teacher wellbeing and student achievement

Study focused on the relationship between school-average teacher well-being and school-average student achievement.
Sample: 486 teachers across 39 elementary schools.
Method: multilevel structural equation modeling (ML-SEM).
Findings: Significant negative association between emotional exhaustion among teachers and student achievement.
Implications: Importance of addressing teacher emotional exhaustion at the school level.

Teachers significantly influence students' social, emotional, and academic outcomes.
Previous studies show associations between teachers' well-being (burnout, job satisfaction) and student outcomes like motivation and academic achievement.
Current research is limited, particularly at the whole-school level.

Defined as evaluations and functioning in the work environment, encompassing both positive (job satisfaction, engagement) and negative dimensions (burnout, exhaustion).
Emotional exhaustion leads to:
- Lower involvement in lesson planning.
- Negative attitudes towards students.
- Higher rates of absenteeism, negatively impacting student achievement.
Behavioral engagement relates to teachers' proactive and adaptive behaviors in achieving organizational goals.
Engaged teachers are more likely to:
- Invest time in lesson preparation.
- Positively impact student engagement and outcomes.
Need for research on elementary teachers as they interact more closely with students than secondary teachers.

A key component of burnout, characterized by chronic depletion of emotional resources due to job demands.
Outcomes of emotional exhaustion: low energy, high fatigue, job withdrawal, decreased productivity.
Potential for contagion of burnout in workplace environments.

Represents proactive and innovative behaviors focused on achieving teaching objectives.
Essential in affecting students' academic behaviors and outcomes.
Examination of both dimensions at school-level is crucial to understand organizational climates.

Sample: 486 elementary school teachers from 37 schools in New South Wales, Australia.
Data collection period: late 2018 to early 2019; average response rate of 54%.
Achievement data obtained from MySchool website, standardized across schools.

Emotional Exhaustion: Measured using Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), with acceptable reliability.
Behavioral Engagement: Developed by Klassen et al., with satisfactory reliability.
Academic Achievement: Assessed through NAPLAN Literacy and Numeracy tests; school average scores calculated.

Emotional exhaustion reflected a significant negative association with academic achievement (β = -0.61, p < .01).
No significant association found between behavioral engagement and academic achievement (β = 0.58, p = .39).
Observed that emotional exhaustion has direct implications for student achievement, suggesting potential burnout contagion among teachers.

Findings align with previous research indicating that higher levels of teacher emotional exhaustion correlate with lower student academic performance.
Emotional exhaustion may hinder teachers’ capacities to prepare lessons and maintain positive teacher-student relationships.
The non-significant association between behavioral engagement suggests it might be influenced by individual-level rather than school-level factors.

Schools should implement primary prevention strategies to manage burnout and promote teacher well-being, such as workload restructuring and increasing support resources.
Future research should focus on longitudinal designs to uncover the dynamics of emotional exhaustion and behavioral engagement over time.
Larger sample sizes with more schools may yield more comprehensive insights into these associations.