act. Retrieved from: https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ WHD/legacy/files/whdfs28.pdf

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16. Brigham, T., Barden, C., Dopp, A. L., Hengerer, A., Kaplan, J., Malone, B., ...Nora, L. M. (2018). A Journey to Construct an All-Encompassing Conceptual Model of Factors Affecting Clinician Well-Being and Resilience. NAM Perspectives. https:// doi.org/10.31478/201801b

17. Schulte, P. A., Guerin, R. J., Schill, A. L., Bhattacharya, A., Cunningham, T.
R., Pandalai, S. P., Eggerth, D., & Stephenson, C. M. (2015). Considerations for Incorporating “Well-Being” in Public Policy for Workers and Workplaces. American Journal of Public Health, 105(8), e31–e44. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2015.302616

18. Hudson, H. L., S., N. J. A., Sauter, S. L., & American Psychological Association. (2019). In Total Worker Health (pp. 29–45). American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/pubs/books/4316192

19. Institute of Medicine, C. A. W. P. H. P. N. N. (2005). Integrating employee health: A model program for NASA. https://doi.org/10.17226/11290

20. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (2016). Sustainability in the workplace: A new approach for advancing worker safety and health. Retrieved from: https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/OSHA_ sustainability_paper.pdf

21. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). (2022). Addressing Burnout in the Behavioral Health Workforce through Organizational Strategies. Retrieved from: https://store.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/SAMHSA_Digital_Download/pep22- 06-02-005.pdf

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