Download emotional exhaustion, depersonalization of those served, and a

Teachers Burnout Too:
Developing Groups to
Support Teachers
Christine Ebrahim, PhD, LPC-S, NCC
Loyola University New Orleans
Brandon A. Hartenstein, BGS
Loyola University New Orleans
Did you know... ?
• Teachers are at an increased risk for burnout
• Emotional exhaustion is decreased when
experiences are shared with peers
• School environment does NOT have a significant
effect on teacher burnout
• Support groups foster increased coping abilities
and personal insight
What is burnout?
• an operational, yet abstract definition
• characterized by a sense of emotional
exhaustion, depersonalization of those served,
and a depleting sense of personal
accomplishment
• may be mistaken for disorder
Influencing factors...
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classroom management
teacher-parent conflict
having to organize teaching by protocol
lack of social supports
• "Worn-out teachers tend to seek out those colleagues
and friends who confirm their sense that teaching is
primarily a stressful, ungratifying profession, that
students are essentially ungrateful and disruptive, and
the administrators are always unresposive and selfpromoting" (Farber, 2000).
Teachers' Attitude
Students' Attitude
Classroom Culture
School Culture
Administrators' Attitude
Burnout influences student learning.
A teacher who feels:
vs.
• emotionally exhausted
• unaccomplished
• alienated
...may interact with
students in ways that are:
• detached
• authoritative
• unempathetic
• hostile
• mutually depleting
A teacher who feels:
• emotionally balanced
• accomplished
• personally vested
...may interact with
students in ways that are:
• engaged
• diligent
• empathetic
• patient
• mutually fulfilling
Groups?
• Focus on your initial response... how do you feel about
groups?
• Teachers will never join- ENCOURAGE
• I need to focus on the students first- TRICKLE
DOWN
• I don't have the time for groups- RESISTANCE
• the administration will never allow groups- PROMOTE
• Teachers will blame and complain... no work will get
done- NEW MODE OF INTERACTION
Implementing groups
• Advocate for teacher emotional health supports
• focus on cost-benefit, win-win when proposing the
group to the administration
• create partnerships with other schools' counseling
departments
• meet with potential members individually prior to
first group meeting
• screen members for admission- obtain a balance of
personalities and overall burnout symptoms
• market group to teachers using creative strategies
Marketing
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needs assessment- data-driven plan
outreach
meetings
brochures
assess teachers' perceptions and respond
highlight the pros of membership
incentives
word of mouth after initial group (importance of
evaluation)
• convenience and anonyminity of joining
Managing groups
• teachers' concern over confidentiality and a blurring
of boundaries makes a collaborative arrangement
between schools ideal
o open or closed
o size (5-10)
o time/schedule
o location (implications for on school property)
o compensation
Group structure
• leader guides and works to build "we-ness"
(cohesiveness)
• leader provides productive topic suggestions
• leader makes productive self-disclosures
• leader is honest and offers appropriate
feedback
• leader avoids dispensing advice and solutions
• leader allows members to engage at will
Group stages
1. Pre-commitment stage- anticipatory anxiety;
ambivalence
2.Commitment stage- less defensive, freer
expression
3.Termination stage- cope, accept, explore;
integral part of promoting change
(Berg, 2006)
Topics
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classroom discipline management
stress related to parent-teacher disharmony
frustration related to resource availability
feelings of reduced personal accomplishment
district/network/administration demands
stress related to content organization
feelings related to student apathy
school culture's effect on teaching
strategies for managing stress
translating group-work to occupational (teacher) role
Evaluate
• Be mindful of your initial reaction to generating and
collecting data... how does it make you feel?
• Measure members' response and react accordingly
• Include questions designed to evaluate the leader
• Revise, Revamp, Remarket, Redo
Evaluate
Pre-group, post-group
questionnare designed to
measure:
• work-related stress
• emotional exhaustion
• depersonalization
• personal fulfillment
Open Questions:
• "What effect has this
group had on your life?"
• "What changes have you
made in your life that you
can attribute, at least
partially, to the group
experience?"
References
Berg, R. C., Landreth, G. L., & & Fall, K. A. (2006). Group counseling:Concepts
and procedures (4th ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.
Farber, B. (2000). Treatment strategies for different types of teacher
burnout. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56(5), 675.