Discussions

 View Only
Back to discussions
Expand all | Collapse all

How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

  • 1.  How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 08-24-2022 11:47 AM
    Edited by Susan Davis 08-24-2022 11:48 AM

    I was just reading a recent article from Edutopia, "How K-12 Administrators Can Help Prevent Teacher Burnout" by LIndsay Prendergast and Abigail French (July 28, 2022), which got me wondering how technology leaders fit into this picture. Do they see themselves as administrators who can help or hurt teacher burnout?

    Should we be thinking about how technology might contribute to teacher burnout -- and how it could turns things around to helping teachers in their roles?

    In particular, how does technology help or hurt in the areas recommended in the article: communicating unified expectations, supporting teachers in conflict with guardians, and protecting teachers' time?

    If teachers are one of the key constituent groups for technology teams at schools, what are you doing to build their trust as collaborators for the good of the school and its student learners?


    I'd love to hear your thoughts.

    Susan


    #Leadership

    ------------------------------
    Susan Davis
    ATLIS
    ------------------------------



  • 2.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 08-29-2022 10:51 AM

    I'm really curious about whether or not schools are even discussing this? Or is technology just considered "the bad guy" here?



    ------------------------------
    Susan Davis
    ATLIS
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-07-2022 11:45 AM
    Hmmm. Are there no replies to this?  Or am I missing them?  I'm curious, too. Our school is not talking about it.  I work to change the idea that technology is the bad guy, but it's an uphill battle.  There are certainly ways technology can alleviate stress. Online calendars and reminders help us stay organized. Online exercise programs give us healthy lifestyle tips on our phones, on the go. Music apps calm us.  So do meditation apps.  So do coloring apps.  But no, this has not been a discussion related to teacher burnout.

    ------------------------------
    Tina Abbott
    Director of Technology
    The Heritage School
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-08-2022 02:44 PM
    Maybe so many of us education IT staff are burned out after two and a half years of COVID-era tech support and planning that we don't have the bandwidth to think about it!

    ------------------------------
    David Fulton-Howard
    Technical Support Manager
    McDonogh School
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-09-2022 08:53 AM
    Tina and David, I agree with both of you. It seems that schools are content with letting the blame for the fatigue rest on the technology (or the pandemic) when we know the pandemic only highlighted what was there all along. At the same time, tech teams are supposed to be super- human, and sometimes are the last to be addressed when it comes to self-care (though sometimes this may be part of how they view themselves within the school culture.)

    How can we elevate the conversation about self-care, get the right people in the room to really address it, and help the tech team see that they have a role to play in all of this (both for themselves and the rest of the school)?




    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-09-2022 09:19 AM
    This article just popped up in my feed today. We're not the only ones thinking about this. 

    Quiet Quitting in Education

    ------------------------------
    Susan Davis
    ATLIS
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 7.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-12-2022 08:33 AM
    I have been encouraging my team to take their time off. I also am very transparent with my team that I feel burnout too and we have real discussions around it. I have weekly 1:1's with my team and make sure to always ask how they are doing and how I can help. It has brought the team closer and we all are able to help each other out to assist with the burnout. I like to remind them of the free EAP programs we have as well.

    ------------------------------
    Larisa Luca
    Manager of Technology Support Services
    The Lawrenceville School
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 8.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-09-2022 11:45 AM
    I agree with David's comment. After the past two and a half years, I'm ready for some boring routine!

    ------------------------------
    Glenn Hymel
    Strake Jesuit College Prep
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 9.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-14-2022 10:08 AM
    Glenn - One of the interesting aspects that I know personally have had to deal with as we return to some "boring routine" is making sure that we are comfortable with folks just being, rather than being adrenaline fueled, always on and nearly redlining all of the time. 

    We have been so on, that one can easily feel guilty when we have some downtime. How are we addressing that this is ok?

    Vinnie

    ------------------------------
    Vinnie Vrotny
    Director of Technology
    The Kinkaid School
    vinnie.vrotny@kinkaid.org
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 10.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-12-2022 03:16 PM
    This reminds me of an instance years ago when I was involved in implementing our first real LMS with a global calendar which showed when everyone was scheduling quizzes and tests for students and how much homework they were assigning.  OMG. The HOS literally went running through the front office to get IT to shut it down as it did show the insane amount of work in total was being required of students. The intent was to make the process transparent so teachers would realize how much of a burden they were each putting on students and to spread the wealth as it were to avoid student burnout. I explained to her that technology was not the culprit but merely unveiling what had been going on for years.

    ------------------------------
    Jennifer Lamkins, Ed.D.
    Coordinator of Member and Technology Support Services
    she/her
    Northwest Association of Independent Schools
    5001 California Ave. SW (Ste. 112), Seattle, WA 98136
    Office: 206-323-6137
    Direct: 206-323-7005
    jlamkins@nwais.org
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 11.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-13-2022 10:27 AM
    One of the ways I try to step in and help with teacher burnout is to do what I can to optimize processes and reduce duplicative work. If I can make it so a teacher doesn't have to essentially enter the same information two or three times that is where I can help. Those 5-minute chunks add up. Similarly, providing tools that are efficient and functional. Many times, this isn't easy but the payoff across the organization is huge. I think of it like preparing hundreds of laptops. If I can save 10 minutes per laptop that really adds up.

    Also, at times I want curl up in the corner and take a nap.

    ------------------------------
    Brian Hoyt
    French American School of Puget Sound
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 12.  RE: How might technology contribute to -- or help alleviate -- teacher burnout?

    Posted 09-13-2022 01:05 PM

    Hi Brian.

    Me too. I find teachers tend to stack rather than integrate so I talk to them about where they can "let go" and/or replace a process/redundancies. I stress the time savers and the overall benefits to them and their students. My motto was "take a little time to save more time" with familiar tools as well as new ones. I think it's important to show them how to use a tool or process but also where it fits in with what they are currently doing and how it can free up precious time. Then I stress how that extra time doesn't need to be filled with more work or checking emails.

     

    Jennifer Lamkins, Ed.D.

    Coordinator of Member and Technology Support Services

    she/her 

    Northwest Association of Independent Schools

    5001 California Ave. SW (Ste. 112), Seattle, WA 98136

    Office: 206-323-6137

    Direct: 206-323-7005

    jlamkins@nwais.org

     




    Original Message


Related Content