Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, an increasing importance is being placed on mental and emotional well-being, especially that of teachers. With the widespread learning loss and a lack of student interest and motivation due to the pandemic, teachers all around the country have expressed feeling “burnt out” or too tired, and in need of a better work-life balance, according to the National Education Association.
In order to combat this burn out, managing a good work-life balance is important for mental and physical health, math teacher Ivy Nguyen said. The biggest contributors to her workload have been picking up an Advanced Placement (AP) class of multiple periods, as well as learning to manage the extra time commitment outside of school that is necessary to be able to teach the class, Nguyen said.
“This year I’ve been very good at not working at home and working less after hours,” Nguyen said. “I’ve just learned that it’s not the end of the world for me or the kids if some work that I need to do or grading by me is slightly delayed for just the betterment of my own health,” she added.
However, last year, teacher burnout felt very real due to the shortage of substitute teachers, as many teachers had to spend their preparation periods supervising other classes, Nguyen added.
When asked about burnout, “the specific event that causes more stress or burnout than any other is Music in the Parks. It is a ton of work and it’s five straight weeks in a row, but it raises money for the music programs, which is the reason I do it,” Music teacher Emily Moore said.
Moore added that online teaching was a lot more work than expected, especially for subjects like music, which often do not translate well virtually, she said. However, coming back from online learning gave her clarity on her priorities, so she would not be stressed like in years before the pandemic, Moore said.
“I used to have a very generous late work policy,” Moore said. “It ended up making a lot more work for me because I would get students who would do everything right before the grading period ended. So I’ve now made it a little tighter. I always listen if there’s a real reason, but I did have to go back to having a set-in-stone policy, or else it would be out of control,” Moore said.
First-year teacher Ana Hahs, who teaches English IV and English Language Development (ELD), said though the workload can be a lot, the pressure she feels is what she expected at the beginning of her career.
“Everyone says that your first year as a full-time teacher is the worst year and it’s a lot of work,” Hahs said. “You’re still trying to figure out your classes; you don’t have anything prepped from previous years. And so it’s very easy to burn out when that happens,” Hahs said.
One of the biggest factors that impacts motivation is knowing that the staff is appreciated and supported by the administration at school, Hahs said.
All teachers should “learn the power of saying ‘no.’ You may feel like you need to do all these extra things to show that you’re worthy of your place here, but all you really need to do is show up for your students and take care of yourself,” Nguyen said.