A Comparison of Sources of Stress, Teacher Stressors, and Coping Strategies of Teachers in America and Saudi Arabia

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Abstract

Three female Saudi Arabian teachers (25-35 years old), enrolled in a university in the United States and a comparative, convenience sample of teachers in America from a televised teacher town hall “Education Nation” (Williams, 2010) of approximately 300 hundred teachers from across the country, gathered to discuss the challenges of today’s educational system, participated in the study. Phenomenological inquiry was used to analyze the responses from the a priori, in-depth interviews of the EN teachers that were subsequently used to develop interview questions for interviewing Saudi teachers. Stressors were analyzed using qualitative methods and descriptive statistics. Coping strategies were discusses for both groups, providing a repertoire of approaches that teachers could use, should they encounter similar stress situations.

Author

• Carolyn Orange, The University of Texas - San Antonio