It is impossible to support the social and emotional health of young people, if we as teachers do not attend to our own emotional health.
Anyone who has worked in schools or who knows a teacher will be aware that they are often stressed, tired, and running on empty until the next school holiday arrives. Reports suggest that high workloads, increased monitoring and accountability, challenging pupil behavior or emotional difficulties, ongoing policy changes and toxic school cultures are among the many factors that contribute to poor teacher wellbeing.
It is increasingly pressing that teacher wellbeing should be viewed as a serious concern. Worrying figures show teachers are reporting poor physical and mental health as a result of their work, and of course, this all has an impact on absence rates, motivation, and staff retention, both for individual schools and for the whole profession.
Teacher wellbeing is not only a profound issue for our teachers, it also has a major impact on pupil outcomes. Research has shown that teacher wellbeing not only significantly impacts pupils’ SAT results, but also has an effect on pupils’ own social and emotional wellbeing, creating a negative learning environment and damaging the quality of relationships between teacher and pupil.
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