Teacher burnout BY ERIN PAGE
How we got here and what it will take from the community to move forward
S even years ago, Dr. Christina Kirk of becoming a teacher. Now an 8th grade English Language Arts teacher at Star Spencer Mid-High, Kirk can’t imagine doing anything else. “I had been looking for how to become part of a change, and I kept circling back to education, but the deterrent was always the financial side,” said Kirk, who waited to change careers until her daughter received a full-ride college scholarship. “Once my daughter was financially secure, I was able to be more of a risk-taker with my career and do something I’m passionate about.” left behind a lucrative career as an attorney to pursue her lifelong dream Like many teachers, Kirk holds a second job as a municipal judge to fulfill her financial commitments. She’s also a coach, serves as the middle school ELA department chair and heads the AVID college prep class for high school juniors. On top of that, the 2019-2020 Oklahoma City Public Schools Teacher of the Year is now helping her students and colleagues navigate life and learning in a pandemic while caring for their and her own mental health. She recalls comforting a panicked student afraid he was going to die after being diagnosed with COVID-19. She’s also had to encourage colleagues who have a hard time getting out of bed in the mornings, knowing the nearly unbearable weight placed on them by society as the pandemic continues. “When you are empty, you can’t continue to pour,” said Kirk. “It’s not that teachers don’t care, but some are ‘cared out’ and don’t have anything else to give.”
Jessica Eschbach, Oklahoma’s 2021 state teacher of the year and an innovation learning coach for Norman Public Schools, says as she’s traveled the state meeting with educators, the term she hears most often is “overwhelmed.” “Teachers want to meet the needs of their kids, socially, emotionally and educationally,” said Eschbach. ”It was never easy, but coming back after a year of uncertainty, when you have kids at all ends of the spectrum in one classroom and figuring out what they need in terms of instruction and emotional support, while making sure their families’ needs are met, on top of our own families and worries … there just aren’t enough minutes in the day. That feeling of overwhelm really easily shifts to burnout.” Susan Pinson, executive director of professional learning for the Oklahoma State Department of Education, agrees the top challenge facing educators is their emotional wellness. Teachers are feeling increased pressure to assess students’ current skills and knowledge and fill in gaps accordingly, all while dealing with inconsistency of schedules and teaching formats due to the pandemic. Pinson says not only does increased stress and exhaustion lead to higher levels of illness among teachers, it’s also contributing to a lack of joy. The solution is not to place even more expectations on educators but rather to rally communities to help restore the respect and support teachers deserve, which ultimately benefits the students in their classrooms. “Teachers want to feel respected, that there is a sense of mutual trust and to really have open communication,” said Pinson. “That opens the doors for schools and communities to work together, and that’s when creative ideas surface.”
32 METROFAMILYMAGAZINE.COM / JAN-FEB 2022
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