Supportive Groups for Teachers in Time of War / קבוצות תמיכה למורים בשעת חירום
War and crisis conditions disrupt individual and group psychological equilibria by giving rise to stress situations and anxieties which require new forms of adaptation. Teachers are not only deeply affected by their own personal tensions — as are other civilian groups — but also by their pupils'...
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Published in: | ʻIyunim be-ḥinukh no. 12; pp. 27 - 36 |
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Main Authors: | , |
Format: | Journal Article |
Language: | Hebrew |
Published: |
אוניברסיטת חיפה, בית-הספר לחינוך
01-09-1976
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | Get full text |
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Summary: | War and crisis conditions disrupt individual and group psychological equilibria by giving rise to stress situations and anxieties which require new forms of adaptation. Teachers are not only deeply affected by their own personal tensions — as are other civilian groups — but also by their pupils' tensions; both of these forces burden the class's learning and emotional atmosphere. This paper discusses an attempt to help teachers cope more effectively with these problems by means of group intervention. One experiment, conducted during the Yom Kippur War, was based on two types of groups : a) a group composed of teachers from different schools and having no previous experience of working together (the "heterogeneous group") and b) teams of teachers working in the same school (the "natural group"). The method adopted was based on "Free Floating Discussion" (Foulkes) which permits — in a non-directive, accepting atmosphere — a free choice of topics and of depth of emotional expression. Because of the general high anxiety level due to the war situation, two modifications of this method were introduced : a) the focusing of the discussion on concrete situations, and b) the leader's avoiding interpretations and maintaining a passive position. The processes emerging in the two types of groups differed according to their specific setting and composition. In the "natural group" the atmosphere established was warm but well-controlled by ego forces. The themes discussed centered primarily around the pupils' reactions to the war. Well balanced group work was maintained by the participants' avoidance of a direct expression of their own anxieties and by their extreme dependence on the leader's authority and guidance. In contrast, the participants of the heterogeneous group focused more on the expression of their own true feelings and reactions : Helplessness, aggression, rebellion against educational authority figures, questioning of normative values, etc... Along with these marked differences, the two forms of intervention eventually enabled a release of tensions and the creation of a supportive milieu and "we feeling". These experiences proved to meet the needs of the teacher as woman, passively living among the destructive and hostile forces of a "world-at-war". A comparison with another experience in the Six Day War indicates that when teachers participate in "self-experience groups" (Abraham) over long periods of time, they can easily take advantage of group intervention in crisis. They become less defensive, and hence are able to express and work-through their feelings in a mutually supportive network, which, in turn, enhances their capacity to deal with the demands of the emergency situation in a more independent and adequate manner. The teacher's reactions and the group dynamics are analysed in the framework of Bion's theory which deals with object relations and their related defense mechanisms. Both "Fight and Flight", and "Dependency" phenomena are discussed in the context of the teachers' training and their professional style of working in a hierarchical educational system in which women occupy subordinate positions. |
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ISSN: | 0793-4637 |