Role of teacher collaboration in reducing burnout and stress

The impact of collaboration in reducing teacher burnout

Teacher burnout and stress are critical persistent problems in the education system across the United States — heatwave time or not. From working with demanding workloads to managing administrative tasks and tapping into the emotional challenges of not only meeting personal students’ needs but also struggling to take on a class or specific group. This has contributed to very high levels of burnout which is defined as a state of mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion. The solution to all of these problems is teacher collaboration and it has been turned into a magic bullet for years. Working in solidarity, educators can form a support system for each other, and share tasks and ideas when faced with similar dilemmas. In this post, you can get some unique perspectives or hear some additional ideas on how teacher collaboration can help alleviate burnout and stress.

Understanding teacher burnout and stress

Being a teacher is complex and multi-faceted work, much of the burnout, stress, and adversity that educators face are byproducts of their chosen profession. Systemic concerns including underfunding, decreased resources, and increased expectations from administrators as well as parents only make these problems worse.

Causes of burnout and stress

• Overwork: Teachers often have to take care of lesson planning, grading, out-of-classroom responsibilities such as extracurriculars or administrative work, and more without the necessary time or resources.
• Emotional labor: Teachers are expected to emotionally support students, deal with behavior problems, and navigate the specific needs of their classrooms. This affects them mentally as well.
• Limited resources: Incomplete funding, outdated educational material, and overcrowded classrooms do not support good quality education.
• An absence of empowerment: Overmanaging, a focus on strict compliance, and trying to eliminate all variability can cause our teachers to feel they have no control over their work.
• High-stakes demands for performance: Teachers are expected to raise student test scores (a requirement or a condition of getting evaluated) or to hit other administrative requirements targets.

Signs of burnout and stress

• Physical fatigue: A depleted immune system, increased morbidity, and chronic illness, due to the prolonged effects of stress.
• Lack of empathy: Feeling like you no longer care about students, colleagues, or the profession.
• Lower morale: When you are not motivated and passionate about teaching, your overall mentality can easily seep into the classroom.
• Less patience: Annoyed by little things, co-workers, children
• Lack of concentration: Feeling unfocused in your lessons, classroom management, and responsibilities.

TeachersConnect is a platform that enables educators to share what they face and what they choose. Participation in such a peer network can offer educators resources, practices, and an emotional outlet (all the while breaking down the walls of isolation that lead to burnout).

How teacher collaboration reduces burnout and stress?

A culture of collaboration among teachers reinforces a feeling of community and shared purpose — which can go miles towards mitigating feelings of burnout and stress. This is beneficial, as teachers working together can reduce their burdensome roles, problem-solve difficult situations, and make the professional setting a more positive space.

Shared workload through co-planning

When teachers plan together it divides the work and makes it more manageable for everyone involved. Elementary school teachers may collaborate on weekly reading lessons for a team. A teacher could break up and do this asking questions sheet, only to divide the work of the group: one finds the reading material, the other thinks in possible comprehension questions and another thinks about how is going to be the interactivity. Using this method not only saves time, but it also makes for better lesson plans by taking into account more than one perspective.

Emotional support through peer connections

Building community among teachers allows for that emotional support, with a reminder that your struggles or frustrations are shared. Team meetings or informal catch-ups are a chance to compare stories, support each other, and feel the same. A teacher in a high school shared department might, for example, meet weekly with colleagues about classroom management to share practical solutions as well as emotional reassurance.

Problem-solving through collective expertise

The more teachers that collaborate, the better all of their minds can come together to solve problems. As an example, a group of middle school math teachers can work together to combat the problem of students being bored with Mr. X or Mrs. X in room 201 and Mr. X or Mrs. X is boring because he or she is teaching out of the CVS-box® (or Common Core Shift Book) by trying to think — gamification!!!! This way of collaborating not only yields new, great ideas but takes the burden out of trying to walk through your problems alone.

