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Social Emotional Learning… It’s not just for students.
The real struggle of teacher burn-out.
The exciting rush of the school start is just about waning. My students are learning to accept my dry sense of humor and I’m beginning to soften around their antics. This is the time of year when we form committees, plan bulletin boards, experiment with new lessons and just engage… yet for some reason, this time around, it all feels like a chore.
Why am I struggling to get up each day? Why has my patience thinned with my students? Where is my gratitude and my love for this job? What is happening to me and will it end?
Where is the disconnect?
I’m in my 17th year of teaching. I teach primarily Sophomores and Seniors. Every September, I am another year older. Another year removed from these teenagers who haven’t aged. Another year of distance between “back in my day” and their day presently unfolding. It feels as if there is a small but daily event that deepens the chasm between my generation and this one that I can’t seem to bridge- or maybe I don’t want to. I can’t tell.
The balance of energy in my class has shifted. Students seem quick to anger, less likely to volunteer, bored. As I write this, upon reflection it turns out that I too am quick to anger, less likely to volunteer, bored. Is this some sort of Pygmalion in my classroom gone awry? Are these indicators that I should move on from teaching? Am I really that far removed from this next generation? Am I… burned out?
I always valued my approach to teaching as being relatable, progressive, open. Lately, I hear myself blaming the students for their apathetic body language, doom-scroll necks, permanent headphones and blank stares. I feel my values shifting, creating a visceral dissonance that needs release. In fact, just putting these thoughts to paper has been cathartic. What else can be done? This blog is not intended to demoralize, but recognize this feeling is real. The generation gap is real. Changes in legislation, technology, personal responsibility, social graces are all real- but not new. How did the greatest teachers push through or know when it was time to retire?
A sense of purpose fuels the quiet resilience needed by teachers (and nurses, caretakers, and any other service-based vocation). What we do matters and sometimes we get to see the fruits of our labor in real time, other times we have to wait a few years. Whether it’s a student overcoming challenges, a brief “thank you” at the end of class or an alumnus who returns to reflect on the impact you made, are rare sources of energy. Anyone else feeling like they’re running on E? So, what’s next?
A few things to try that have been surprisingly effective…
- Look for another job. Seriously. I think sometimes we feel tied to our contracts, pensions and lifestyle that it’s easier to complain about our situation than make a real change. It doesn’t hurt to do a quick search online or set up a LinkedIn profile to see what’s out there. But know this going in; Teachers are highly employable. We are excellent communicators and planners. We are personable, work well under pressure and have a strong work ethic. There will likely be a job out there where your skills and personality are easily transferable.
- Reflect. If you try this route, one of two things will happen: Either you will find a new career path that is the exciting change you’ve been craving. Or, you will re-evaluate your current situation and gain a fresh perspective on your daily day to day. Perhaps teaching is exactly what you wanted… you just needed a little reminder!
- Do an energy audit. Is it possible that 80-90% of your day is positive, but you notice most your negative energy is spent on the drama, the one email, the one kid, or the one colleague? Perhaps, all we need is just a shift in where we expend our energy. Putting things down that we can’t control- might be the cognitive turn we need to lighten the load that we take home each night.
- Take home less… What, truly can be left at school? What if you deleted your email app from your phone? Or physically shut your computer at the end of the day? What things can you do right now that might help making the end of the day actually feel like the end?
- Find your people. You are not alone. A walk at lunch, before or after school or all three might be enough to flood your body with endorphins (natural opiates!) and reduce the cortisol (stress hormone). Being outside, with friends and talking out loud are proven to keep us sharp.
How can teachers take better care of themselves?
Maybe the lesson here is that Social Emotional Learning isn’t just a curriculum we teach — it’s a practice we live. The same compassion, patience, and self-awareness we model for our students must also be extended inward. Burnout doesn’t mean we’ve failed; it means we’ve cared deeply, often without replenishing what we’ve given away. The path forward might not be about reinventing ourselves, but about remembering ourselves — why we started, what still matters, and how to protect the spark that got us here in the first place. Because teaching, at its core, is still a profoundly human act — and so is the need to rest, to reflect, and to begin again.
The Teacher’s Academy is a small business run by teachers. We understand the stresses of teaching and have written courses to support social emotional wellness inside and outside of the classroom. Mindfulness, Wellness for Teachers, Move to Learn and Teaching Empathy are a few of the courses we offer in our course catalog under our Health category. Courses written by teachers for teachers who may be enduring their school year instead of thriving in their lives. If you are feeling overwhelmed, take the time to breathe and reset. Teachers, you are too important to neglect your own social emotional wellness.
For additional information on finding ways to reduce stress, check out: Teacher Mental Health.org.