… can get pretty bad, can’t it. So bad in fact that this week’s TES (Times Education Supplement) is running an article headlined ‘Why do so many teachers kill themselves?’. Fortunately stress is \u00a0not that bad for many teachers…<\/p>\n
…but it’s still pretty horrific!<\/p>\n
The stats are awful and the case-studies about stressed-up, suicidal teachers are shocking: if you want to read the shape and scale of the problem, you can read it here<\/a>. \u00a0What I want to concentrate on here is why teacher’s stress is a special case, why most of the stress tools available to the rest of us don’t work for teachers and what strategy might be a good one for dealing with stress in schools.<\/p>\n Cards on the table first – I’m married to a teacher and I’ve done lots of work with teachers over the last seven years (suffering stress and not) but the only actual teaching<\/em> job I’ve done was many years ago in a girl’s private school, teaching sixth-formers statistics… (insert your own joke here!)<\/p>\n I believe the main problem (stress-related that is) that plague teachers stem from the lack of control teachers have over their own jobs.<\/p>\n What do I mean?<\/p>\n Success is measured against criteria that change frequently and are largely not related to things that can be controlled by the teacher – grades are a function of many things, not just teaching, such as the pupils themselves, obviously. Pressure without control is a recipe for stress.<\/strong><\/p>\n Furthermore, the ‘tyranny of the bell’ means that each high-pressure performance is done to someone else’s timing. There’s no time to for a teacher to take stock and regroup: nor can work be re-scheduled or taken slowly if you’re feeling down. \u00a0The pupils in front of you can’t allow that, and the classroom timetable pins teachers to a schedule without the flexiblity that the rest of us take for granted to the point we don’t even think about it.<\/p>\n Teaching combines the pressures of management with the strictness of factory-floor work. \u00a0When was the last time ‘normal’ people couldn’t decide their own holiday dates? Again, a stress-recipe!<\/p>\n Then… teaching strips away some of the best anti-stress support techniques that we take for granted – being a teacher is, essentially, a solo activity in that there’s no time in the classroom for banter and supportive conversations. As a teacher you’ve got a tiger by the tail and you can’t let go. ‘Normal’ people use support at work as a defense against stress.<\/p>\n In short, teachers have trouble finding time to ‘sharpen the ax’.<\/p>\n All of this means that the tools that work in the ‘normal’ world can’t be (readily) applied in schools. Taking time off, for example, to prevent longer-term damage isn’t an option…<\/p>\n So what anti-stress options for teachers have we got left?<\/p>\n Basically, if tactical tools are out of the window, we’re left with strategic ones. We need to develop emotional resilience rather than coping mechanisms. It’s difficult to put things like this in a blog because, by definition, a blog is more suited to tools, tips and techniques rather than long term tool and superficiality won’t help anyone…<\/p>\n All I can suggest is that it’s really important that teachers – before<\/em> they begin to suffer from stress! – develop and strong, flexible and robust self-concept… something that’s internally orientated rather than being dependent on external validation. \u00a0By the time the symptoms of stress start to show, it’s an uphill battle for a teacher.<\/p>\n That’s easier said than done, I know – but there are anti-stress tools that can<\/strong> be taught. (I know, I teach ’em!). I have to ask though, why more INSET isn’t given over to dealing with stress amongst teachers, given how big the problem is…!<\/p>\n In the meantime, I’ll outline a useful anti-stress tool that’s suitable for teachers in the next post about stress amongst teachers<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
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