Teacher stress and burnout at all time high heading into new school year

CT (WFSB) - Stress on Connecticut teachers is at an all-time high.

That’s one of the findings in a new Connecticut Education Association survey, done in partnership with WFSB.

More than 800 educators gave their honest outlook about their biggest challenges in the classroom in the exclusive report.

“People sort of feel beaten down and disrespected in the profession a lot and it’s hard to avoid that,” said KC Petruzzi, a high school science teacher.

That is contributing to the growing burnout among educators.

From first grade to high school, these teachers are in different classrooms and districts but share many of the same stressors.

“There is so much stress on the teachers,” said Mark Janick, a high school math teacher.

According to the poll, 78% of teachers say that stress and burnout are their biggest concerns.

“We really focus on the mental health of students but we don’t focus enough on the mental health of teachers who are dealing with the mental health students. There is something called secondary trauma and there is not enough resources to deal with what the students are coming to uswith,” said Laura Clark, a fourth grade teacher.

Nearly 600 teachers also say they are somewhat or very dissatisfied with the conditions facing them.

“It’s not the same job as it was when I started teaching 25 years ago, we have a lot of experience up here, they keep adding onto your plate and not taking anything off,” continued Janick.

To add to that, there are staffing shortages in many districts.

77% attribute that to the high-stress job and 67% agree there are too many discipline problems with students and a lack of respect for educators.

Additionally, 66% say low salary contributes to a lack of new teachers coming on board.

“There is no work life balance. Here is a silent expectation that you are always on call with the new apps like parent square, there’s no turning it off. You’re inundated often times at 9/10 o’clock at night,” said Jennifer Rodriguez, a first-grade teacher.

Nearly 500 say they would not recommend a family member pursue a career in teaching.

“We want to encourage people to go into teaching but How do you encourage someone to go into something when you have been at it for so long and you don’t even feel successful anymore. You question, did I do a good job today,” said Gail Jorden, an elementary school teacher.

Despite the hardships, many of the teachers said that it is a passion, they deeply care for their students, and more than half of those who took the survey say they’d choose the career again.