Imagine Learning

Is Professional Learning the Antidote to Teacher Burnout?

Discover the hidden power of professional learning in addressing teacher burnout. This blog post explores how shifting from traditional professional development to a more collaborative, teacher-driven approach can rekindle educators’ passion and resilience, ultimately benefiting both teachers and students.

Before we dive into what makes professional learning effective, we need to address the elephant in the room: the difference between professional development and professional learning. Bradley et al describe them as two mindsets, with the professional learning mindset being one “in which professional learning and growth are centered around accelerating personal and collective learning.”

The shift from a PD to PL mindset means “moving from delivering information to intentionally co-designing, with educators, learning and growth opportunities that are grounded in the evidence about what is most needed and most effective.”

So, while at first it seems like a small difference in semantics, it’s really the key to this whole conversation — especially during a time when teacher burnout is high.

Addressing teacher burnout… with professional learning?

At this point, we know many of the causes of teacher burnout: heavy workloads, lack of funding, and classroom behavior issues, to name a few. But if these stressors don’t have an immediate fix, how do we help address the problem?

You might roll your eyes when I say professional learning. But keeping in mind the shift in mindset, more one-off PD days are not what we’re talking about — not even if the focus is on teacher wellness. We’ve looked before at how administrators can care for teachers, including offering mental health and wellness support. But frankly, teachers are tired of being told to prioritize self-care when they don’t have the time or bandwidth.

Educators go above and beyond for their students, ignoring their own well-being (inspiring the well-intentioned push to promote self-care) because teaching is a mission-driven craft. And because of that, we are seeing teachers burn out at rates that align with other service- and mission-oriented roles (e.g. nursing, social work, etc.).

At the beginning of their careers, teachers feel deeply rooted in their “why,” but as the daily stresses of the profession take over, they can start to feel distanced from that purpose. This is what psychologists call misalignment burnout, when “we constantly engage with environments and in activities that go against our innermost values and beliefs, leading to a disconnect between our true selves and professional identity.”

So how can we help teachers with this misalignment? That’s where professional learning comes in.

The key to effective PL: reconnecting teachers with their “why”

A critical aspect of effective professional learning is that it helps educators to reconnect with their “why” and refills the proverbial tank needed to keep giving and giving and giving in an increasingly skilled way. It also helps teachers to build a toolkit for how to respect their own barriers, keep their own well-being in check, and systematize the individualized support that they want to offer each student.

Effective professional learning is teacher-driven, and therefore tailored by grade level, content area, career stage, and specific interests or passions. Teachers are professionals and should be treated as such, with autonomy and choice over how they hone their skills and stay informed about current research.

We know that professional learning should be enduring, ongoing, job-embedded, and relevant, but if the main goal isn’t to get teachers back to that “why,” it’s missing a critical element. The goal is of course to build and strengthen skills, but the other, equally important outcome is to help teachers rekindle motivation and strengthen resilience.

PL ideas that bring focus back to the “why”:

Provide ample time to connect with colleagues

Spend time digging into (and rethinking) content and how it’s delivered

Focus on new ways to build connections with students

New challenges arise and best practices evolve, “but one thing that has never altered is educators’ desire to affect positive change in the classroom.” So, if professional learning can tap into that in a meaningful way, it can make huge strides toward reinvigorating teachers.

About the Author — Krysia Lazarewicz

Krysia Lazarewicz is Vice President of Professional Learning and Development at Imagine Learning, where she leads the vision, strategy, and execution of our professional learning. Before joining the Imagine Learning team, Krysia was Vice President of Business Development at Wiley University Services, where she partnered with over 100 institutions to develop and launch new online programs, focusing on helping educators and learners achieve their goals. Krysia’s background includes teaching middle school math and science and working in content development for Pearson. She has a strong passion for improving lives through education.