Teacher Wellbeing – What We Know and What Helps
Summary
Schedule some time in the school routine so teachers can take care of themselves, participate in PD or finish admin tasks. Make sure staff are aware of and able to access the online resources and tools available at HeadsUp, Beyond Blue, and Checkpoint. It can be hard to carve out any time for self-care when your inbox is heaving under the weight of unread emails, lesson planning, anxious kids, and the feeling that you won’t get everything done if you step away from your desk for ten minutes. Wherever you sit to prepare lessons, mark papers and do your administration, make sure your workstation is set up properly so you are comfortable and avoid injury. One study has shown that ‘ participants who thought about their most noble motivations for entering a profession showed smaller increases in stress hormones during a high-stakes meeting’.