Teachers do matter and psychology does as well in our role ... not only in the classroom

Plenary by Sarah Mercer about the importance of psychology in the classroom that not many times is properly considered or talked about.
Do teachers matter?
Will teachers be replaced by AI?
Is this the future of ELT?

This is already happening in Hong Kong

What do teachers do?
Inspire ... make an impact every single day they are inside a classroom,

As educators:

• Relationships are up there in the agenda with our learners, that is the human connections ... it is the foundation, Key element to develop positive relationships inside the classroom and with their peers.
• The right mindset, empathy and praise ... sending positive messages ie. adding the word "yet" when students say they cannot do something.
• Teachers beware of the burnout cascade ... feed on a positive circle. Job satisfaction, "if we are happy at work that makes us successful" not the other way round.

Conclusion found at the lecturer's research paper:

" the role played by socio-emotional competences in the English language classroom. We found that ELT teachers tend to score highly on these competences, which can perhaps be expected, given the highly social and other-oriented nature of teaching generally, and language teaching in particular." (Gkonou, C. & Mercer, S.)

For more information:
Gkonou, C. & Mercer, S., "Understanding emotional and social intelligence among English language teachers", British Council ELT Research Papers 17.03
https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/G211_ELTRA_Gkonou%20and%20Mercer%20paper_FINAL_web.pdf