Professional development through collaborative learning

Teachers working together fosters continuous professional development. Teachers can enhance their teaching by learning from one another. They do this by sharing best practices, visiting each other’s classrooms, and participating in common professional development activities. Educators — they might create a professional learning community (PLC) for exploring new teaching practices, like differentiated instruction or culturally responsive teaching — learn together and then work to apply what they have learned with necessary feedback.

Real-life examples of collaborative success

Real-life examples from schools across the United States demonstrate how teacher collaboration in practice can further alleviate burnout and stress.

Collaborative teaching teams

English teachers in a California public high school designed their curriculum by forming a teaching collaborative. They built a comprehensive literature, writing, and media analysis program by collaborating. This team-based method also raised student achievements, and lowered teacher workloads, because teachers could use lesson plans and resources that had been developed with others.

Peer mentoring programs

One example is of a middle school in Illinois that incorporated this into their school culture and invited veteran teachers to mentor new ones. Mentors coached on classroom management, lesson planning, and school procedures. They experienced a renewed sense of confidence and support for the new teachers, who in turn felt supported, as well, and they enjoyed drawing on their background to help their peers.

Cross-department collaboration

Teachers collaborated across disciplines to create projects at one Massachusetts elementary school. For example, art and science teachers might work together on a project in which students produce models of ecosystems that blend artistic creativity with the information they have learned. This worked to not only increase student engagement, but also decrease the planning time required by each individual, and reenergize teachers with new concepts being introduced anew in their classrooms.

Technology-driven collaboration

In Texas, a school district used this opportunity to encourage teachers to collaborate with digital tools. So teachers collaborated on lesson plans and assessment criteria in real-time across different campuses, using platforms like google workspace and microsoft teams. This has been an easy and more organized way of collaboration, especially for me as a teacher with very tight schedule.

The platform of TeachersConnect can also come into the scene when teachers, free to join in, deal with key questions. Using curated resources and engaging forums, educators can gather inspiration to help tackle the day-to-day dilemmas whilst in the classroom.

Actionable steps to foster collaboration

Building a culture of collaboration in schools demands effort on the part of both school administrators and teachers. Concrete ways to develop and maintain a practice of collaboration

Schedule regular collaboration time

Providing time for collaboration costs nothing, in fact, budget-wise, it is the best investment schools can make- it keeps teachers out of classrooms where they might have to substitute. Schools are to schedule grade-level meetings and department check-ins or professional learning community sessions on a weekly, bi-weekly basis.

Create shared resource hubs

With digital repositories for lesson plans, assessments, and teaching materials, teachers would save time and avoid reinventing the wheel. In one school, for instance, they have established a shared google drive directory where resources are grouped by subject, and within that group, resources are indexed by subtopics or even grade levels.

Encourage mentorship programs

New teachers are matched with a seasoned mentor, to facilitate cross-collaboration and support. This can include observing in the classroom, individual coaching, and having regular check-ins about their progress and challenges.

Invest in team-building activities

Workshops, retreats, or social events are other team-building activities that promote better relationships among your teacher pool. Closer bonds result in improved communication and more teamwork.

Utilize technology for collaboration

Google Classroom, TeachersConnect, and Microsoft Teams are digital platforms that foster real-time collaboration, resource sharing, and communication. It is certainly more practical for these larger schools or districts where it is impossible to meet face-to-face.

Celebrate collaborative successes

Acknowledging the accomplishments of collaborative work celebrates their worth. Staff meetings, newsletters, and PD schools can feature impactful projects or initiatives during staff meetings, newsletters, or on professional development days.

Conclusion

Teacher collaboration is a key to less burnout and stress, and school support towards teacher leadership should be used as a resourceful shield from this monster violating the learning ecosystem. Through sharing workloads, emotional support, and the development of solutions communally educators can allay the pressures their jobs exert on them so that they can get back to doing what they love which is teaching. If you enjoy the book (I truly believe you will find value in this one), do drop me a note, grateful to be privy to some real-world examples and actionable steps of how collaboration can work best in action, creating that culture of teamwork and mutual support. As our schools continue to change, fostering teacher collaboration will always be necessary in creating mutually empowered teachers resilient and motivated for years to come.