Written evidence submitted by Professors Daniel Madigan, Andrew Hill, Ji Hong and Dr Lisa Kim (ITN0002)

Teacher burnout is a significant retention issue

Evidence is provided by Prof Daniel Madigan and Prof Andrew Hill from York St John University, UK, Prof Ji Hong from the University of Arizona, USA, and Dr Lisa Kim from The University of Sydney, Australia, based on extensive research examining teacher motivation and burnout. Evidence-based recommendations are provided to help increase retention by addressing burnout in teachers.

Context

Teachers are under intense pressure. They consistently face wide-ranging demands from high workloads, continuous evaluation, and the blurring of work and life. These experiences have, at least in part, contributed to rising rates of ill-health and feelings of being overwhelmed among teachers. One significant wellbeing issue that perhaps best encapsulates these struggles is burnout.

What is burnout and why does it affect retention?

Teacher burnout is defined as a multidimensional syndrome characterised by three symptoms: emotional exhaustion (feelings of being emotionally overextended and exhausted because of teaching), cynicism (a cynical and impersonal reaction toward those around you), and reduced efficacy (no longer feeling like you are competent and successful at teaching).

Methodologies to estimate its prevalence differ substantially but reviews of the literature suggest that at least twenty-to-thirty percent of teachers are at high risk of burnout at any one time.

Burnout has many negative implications. This includes adversely affecting teachers’ health and wellbeing, such as increasing the incidence of illness and somatic complaints.

Burnout can also impact the effectiveness of classroom instruction. Consequently, it will have a significant bearing on students — negatively affecting their academic achievement, quality of motivation, and wellbeing.

Finally, it has a significant bearing on schools and the education sector. This is because burnout leads to an increased desire to leave teaching and eventually the decision to do so.

Addressing burnout as a retention issue

There have been two meta-analyses (quantitative summaries of the existing literature) of work seeking to reduce burnout in teachers.

These suggest that there has been some promising progress in developing effective interventions to reduce teacher burnout.

In this regard, teachers can be given additional training and skills to protect themselves from burnout. The most effective ways to do so are based around cognitive behavioural approaches such as mindfulness and additional social and emotional regulation skills.

Structural and organisational interventions can also make a difference. For example, schools can adjust the teaching role to protect teachers. This includes (1) reducing administrative load and (2) improving communication from school management to teachers.

Summary

Teachers are leaving the profession at an alarming rate. Burnout is likely one of the largest contributors to this problem. Concerted effort is required to prevent and protect teachers from burnout and to ensure teachers stay in the profession and continue to create positive, life-changing educational environments.

References and further sources

García-Carmona, M., Marín, M. D., & Aguayo, R. (2019). Burnout syndrome in secondary school teachers: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Social Psychology of Education, 22, 189-208.

Iancu, A. E., Rusu, A., Măroiu, C., Păcurar, R., & Maricuțoiu, L. P. (2018). The effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing teacher burnout: A meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review, 30, 373-396.

Madigan, D. J., & Kim, L. E. (2021). Towards an understanding of teacher attrition: A meta-analysis of burnout, job satisfaction, and teachers’ intentions to quit. Teaching and Teacher Education, 105, 103425.

Madigan, D. J., & Kim, L. E. (2021). Does teacher burnout affect students? A systematic review of its association with academic achievement and student-reported outcomes. International Journal of Educational Research, 105, 101714.

Madigan, D. J., Kim, L. E., Glandorf, H. L., & Kavanagh, O. (2023). Teacher burnout and physical health: A systematic review. International Journal of Educational Research, 119, 102173.

Maslach, C., Jackson, S. E., Leiter, M. P., Schaufeli, W. B., & Schwab, R. L. (1986). Maslach burnout inventory (Vol. 21, pp. 3463–3464). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting psychologists press.

Oliveira, S., Roberto, M. S., Veiga-Simão, A. M., & Marques-Pinto, A. (2021). A meta-analysis of the impact of social and emotional learning interventions on teachers’ burnout symptoms. Educational Psychology Review, 33, 1779-1808.

Schwab, R. L., Jackson, S. E., & Schuler, R. S. (1986). Educator burnout: Sources and consequences. Educational Research Quarterly, 10, 14-30.

April 2025