How many days does it take for a teacher to have had enough?
An article posted by TimesDaily.com states nearly half of teachers quit within the first five years of teaching. When people think of dropout rates, they usually think of students who don’t make it through high school. But actually the dropout or burnout rate for teachers is even higher. The teachers who dropout first are usually the most qualified teacher and leave because they have an easier time finding work somewhere else because of their qualifications. Why are teachers leaving? Due to budget cut backs, NCLB, and increased paperwork teachers are finding they can be of service in some other career.
What is causing such a fast burnout rate? Teacher burnout is caused by several reasons and may vary from teacher to teacher. A new teacher soon finds out the day does not stop when the last bell rings and also finds out the work does not stop even on the weekends. Correcting papers, planning lessons, evaluating test scores, and other resource gathering takes time, lots of time. State and Federal guidelines also put burden and stress on a teacher to meet goals in student growth which sometimes seem unattainable. Finally the lack of funding and support can cause missing materials, textbooks and a substandard workplace, which can push a teacher to find work someplace else.
So what can be done to prevent teacher burnout? First things first, THINK POSITIVE! Make to do lists that are attainable and detailed. If you make a list with huge expectations, you are more likely to fail. But setting goals which are easy to attain quickly will give you a sense of satisfaction and pride. Accept there are some things in teaching you cannot change. Relax, watch a movie that makes you laugh, and try something new. Don’t bring your work home with you, leave the teaching at school. Get plenty of sleep every night. Talk with positive people, especially teachers. Finally, celebrate what it means to be a teacher and be thankful for what you have.
Still struggling to continue teaching? Check out the Top 10 Reasons to Become a Teacher, from student potential and success and daily humor, this list sums up some great reasons to become a teacher. Not only will you stay younger when you are teacher, but will have your summers off (which they listed as number 10). But I think the most important reason is the impact a teacher has on the future. They have their hands on so many lives; they will have a huge impact on the future and many more to come.
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I can hold this subject near and dear to my heart. I would definitely say I long suffering from teacher burn out. I am not sure where I read/heard this but I think music teachers burn out rate is 12 yesars. I have taught 17 years as a music teacher. I have surpassed the expectancy. Over the last 9 months I have waffled back and forth as to whether I should quit teacing and find something else to do. I opted for a happy medium. I took a sabbatical for one school year. It is to help me collect my thoughts and figure out what I 'really' want to do. (Plus I am expecting a baby in 1 week, so the maternity leave is great on sabbatical as compared to the school leave policy!) Since I have been off I have discoverd I miss the income - duh! But in applying for 2 "real" jobs I almost broke out into a cold sweat thinking about having to work every week day of the year and not having the summers off. That is totally scary to me! For 17 years I have had summers off. Now that I have small children I don't think I can give that up. I think it is a shame that my teacher burn out has nothing to do with teaching. My dissatisfaction has to do with so many other things other than teaching, that take place in the school. If I could just teach, I would be happy. I am such a waffler because every time I think I have had it with teaching, I think of summer break and then things don't seem to bad. Teaching is a great gig and if you can grow a thick skin like my mom always tells me to do,in order to not be bothered by the burn out material,then one might become immune to teacher burn out.
ReplyDeleteELizabeth Haraseth
It takes a unique kind of person to become a teacher. Teachers have to have lots of patience. I do not think everyone thinks about the large amount of disrespect teachers have to put up with also. Not only from students put also from parents. Teaching can be a very thankless job. I know there was a time during my 7th year of teaching that I thought, “what am I doing?” I applied at a few jobs during the summer and nothing panned out so I came back to work in the fall. It turned out that my 8th year was my best year ever. I had lost my two toughest students and gained some amazing students who have been in my program for three years now. I am glad I stuck it out.
ReplyDeleteI understand why teachers leave the profession. When I decided to pursue my graduate degree in education I did a little soul searching as to whether or not it was worth the investment of time and money. I decided I was generally content with my job and wold stay in teaching.
