Student/Teacher

Burnout
Professional Development
What do you want
to know about
student/teacher
burnout?
Problem: Teacher/Student Burnout
● There exists an insufficient amount of mindfulness and strategies/techniques offered to educators
and students in preventing and treating burnout.
● American popular culture trends promote success and speed which have created patterns of stress,
anxiety, and burnout among teachers and students.
● There are overwhelming demands with insufficient support or time.
● Burnout has been tied to emotional exhaustion, depersonalization of tasks, and feelings of low
personal accomplishment.
● Social support, personality, and workload were also influences of burnout.
● Burnout can be caused by triggering pre-existing and dormant issues: low self-esteem, lack of self-
confidence, and predisposition to depression.
What is “Burnout”?

● 1974⏤Herbert Freudenberger defines burnout as a description of consequences that were caused by

stress and high expectations.
● For example, careers that require self-sacrifice (doctors, nurses, social workers, educators, and those
pursuing careers)
● Burnout is exhaustion caused by extreme pressure that leads to physical and mental feelings of
exhaustion, emptiness, and an inability to cope with these issues.
● Burnout is currently not defined nor categorized as a disease, but many people are missing work and
leaving careers due to burnout.
Research Overview
● To combat burnout, teachers and students must engage with mindfulness techniques and have
mental wellness education.
● By using professional development hours to educate and practice mindfulness, teachers can obtain
strategies and education they can impart unto their students.
● Burnout indicates existence of fundamental issues in the foundation of school climates
● Addressing burnout and providing resources will create strong-minded teachers and a generation of
level-headed students with the ability to critically analyze their mindfulness and the issues they face.
● Parents, teachers, students, and communities are impacted by the consequences of burnout.
● Current teacher support programs must be equitable to the needs of teachers and do not address
student need in this area.
● Administrative involvement in provision of pedagogical and mindfulness strategies and resources
promote a safe and empowering setting for students and teachers.
Issues and Consequences
Educators and Students Face
● Teachers must:
○ Ensure student proficiency in rigorous standard-based learning
○ Tasked with multiple responsibilities
■ Advisor, counselor, coach, or club leader
● Teacher consequences:
○ Poor teacher retention rates
○ Lack of dedication to roles and participation
● Students must:
○ Master and excel in rigorous learning environments
○ Balance adolescent development
■ School work, work, sports, clubs, grades, homelife, and the pressure to excel in all areas
● Student consequences:
○ Increase in dropout rates
○ Disengagement in the classroom
What is a teacher
consequence of
burnout?
Benefits
● By using these resources you can…
○ Increase your knowledge regarding your own, your peers’, and your students’ mental wellness needs and
abilities.
○ Open doors to conversations with your peers and employers with educated ideals for addressing burnout
epidemics.
○ Promote positive and growth mindsets in your classroom and school
○ Help students and communities become aware of what may be causing discouragement among youths.
● We hope that these resources encourage you to be more mindful and equipped to deal with stress
and triggers.
Introduction to Student Burnout

Hear from an actual student about student burnout and

what you can personally do to combat burnout:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRoEKHmjyh8
Introduction to Teacher Burnout

Now hear from an actual teacher about her experience

with burnout as a first year teacher and what she did to
address her burnout:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vODwmZo-ecY
What are the signs that you are close to
burnout?
● The Chalk Blog: Explore the warning signs of burnout @
https://www.learnersedgeinc.com/blog/warning-signs-of-teacher-
burnout
● Psychology Today: Explore the symptoms of burnout @
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/high-octane-
women/201311/the-tell-tale-signs-burnout-do-you-have-them
How to Prevent Teacher Burnout
(Idealized Version):

● Smaller class sizes

● “Mainstream” students
How to Prevent Teacher Burnout (Reality):

● Minimize professional development commitments for beginning teachers

● Offer mini-courses / seminars addressing common challenges

university partnership – master’s credit

● Collaborate with veteran teachers who are “successful and articulate” in their own
classroom
● Release time

Attend seminars / professional development, collaborate with mentors /

support coaches, observe beginning teachers for feedback and discussion
Collaboration helps prevent teacher burnout.

True False
What have other people done about their
burnout crisis?
Hear personal stories of burnout for both teachers and students @
http://beyondtheworksheet.com/2014/10/teacher-burn-out-your-
stories.html

&

https://www.aureus.nl/what-it-is-like-to-have-a-burnout/
Stress Management Techniques for Teachers

● Self-reflection⏤mentally and professionally

● Identify problem, analyze situation, propose possible solutions

● Prioritize challenges
Tips for Avoiding Stress in the Classroom

● Plan⏤be prepared

● Develop daily routines

● Collaborate⏤mentorship
Stress Management Techniques for Students
● Stay organized

Note taking, mark deadlines, track assignment completion

● Manage time

Schedule time for assignments and relaxation

● Complete assignments in “chunks”

Section work to be completed one step at a time

● Stop procrastinating

Don’t dread tasks or assignments, be proactive

How likely are you to help students be proactive?
Resources
● Aureus. “A Personal Story: what it is like to have burnout.” March. 2016.
● Carter, Sherrie. “The Tell-Tale Signs of Burnout: Do you have them?” Psychology Today.
November 2013.
● Depression: What is burnout? (2017, January 12). Retrieved from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279286/
● Grayson, Jessica. “School Climate Factors Relating To Teacher Burnout: A mediator model.”
● Lindsey. “Teacher Burnout: Your Stories.” Beyond the Worksheet. Teaching and Teacher
Education. Vol 24. Issue 5. July 2008.
● Stansbury, K. and Zimmerman, J. Lifelines for the Classroom: Designing Support for Beginning
Teachers. Retrieved October 10, 2018 from https://www.wested.org/online_pubs/tchrbrief.pdf
● “Warning Signs of Teacher Burnout.” Learners Edge: The Chalk Blog. November 2017.
● YouTube videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRoEKHmjyh8 &
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vODwmZo-ecY
Draw or type 2 things you learned in today’s lesson: