5 Strategies to Prevent Teacher Burnout | A Guide for School Leaders 


| by Hannah Sparling

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Rate your level of burnout from 1 to 5. 

One means you’re completely fine — energized and clear-headed, excited to tackle the coming week’s challenges.  

Five means you’re on fire. You can barely see through the smoke, and you’re wondering whether you’ll make it to the holiday break before you quit, let alone the end of the school year.  

If you gave your teachers an anonymous survey with this question, how do you think they would respond? Would you get a lot of 1s? Or would you see more 4s and 5s, teachers who are clearly struggling and need a break?  

The truth is, most teachers are dissatisfied at work. A Pew Research Center survey shows only 33% of teachers are extremely satisfied with their job. That’s much worse than the general population, where 51% of adults say they’re extremely satisfied. 

Your actions as a school or district leader can have a big impact on teacher satisfaction, positively or negatively. Below are 5 strategies to help you better support your teaching staff, boost job satisfaction, and prevent teacher burnout. 

Short Meetings, Short Forms 

Before you schedule an after-school meeting for your teachers, ask yourself: Could this meeting be an email? Could I record a short video and send that instead? Could I grab small groups in the teacher’s lounge and give them the info there? Use creative methods to communicate with your teachers that don’t require them to spend extra time at school.  

If a meeting is essential, keep it short. Think 15 or 30 minutes instead of an hour. Meetings tend to have fluff at the beginning and end — cut that and get everyone home a few minutes earlier.  

You can apply this principle across communications with your teachers. 

  • If there’s a form teachers have to fill out, make it one page instead of three.  
  • Try to eliminate “homework” from staff meetings. 
  • Protect planning time for your teachers so they can get as much done as possible during the school day.  

Late Start or Early Release 

Eighty-four percent of teachers say they don’t have enough time during the regular workday to grade papers, plan lessons, and respond to emails. What if you could give them an extra hour or two each week? 

Imagine a weekly or bi-weekly 2-hour delay that teachers could use as a planning period. Or, alternatively, school could let out an hour early every Friday.  

This kind of change would require upfront planning and school-board approval (and you do need to be cognizant of the side effects for parents and child-care), but it could have a huge impact on reducing teacher burnout.  

If teachers had more time during the school day to accomplish their work, they’d have more time for self-care and relaxation at home. They’d be less stressed and more energized to teach and support their students.  

Different Strokes… 

Some of your teachers may love brainstorming sessions with their teacher teams. Others may prefer to communicate largely via email, with group check-ins once a month. Give your teachers autonomy in determining their schedule and workflow. Let them lead and figure out how they work best, individually and with each other.  

Teachers are professionals. They’re smart, they’re creative, they’re innovative. As long as they’re meeting deadlines and accomplishing their goals, give them as much free reign as possible.  

Fewer ‘Quick’ Covers 

Teachers have precious little free time, so it’s frustrating when their one planning period gets eaten up by non-teaching requests. 

“Could you take an extra hallway or lunch shift?” 

“Could you watch teacher X’s class for 5 minutes so he can leave for a dentist appointment?” 

“Could you make copies of this flyer for the science fair?” 

In the Pew Research Center survey, of teachers who said they don’t have enough time at school to get all their work done, 24% said part of the problem is having to take on non-teaching duties. And 16% cited having to cover another teacher’s class.  

These requests seem small in the moment, but they add up over time and contribute to burnout. As a leader, do your best to take non-teaching tasks off your teachers’ plates. Free them up to really focus on what they do best.  

Ask a Teacher 

The No. 1 strategy to prevent teacher burnout is to ask your teachers: How can I help? 

Get to know your teachers, check in regularly, and ask them how they’re feeling, what they need, and what would help them feel better at work. Make a particular effort with new or younger teachers, who need more support. 

The nonprofit Schools That Lead says 8% of teachers are expected to quit every year, with younger teachers being the most likely. Make sure your new teachers have a strong mentor and quality professional development to help guide them through those first few years. 

And don’t forget to thank and reward your teachers for their hard work. When teachers feel appreciated and valued, that on its own goes a long way to reducing burnout. 


Need help recognizing and rewarding your teachers? This infographic has 7 great ideas to get you started. 

Want more resources for teacher recruitment, retention, and job satisfaction? Join our monthly Shaping Education newsletter community for school leaders.  

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