From Burnout toward Teacher Education. A Pedagogical Inquiry

Abstract

Many psychological and pedagogical studies have highlighted that the relational and care work of teaching is closely linked to the risk of burnout. The burnout construct, in a psychodynamic perspective, can be understood as a response to chronic interpersonal stress factors experienced in the workplace, with consequent worsening on the psycho-physical well-being of the teacher as well as on the student's learning process. Burnout is progressively becoming a focal point of educational professionalism, insofar as it can help to understand the complexity of the scholastic institution, supporting and accompanying teacher professionalism development through specific educational pathways. The paper presents the first results of a quanti-qualitative research, aimed at analyzing risk factors related to teacher burnout and work dissatisfaction as well as the identification of dimensions related to teachers' educational needs. In this framework, the specific objectives of the research can be summarized as follows: to investigate the incidence produced by the Sars-Covid 19 health emergency on the levels of burnout and work satisfaction of secondary school teachers in the province of Palermo, through a longitudinal study; to investigate the perceptions of the burnout through a hermeneutic-phenomenological approach focused on the interpretation of the person's lived-experiences, beyond the observational and measurable data. Starting from emerging results, in the framework of adult generative education and community care, primary prevention and educational paths will designed.