While the world celebrates a new beginning, educators return to the same school year. The spark of August has dimmed, daylight is fleeting, and here in New Hampshire at least, the cold can feel relentless.
In this three-part series, author and educator, Arlène Casimir draws from her work with hundreds of teachers in over 75 schools to offer ways to bring New Year energy to the middle of a school year. In the first episode, she highlights and explores the importance of starting with inner work. She shares insights on how to harness self-awareness to improve classroom dynamics, use mindfulness and journaling to process emotions, and incorporate personal passions into teaching to inspire students.
Transcript
Arlène Casimir:
There is this quote that Rumi has that says, "I was clever and wanted to change the world. And then I became wise and decided to change myself." And that quote makes me realize that when we nurture in our lives, we change our external world. And as an educator, healer, storyteller, and all the titles that I carry in different spaces to introduce myself and my work, I recognize that inner work and supporting others to do the inner work is the foundation of everything that I do. It's a practice of self-awareness, alignment, intentionality. And inner work allows people to discover what it means for them to be authentic and dare to live with personal integrity.
This is so important for me as someone who supports teachers and families and students and leaders. If we're not doing the inner work and thinking that we're changing the world because we're so focused on the children, we'll project whatever feels disingenuous. We'll project whatever's out of alignment. We'll project whatever is not resolved in ourselves onto others. And so, changing ourselves allows us to change what we see in the external world.
Edie:
Many can equate the inner work with introversion. If you want to talk to some of the misconceptions, how you define it or might broaden the definition of the work.
Arlène:
Thinking about inner work, it's so important to recognize that because we live in a culture where people may create dichotomies, like who is doing the work and who isn't. And there are those who do the inner work and those who don't. And I think inner work isn't about limiting this work to introverts or select group of people. It's not about creating a dichotomy or a hierarchy of who is doing the work versus who isn't.
Inner work is about being present with yourself and being clear on what is resolved and unresolved within you, and how that impacts your work and your relationship with yourself, as well as your relationship with others. By being present with ourselves and present with our journey and honest with ourselves about where we are on our journey, that is the beginning of doing inner work. It's dynamic, it's deeply personal, and it's incredibly powerful in community. And so, when people are able to do inner work in community, then they have accountability. It's like sharing your goals.
Edie:
Yeah.
Arlène:
"I want to be a better person by doing X, Y, or Z." Well, when you tell someone, they're more likely to hold you to it. Right?
Edie:
Yeah, absolutely.
Arlène:
And so, that's the purpose of doing inner work in community. It's so that we can be encouraged, inspired, and supported to transform in ways that manifest our highest expression. So what is the journey of inner work like for you? What is the process of inner work like for you? And particularly for educators, both teachers and leaders, it's about recognizing that reflection and growth is an ongoing process that you're teaching in your relationship with others. The more authentic your relationship is with yourself, the better that's going to be mirrored in your relationship with others.
Edie:
I'd love if you could share some of the ways you've seen educators tap into their authenticity and growth. What does it look like in practice?
Arlène:
So I would say that inner work looks like a variety of things in practice. There's no one way to do it, but what I've seen is educators being transparent about what they're growing through and going through in our professional and personal learning experiences. Educators being very transparent about student behaviors that activate or trigger them, and recognizing, "I have a great deal of power in this circumstance. And so, when I am activated by this child, I have the opportunity to respond in a way that perpetuates further harm onto both of us, or that elevates both of us into a new perception, into better understanding." And so, the recognition of that.
In terms of concrete practices, it looks like journaling to process your thoughts, engaging in mindfulness or meditation, going for walk, integrating personal passions into your teaching. What am I passionate about and how could I share that with my students so that they can see my light, they can see my interests? And even if they're not interested in that particular area of interest that I have, they'll be inspired just by the energy that I bring to it. Right?
Edie:
Yeah.
Arlène:
And for example, for me, I've used Haitian storytelling from my family's heritage to connect with students and really invite them to embrace their own cultural identities. And I've seen teachers use their expertise in baking or cooking or playing different sports or having certain interests and just sharing that with kids. Even teachers sharing how excited they are to be new parents, or in my case, to be a new pet mom, to have a fur baby and a puppy, and how that joy is contagious. And students can start to see the transformation and healing that's happening from your pursuit of your passion, which then makes them ask themselves, "What am I passionate about? What brings me joy? What lights me up? And how can I share that with others?" which would be the whole purpose of discovering that through inner work so that we could share it with others.
Edie:
I'm also wondering on the flip side, about some of the implications of not doing the inner work.
Arlène:
So if we go back to the Rumi quote, which is, "I was clever and wanted to change the world and became wise and decided to change myself." I think what happens when educators neglect the inner work is that they engage in a power struggle with others. They encounter resistance from colleagues, from families, from students, because everything they're trying to do is through force as opposed to flow.
And so, when we try to change things externally, it takes a really, really long time. Whereas when we change ourselves internally, everything externally starts to change as well. And so, that is taking full ownership and full responsibility for your life and for your environment, for your circumstances. And that is so powerful to model for children what it looks like to not blame anyone, to not shame anyone, to not further perpetuate and project harm onto others because of your unconsciousness of your own pain and your own problems. Right?
Edie:
Mm-hmm.
Arlène:
And so, that self-awareness, that source of self-regard as Toni Morrison calls it, is so important because it impacts everything about your teaching, your relationships with students, and your overall well-being. It really does.
Edie:
Yeah.
Arlène:
If we are not doing the inner work as educators, we become disconnected from our purpose. "Why am I here? Why am I doing this?" especially when things get difficult. And when we become disconnected from our purpose as educators, we get burned out.
