B.C. teachers feel stressed, can’t help students: survey

Teachers working in public schools across British Columbia report feeling more stressed with more work to do this year, according to a new survey.

In a news release, the BC Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) says 81 per cent of participants in its annual survey reported that they are feeling the impacts of teacher shortages in their school districts.

“Compared with the same time last year, nearly two-thirds of survey respondents said their overall workload had increased and they are experiencing more stress. About 35.8 per cent said their workload was about the same or less, and 34.4 per cent reported the same or lower stress levels,” the news release said.

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Although a significant portion reported having good or very good physical and mental health, about 40 per cent reported it was worse than last year.

“I think about the mental and physical health piece, I think it was about 45 per cent said they had good mental and physical health, which is a good number until you realize that that means that over half the teachers are not considering their mental and physical health good,” BCTF President Clint Johnston told CityNews Tuesday.

“I think in a caring profession which relies a lot on emotional support, along with professional instruction, that’s not good to have that many individuals not feeling good about themselves.”

Johnston says that another concern from the study was that teachers reported experiencing times when they felt like they couldn’t support students that may need help.

“Knowing that you maybe could have helped the student if you had been able to access those resources you should have, but not being able to, that weighs on you and it sticks with you,” he said.

Johnston says the survey results show the need for the provincial government to introduce new strategies before teachers feel burnt out.

He says he is most concerned about teachers’ health, and adds that more needs to be done to help.

“The impact of the teacher shortage that you see throughout this is immense and the fact that the system isn’t helping those who are in it, stay mentally and physically healthy, stay able to do their job, and feel like they could keep doing this job for five, 10, 15 years — that’s really shocking. It’s really hard to see because we need to be bringing more teachers in,” he said.