Year: 1999
Author: Scott, Dr Catherine, Dinham, Dr Steve, Brooks, Dr Robert
Type of paper: Refereed paper
Abstract:
Interest in teacher 'stress' and 'burnout' and their relationship to teacher well being has a long and distinguished history. However, there has been criticism of this research endeavour for, among other problems, its conceptual narrowness and its lack of psychometric rigour (Guglielmi & Tatrow, 1998).
An interest in the consequences for teachers of the changing and turbulent international context of education led the researchers to initiate an international project investigating teacher and school executive career satisfaction, motivation and mental health. This project sought to develop a model of teachers' occupational well-being that was wider than a focus on 'stress', and, as noted, included occupational motivation and satisfaction as well.
This paper reports on a sub-aspect of that research, the development of scales to measure teacher and school executive satisfaction with the work of teaching and its context carried out in Australia, England, New Zealand and the USA. As well as revealing relative satisfaction with various facets of the teaching role, these scales also prove useful in explaining how teachers and school executive view the construction of their respective educational and social contexts.
An interest in the consequences for teachers of the changing and turbulent international context of education led the researchers to initiate an international project investigating teacher and school executive career satisfaction, motivation and mental health. This project sought to develop a model of teachers' occupational well-being that was wider than a focus on 'stress', and, as noted, included occupational motivation and satisfaction as well.
This paper reports on a sub-aspect of that research, the development of scales to measure teacher and school executive satisfaction with the work of teaching and its context carried out in Australia, England, New Zealand and the USA. As well as revealing relative satisfaction with various facets of the teaching role, these scales also prove useful in explaining how teachers and school executive view the construction of their respective educational and social contexts.