The findings of the Teacher Occupational Wellbeing Research from DCU Create are alarming and show the extent of stress and burnout in the profession, the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) has said.
Speaking today, TUI General Secretary Michael Gillespie said that the findings clearly illustrate the urgent need for real measures that tackle the factors that are driving teachers away from the profession in the current recruitment and retention crisis.
‘Stress and burnout are driving teachers away to other professions where they feel better valued,’ he said.
‘As a result, students lose out due to larger class sizes and less access to in terms of subject choice.’
‘If teachers are to be retained in the system, we need to see smaller class sizes and a reduction in the administrative burdens that deflect from the core duties of teaching and learning. The findings of a survey of our own members earlier this year found that 89% agreed that bureaucratic duties/paperwork regularly deflect from their core role of teaching.’