ReplyDeleteThere are two points you made that I would like to address. First, though we get alot of time off, I don't feel we get the entire summer off. I have to use summer time to update curriculum, attend classes or workshops and summer vacation is getting shorter with school opening the 3rd week of August. Second, I can't see how to avoid bringing work home unless you spend more time at school. Either way the time is spent. I think people entering into the career need to be very honest with themselves regarding these two points. I look at it as I do a year's worth of work in 9 months. I also consider I work an 8 hour day; 7 hours at school and an additional hour preparing/correcting. I think the attitude that teachers work from bell to bell and have 3 months of vacation each summer attracts people to the profession but when reality sets in they become discouraged and change careers.
Very interesting blog Jenna. I think the current changes in education is forcing higher rates of teacher burnouts. I know I was quite surprised at the actual job of a teacher when I started teaching. I don't think I prepared myself for all the extra work beyond teaching, correcting and lesson plans. I never knew what NCA (school improvement) was or how we were to use so many test scores to implement individual learning plans. I will admit that I have days where I think there is no way I can do this for the rest of my life because I will burn out but then there are times that I appreciate the summer off to "renew" myself and other breaks throughout the year.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that our job is a thankless job. I don't think the general public knows what we have to put up with. I even had a high school teacher say to me that elementary teaching must be so easy because we don't have to give much homework or anything, to say the least I almost fell over! I don't think we are ever going to receive the thank yous we want and people probably won't understand that our job isn't easy because we have summer off or understand that our job does not stop when the bell rings but I think we have to ignore those judgements and remember why we became a teacher. I like the list you included, we wanted to be teachers for a reason so we need to remember that and realize that non teachers will not 100% understand the teacher profession.
This article about teacher burn out is very accurate. It often feels that we as teachers have gotten the short end of the stick, but we also have several positives that are not true in other jobs. Summers and holidays off to spend with children is just one of the many perks we have as teachers. I admit I would love a higher pay scale but instead of complaining I went back to school and will continue in school.
ReplyDeleteI fully admit I thought I lost my mind my first year teaching. I thought... I went to school to be put through all of this, I must be nuts. Then I learned that my students love me regardless of what teaching materials my school refuses to pay for and how little I make. There are not many jobs like ours that touch the lives of so many in such short of time. Great article choice.
Jenna,
ReplyDeleteYou provide some amazing thoughts on how frustrated teachers can get. Still technically in my first year, it has been rough. I know others who have become so fed up with everything that they have walked away. Even though I have been so angry or frustrated at times, I have not lost sight of my goals. It is extremely difficult to be a teacher these days and not every one realizes that and it is sad. We are taken advantage of so much and never receive the true funding or support we deserve. When you have a teacher who has employable skills outside of being a teacher, it can be very tempting to do something else. When a deal is offered that means you don't have to report grades all the time, deal with students who don't care, or deal with adults who are so enthralled with themselves and do not care about you, it can be tempting to leave. There are so many rewards of being a teacher, yet so many drawbacks, you have to weigh your options. If someone isn't totally committed there is always a chance they can take off.
When I was coaching, I heard the term burnout way too often. Every time someone wanted an excuse to quit, or got tired of a sport they were burned out. The reality is that I don't believe there is a thing such as burnout. Burnout is just another way of being tired of pressure, lack of committment, or just wanting to do something else.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I believe part of the problem I saw with coaching. When I started coaching back in the '70s, the people serious about coaching made a committment to continue as long as they made a difference (and some beyond that point). In the last few years, I have seen more people start coaching but quit when it becomes a distraction to their family or social life.
I am not entirely sure that part of the so called burnout of teachers isn't the same thing. It sounds like a good idea, but when things get tough or they get a better offer they leave teaching. The ones that remain are the ones who went into teaching for the right reasons...to make a difference in the life of our youth.
I agree that staying positive is the best way to get through the tough times. I hate to be around negative people. When I find myself getting frustrated or developing negativity, I get some inspirational music (what kind depends on my mood) and reflect on the good versus the bad and ask myself why I went into teaching and am I still enjoying what I do. It seems that when I am at my lowest point I will have a student reinforce for me that I am making a difference and all is good with the world.
I became a technology teacher because i love the type of work it entails. I really don't think that the math teachers set out to grade tests and give home work. All the work my students do is done in class. I have a budget that would make any other teacher in the school ripe with envy. I picked the coolest teaching job in the school and got certified in it. My solution not getting burnt out is to pick the teaching position that is the most fun. I don't see gym teachers getting burnt out much.
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