Experience Matters: Examining Teachers' Years of Experience, Well-Being, and Response to Student Mental Health Needs

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 11:40 am Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Teaching Through a Crisis: Persistent Challenges Post-COVID (Table 3)

Abstract

Teachers increasingly address student mental health needs post-COVID-19 while reporting they feel ineffective and stressed in this area of work. Using a concurrent triangulation mixed methods design, we investigate if teachers’ (N=1,662) years of experience relate to well-being indicators (i.e., burnout and compassion satisfaction) and how they respond to student mental health needs. Veteran teachers (25+ years) reported highest compassion satisfaction and lowest burnout means frequently referring students to school-based mental health professionals. Early (0-3 years) and mid-career (4-9 and 10-24 years) teachers reported higher burnout, addressing student mental health needs directly despite feeling unprepared. Iterative qualitative analyses highlight the need for organizational well-being supports by years of experience. Implications for teacher education and professional development are discussed.

Authors

• Megan C. Sharkey, George Mason University

• Christy Suzanne Galletta Horner, Bowling Green State University

• Elizabeth F. Levine-Brown, George Mason University