Edie:
Yeah.
Arlène:
So the price of not doing the inner work is burnout. Neglecting the inner work creates a very reactive environment. Notice I didn't say responsive, where you're responding to what you see. It's reactive. And when you are in a reactive stance, that means I'm triggered and I immediately have a reaction, as opposed to a recognition of what has been activated within me and how that's making me feel, what that's making me think, what that makes me want to do to this person or to this child in this particular circumstance. So I think breakthroughs really happen when educators pause, reflect, and connect with, "Who am I and why am I here?"
Edie:
I do keep thinking of the example that you gave. I think it was in a music class, right? I'd love for you to just talk about that specific anecdote of being in that reactive space, right?
Arlène:
Yeah. I'm so glad you brought that up, because I have countless examples of this. But one in particular that I'll mention, and the way that it comes up is to recognize that we all have a shadow. Carl Jung, the Swiss psychologist, came up with this term, the shadow. And he has a quote that says, "Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate."
And so, when we don't make the unconscious conscious, we have these little spills or little, I call it like the shadow peeking out the closet, like, "Hey." It can be very disturbing, disruptive, and it usually comes across as projection, and there are jokes involved. But here's a concrete example. I'm in a classroom with second-graders and a music teacher. And he is teaching them how to be in an orchestra, and he's showing them how to listen to him as the lead. And so, he makes these gestures. I don't know what they're called, so I'm not using the right terms right now, but he makes these gestures with his fingers for them to play, and then for them to stop, for them to play, and then for them to stop. And so, he does this with them, play, stop, play, stop. And finally, when they stop, he claps. He's so excited, and he goes, "I wish that worked with my wife."
Edie:
Ooh.
Arlène:
That is a shadow moment.
Edie:
Yes, it is.
Arlène:
Because under what circumstances is it appropriate for children to hear that?
Edie:
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. It's not.
Arlène:
So right then and there, we learn that he's having a shadow moment. He's not happy with the way that he communicates with his wife. Perhaps he shared this with her, but now if he ever brings his wife to school, his co-teacher and his students have now heard this, his reflection. And so, now there's this perception around who his wife is and how she makes him feel. And also, where are we holding space for children who might have parents who are experiencing discord and how that could impact them in that moment. And so, those shadow moments, those leaks that happen, they catch you off guard.
Edie:
Yeah.
Arlène:
And oftentimes people think, "Oh, it's so innocuous. That was a little joke." But there's always some truth to a joke. And because there's the embrace complexity. Yeah, it may have been a joke to him, and it's also really an example of him not doing the inner work, that that could creep into his teaching. The thing is, that happens to so many people. There are so many times we hear people say really unkind things about themselves, about their family members, about others, not in a way to process, but as a joke, as a quick remark. And those are shadow moments.
Edie:
Yeah. Yeah.
Arlène:
When you're not conscious of it, it just spills and leaks. It gets really messy. Whereas when you're conscious of it, you can think about, "Who would I like to process this with? Is it alone? Is this work I'm doing alone? Is this with a therapist? Is this with a close friend?"
Edie:
Yep.
Arlène:
"What am I seeking to change within myself in this interaction with this person?" That's the inner work. And so, when people are not doing that inner work, there are these messy interactions that happen that could cause unnecessary harm.
Edie:
But how can some of this reflection and introspection maybe on some of these moments that did happen sort of propel the inner work forward?
Arlène:
I think it's so important to recognize the power of authenticity, but also the power of vulnerability to be able to do this inner work. So authenticity is, "Who am I or who do I want to be? And how can I show up as that person fully each day?" And the vulnerability is, "What makes it a challenge to show up as that person? What makes it difficult? What are some habits, thoughts, behaviors, feelings that I'm navigating as I try to show up as that? And what do I feel ready to be transparent about with my students? And where do I feel like I need support?"
And I think by inviting teachers and leaders to do that kind of inner work, you can have a framework to pause. "How does this strengthen my authenticity and create space for vulnerability? And why are those valuable in this profession?" Because we're always teaching children how to change their mindsets, how to grow, how to commit to learning, how to commit to evolving. So by modeling us doing that within our own lives with things that can seem so small and innocuous, can create profound ripple effects of change within our instruction as well as in our students' experiences. Because oftentimes, you'll hear people say, "I want to teach the whole child. I want to support them academically, socially, and emotionally." And so, how are you supporting yourself academically, socially, emotionally, and modeling that for kids? How are you feeling supported?
Edie:
Thanks for tuning in today. Visit blog.heinemann.com to read a full transcript of this episode and to learn more about Arlène, her work, the series, and the live events that accompany this series where you can dive deeper into these topics with Arlène in community. Go check it out.
Arlène Elizabeth Casimir is a Brooklyn-based activist, educator, herbalist, healer, and writer. Her experience teaching middle school and elementary school in New York City and New Orleans awakened her purpose of drawing on culturally-sustaining and trauma-responsive teaching practices to nurture the inner genius and inner teacher in others. She founded, designed, and implemented a healing-centered curriculum for her students post-Hurricane Katrina. As a first generation Haitian American, Arlène recognizes the power of community, equity, literacy, and spiritual resilience to help others live with personal integrity, transcend their circumstances, and author their own lives. She enjoys working with teachers, families, schools, and community organizations to do the inner work for socially just outer change. She is currently studying Clinical Psychology and Education with a concentration in Spirituality Mind Body at Teachers College, Columbia University; and leading her educational consultancy, The Awakened Collaborative, LLC where she works as a staff developer and partner to various institutions that are aligned to her mission, vision, and values as an educator.
