What is Burnout?
What is Burnout?
Burnout is a catchall term used to describe a syndrome of emotional exhaustion and cynicism that occurs in response to the stressors and strains of professional life.
There are 3 distinct features of burnout… emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment.
Emotional Exhaustion:
The educator feels as if they have nothing left to give to others, emotionally or psychologically.
Depersonalization:
The educator experiences psychological detachment and social distancing that disrupts both personal & professional life.
Reduction of Personal Accomplishment:
The educator feels that they are no longer effective in one’s professional responsibilities with students, colleagues and parents.
Common Causes Burnout ... According to Research
- Insufficient planning time.
- Long hours required to meet individual student instructional needs.
- Demands for accountability and excessive paperwork that interferes with classroom responsibilities.
- Lack of instructional support materials.
- Lack of teacher control over designing and implementing curricular practices.
- Professional isolation
- The perceived lack of recognition from administrators.
- Lack of feedback from administrators.
- Collaboration issues with colleagues.
- Lack of support in the classroom.
- Issues related to inclusion and meeting individual student needs.
- Teacher preparation programs are not always adequately preparing pre-professional teachers with realistic expectations, of the profession.
- Lack of training for new educators, focusing on stress reduction, and coping strategies.
- Special educators are often asked to implement various practices, curriculums, and assessments without adequate training and support.
- Studies suggest a strong need for educator training programs to more closely link their training practices to the realities of daily professional practices.
- Difficulty meeting the needs of an increasingly diverse SPED population.
- Lack of student progress, equalling frustration.
- Concerns regarding disruptive students and classroom disciplinary issues.
- Large class sizes, and increasing caseload sizes.
More Than "Too Much Work"
See this article for a good understanding of the difference between burnout and work-related stress.
Take a Burnout Quiz
This quiz, available on other parts of this resource guide, can help you identify factors which might be affecting you.
This article describes the increasing struggles that educators are having in terms of issues involving student discipline and classroom control. The growing instances of disciplinary issues are one of the key factors that contribute to educator burnout.