Positive Self-Concept

Dear New Teacher,

Along with a healthy body image, a positive self-concept is essential during adolescence. Self-concept is defined as “ a person’s conscious, cognitive perception and evaluation of himself or herself; one’s thoughts and opinions about oneself” (Dolgin, 2011, p. 151).

Why is a positive self-concept important? This might seem like a pretty obvious question, and to a certain extent it is. A student who feels that they are intelligent and hard-working is more likely to do well in an educational setting than a student who thinks the opposite.

Dolgin (2011) presents the idea of possible selves, “the people he or she might be someday; they refer to the future, not to the present” (p. 151). Our possible selves can be broken into three categories; hoped-for selves, expected selves and feared selves.

Hoped-for self: the people we hope to be in the future.

Expected self: the people we think we will likely be in the future.

Feared self: the people we are afraid of becoming in the future.

Picture the student with low self-esteem, poor grades, who is constantly being told by someone in their life that they are not good enough. That student probably has a difficult time picturing a hoped-for self, and even an expected self.

As educators, it is important to help students build a positive self-concept. My personal philosophy of education is that ALL students have the capability of achieving at their highest potential, and I make sure they know that I feel that way. Sometimes, being a supportive person in their life is enough to make a difference.

As an educator, are there ways you can think of to encourage students to determine their “hoped-for self” and to work towards that goal?

Happy Teaching!

Mallory

Dolgin, K.G. (2011). The adolescent: Development, relationships, and culture (13thed.).              Boston, MA: Pearson.