Self-care refers to the everyday actions people take to protect their own health or well-being, yet it is frequently miscast as self-indulgent or frivolous. In reality, self-care practices are necessary, especially for people with stressful or emotionally intensive professions, education being a prime example.
Eastern Washington University’s online Master of Education (M.Ed.) – Educational Leadership program prepares educators to lead school communities that prioritize both student and staff wellbeing. Comprehensive coursework helps educators explore leadership approaches that engender healthy, supportive school communities. The following self-care strategies for educators and school leaders reflect that focus.
Reframing Self-Care as a Selfless Act: The Case for Educator Burnout Prevention
Teachers experience disproportionate rates of burnout. They struggle to make time for self-care for numerous reasons. Examples include the following:
- Education is cast as a “selfless” profession, one in which teachers feel pressure to give of themselves without question.
- Teachers have busy and rigid schedules, and finding even 15 minutes a day for self-care can feel almost impossible.
- Many teachers accept high levels of stress as “just part of the job” and do not take appropriate measures to reduce it.
- Schools rarely build time for self-care into teachers’ schedules in a way that supports their mental health.
Incorporating self-care intentionally is crucial for addressing these struggles, reducing burnout and improving teachers’ wellbeing and performance on the job. For administrators, this involves reframing self-care as beneficial for staff and students alike and actively encouraging teachers to adopt healthy routines. Teachers who take time for self-care are not only helping themselves stay healthy, but also doing right by their students, colleagues and school communities.
Leave Work at Work: Why Boundaries Matter for Teacher Wellbeing
For many teachers, the lines between home and work blur when planning materials, grading and email are always within reach. Like many other professionals, teachers find it challenging to put work aside when there is no physical separation between workspace and home. Setting boundaries as a teacher often means making explicit decisions about when the workday ends and committing to leaving one’s work at work.
An Edutopia article on work-life balance highlights practical approaches to reclaiming personal time such as not defaulting to bringing work home, being honest with colleagues and students about time availability and removing work email from personal devices. Administrators should also make it crystal clear that they do not expect or encourage teachers to work all day every day. Supporting teacher boundaries is critical to fostering a positive, healthy workplace culture.
Build in Breaks: A Simple Strategy for Teacher Stress Relief
As teachers know, schedules rule the day. So it is important that they build in moments to let the mind relax. Even taking 10 to 15 minutes for oneself each day can meaningfully improve wellbeing.
However, stressed teachers may be unlikely to take time out of their schedule for self-care. Administrators must take an active role in encouraging teachers to take a moment for themselves, formalizing it if need be. When administrators build self-care breaks into the schedule, teachers are less likely to skip them.
Guidance on caregiver wellbeing from the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) notes that stepping out of “caregiver mode” for even five minutes can be an important reminder of who a person is beyond their professional responsibilities. To support the mental health of their staff, administrators and educational leaders should accommodate and encourage these types of breaks when possible.
Talk It Out: Building Peer Support Among Educators
Teachers need emotional support from each other. Administrators and supervisors who build time into regularly scheduled meetings to allow teachers to discuss emotional concerns can foster peer support and demonstrate that teachers are not alone.
Giving voice to stress and exhaustion may reveal which teachers are struggling the most and why, so supervisors can address the issues in a more private setting. Supporting teachers’ emotional health through structured reflection time, journaling or brief colleague conversation before meetings can help educators manage their emotions and bring their best to the classroom. The mental health needs of some teachers may rise to a level beyond normal stress, in which case professional counseling or support may also be necessary.
Share the Good: Celebrating Wins to Sustain Teacher Morale
Teachers should also have the opportunity to share successes and small triumphs. It is easy to focus on challenges in demanding work environments, but taking time to celebrate student progress and recount small positive moments builds morale and acts as a buffer against stress.
Sharing wins also reinforces the sense of purpose that keeps teachers in the classroom. Dedication to students is a major motivator for educators and keeps them invested in their work, even during difficult stretches.
Build Self-Care Into the Classroom
NAMI identifies self-reflection as a core component of healthy self-care practice. When teachers integrate self-care and self-reflection into lesson plans, they encourage themselves as well as students to take time for these essential activities. Asking students to think about how a certain topic makes them feel or what it means to their lives can open the door to meaningful conversation. These discussions also support students’ social-emotional development.
The entire class can discuss shared concerns or take time for individual journaling. Allowing private time for reflection removes the pressure of social interaction. By participating in these practices, teachers model the importance and value of self-care to their students.
Building the leadership and interpersonal skills to create these kinds of supportive, reflective school cultures requires purposeful study and dedicated professional development. Eastern Washington University’s online M.Ed. – Educational Leadership program equips educators with the skills and tools they need to foster staff wellbeing, guide school communities and lead with intention.
Learn more about EWU’s online Master of Education – Educational Leadership program.
