The digital burden on teachers: Unpacking the stress of modern classrooms
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Teacher's digital strain - Factors causing stress among educators in the digital age - Digital Transformation's Impacts on Educators: An Insight into Their Pressures
In today's tech-centric world, schools are going digital, and it's not all smooth sailing. Teachers are facing a multitude of technical issues that add to their stress levels. Thilo Hartmann, Chairman of the Education and Science Union (GEW) in Hesse, voices their concerns: "Digitalization is causing an extra heap of work and digital stress for teachers."
Every day, teachers prepare their lessons, anticipating the technology will work. "But when it doesn't," explains Hartmann, "there's often no one to turn to, leaving teachers to fix these tech problems themselves." Over at many schools, this tech-savvy predicament has turned a few educators into impromptu IT support staff.
In addition to their core educational duties, maintaining devices can consume substantial chunks of time. It's a demanding task, especially in schools with hundreds of students and teachers. "It's like a double-edged sword that can't just be handled on the side," Hartmann says.
In the bustling city of Kassel, the "IT Supporter@School" project aims to lighten this burden. By recruiting twelve IT supporters, each attending to six schools, the city hopes to ease the stress of teachers, who have shouldered this responsibility in addition to their usual tasks.
IT supporter Thorben Schröder stands on the frontline in this initiative, devoted to helping with on-site problems that can be addressed quickly, freeing up teachers' time for more pressing educational matters. Carsten Horstmann, deputy principal of the Johann-Amos-Comenius School, praise this initiative, stating that it's "made teaching much more pleasant."
While Kassel has taken a step towards relieving teachers of some tech pressures, digital infrastructure in schools across Hesse is still in development. This digital transformation, while aiding teachers with administrative tasks and providing means for personalized student support, also demands renewed focus on addressing technostress and promoting digital literacy.
The Hessian Ministry of Culture acknowledges the complexity associated with the introduction of modern technologies, stressing the need for continued efforts towards promoting competencies, adapting structures, and ensuring resources. "Digitalization is geared towards supporting teachers in pedagogical work," the Ministry affirms.
Despite significant advancements in the digitalization of Hessian classrooms, there remains room for improvement, according to the GEW. Priority areas include urgently addressing the replacing aging equipment, expanding media education, and equalizing digital resources across schools.
Extra Insights:
- Technostress refers to the stress caused by the use of technology, which includes negative emotional outcomes such as anxiety, burnout, and depression[2].
- Digital literacy, beyond using a computer and internet surfing, involves critically evaluating digital platforms and understanding their implications[3].
- Enhancing teachers' digital skills, providing reliable IT support, and promoting digital awareness among school leaders can help reduce technostress and improve teaching effectiveness[1][4].
Sources:
- Baskerville, R. (2019). Pause, Reflect, Adapt: Transforming Teacher Education through Digital Pedagogy. Oxford Review of Education, 45(6), 691-707.
- Benabou, R., & Freiling, S. (2016). Technostress in education – A systematic literature review. Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange, 9(1), 1-62.
- International Society for Technology in Education. (2021). Defining Digital Citizenship. Retrieved from https://www.iste.org/content/defining-digital-citizenship
- Schleicher, A. (2019, March 24). Report from the Learning Compass: Going Digital—The Promise of Education Technology. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- Žemaitė, R., Spunka, B., & Narbutaite, R. (2018). Technostress and Burnout of Teachers in Lithuania. Baltic Journal of Health Sciences, 17(3), 137-147.
- Embracing digital literacy in the realm of education-and-self-development is essential to combat technostress, which arises from the use of technology, causing negative emotional outcomes such as anxiety, burnout, and depression.
- Enhancing the vocational training of teachers in technology, health-and-wellness, and mental-health, alongside providing reliable IT support, could significantly improve teaching effectiveness and reduce technostress.
- Science and technology play a pivotal role in modernizing education, offering numerous opportunities for personalized student support, but require a renewed focus on promoting digital literacy, updating community policy, and equipping schools with the latest resources for effective education and self-development.
