Causes of Teacher Burnout
Teachers that have been in the field for sometime, are surely aware of teacher burnout. What is
teacher burnout, and how much is it a problem today?
The pressures of teaching can be enormous. Teacher burnout is a common problem amongst English teachers abroad and needs to be addressed. Teachers that really don't want to be in the classroom
rob students of quality education. Simply put, teacher burnout is a loss of enthusiasm for teaching.
Some of the more common causes of teacher burnout are:
- Communication Barriers: English teachers are continuously struggling to communicate with students. Teachers often miss out on deep and rewarding conversations. Instead, an English teacher would engage in shallow talk about the weather, weekend activities and so forth.
- Mental Stimulation: Teachers can only repeat the same questions so many times before boredom sets in. Asking students the same questions week after week can lead to frustration amongst teachers. Furthermore, asking open ended questions such as "How was your weekend?" to get a 1 word reply of "Good", just doesn't impress a teacher.
- Student Personalities: Being forced around students that the teacher otherwise would not associate with.
- Lack of Improvement: A good teacher is rewarded by student improvement. Lack of improvement is another cause of teacher burnout. Students coming to class unprepared with little inclination to study wastes not only the teacher's time but the student's time too.
Burnout is not only a problem within the teaching industry, but also other industries. It's a fact of life that many wake up in the mornings wishing they no longer need to go to work.
With every job comes good and bad points. It's up to the individual to address the problems and progress towards a happier working day.
There are things the teacher can do to improve the situation. However, preventing teacher burnout is a whole new topic and will be discussed in a future blog.