There are those who said it is the most beautiful profession in the world, that of the teacher. But more and more to be able to teach children, teenagers, young people and university students linked to a series of tasks and social problems that make it really difficult to prune forward their mission. All this, with a load of stress that in some cases can prove extremely intense, so much so as to lead to real burnout. To report it is a research conducted in Australia, which however proposes global issues.
What the study says
The research was conducted by UNSW researchers (University of the New South Wales) of Sidney, coordinated by Helena Granziera. The survey emerges an extremely high percentage of teachers who suffer from serious stress, with 70% of interviewees who reveals how the workload is unmanageable. But above all by the study, conducted on the basis of experiences that involved in the narrative just under 5000 teachers of primary and secondary school of the country, it emerges that the rates of depression, anxiety and stress in Australian teachers are tripled compared to the national average. In particular, he found that these mental health problems are three times higher than the national average.
The research entitled “Teachers’ Workload, Turnover intentions, and Mental Health“It was published on Social Psychology of Education. The researchers discovered that 90% of teachers reported levels of moderate to extremely serious stress, while over two thirds have shown symptoms of depression and moderate anxiety to extremely serious. In a note from the University, the same Grantziera reveals:
“This is not just a matter of well -being, but a question of workforce. Our results show that teachers show symptoms of mental health at rates well higher than the general population and that these symptoms are closely related to their workload and their intention to abandon the profession”.
The research was based on validated psychological measures (the DASS test) revealing in conclusion that the average scores of teachers for depression, anxiety and stress included in the “extremely serious” band.
Because it happens and how much impact on education
The research also found that the management of the workload represents a key factor when it comes to evaluating teachers’ mental health. Do you think that teachers with the perception of a workload as unmanageable have shown significantly higher probability of presenting signs and symptoms of depression, with consequences on their choices to continue or abandon the profession.
Of particular importance in this sense would be the bureaucratic duties. As the expert always reveals, the non -essential tasks would be mainly, rather than the teaching itself.
“The administrative obligations, the obligations of conformity and the excessive collection of data are subtracting time from planning the lessons and the involvement of the students. This is leading to the burnout and a sense of professional disillusionment”
Comment in the Note Granziera.
It must be said that, compared to the Italian situation, in Australia the panorama appears different. According to what some information from the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership report, almost 30% of teachers are evaluating the idea of abandoning the profession before retirement age. The results shown in the study add further urgency to these concerns, demonstrating that bad mental health, in particular depression, is a significant predictive factor of turnover intentions.
In short, improve working conditions appears to be fundamental. Also and above all in rural and more remote areas. All this, also to improve the prospects of the new generations. If the psychological and mental state of the teacher is lacking, in fact, there is repercussions on the well -being of students and in conclusion to impacts on the global quality of the class, with potential influences on school performance.
