Burnouts are for Cars, Not Teachers or Coaches

This is my first attempt at a bucket-list endeavor: writing articles about my experiences and views about public education and coaching. I look forward to doing this regularly and hope to improve my ability to express my ideas and generate conversations on this platform, of which I have only ever been an observer. 

Coming up with a topic for my first article was difficult, especially since I am on summer break, but then I started to think about the truth a veteran teacher shared with me when I first entered the profession: teaching is unlike any other industry, and working with youths, their parents, administrators, and the community without a break will lead to short careers. 

That being said, one sad reality that teachers and coaches face is burnout, and the cause seems to be different for most. 

As I reflect on the reality that I have been teaching for over two decades and retirement is a conversation I have had multiple times this year, I think a lot about how I will make the decision to retire because one frustration that I have been vocal about is the type of burnout that leads to teachers throwing in the towel early and slacking in their final year before retirement. 

My reputation as a teacher and coach speaks of one who is caring but challenging. That’s me being kind to myself, as many call me overly or unnecessarily difficult. Even though many students have an early or lasting negative view about the challenges I present in my classroom, most learn that I work hard so that they can get the most out of their time in my class or practice room. 

It is important for teachers and coaches to tackle the threats of burnout early and consistently, and I deliberately use my summers to make sure I do that. In a future piece, I can get into what I do over the summer to make sure I stay in high gear. 

I take my work seriously, believing that over the course of the school year, my students have the potential to improve themselves and cultivate a better future by making the most of their current situation. For any teacher to allow him or herself to fall out of gear and waste students’ time is criminal. Teacher burnout that leads one to throw in the towel and coast for that final year before retirement results in crippling consequences. Students, regardless of age, feed off a teacher’s

energy, words, and actions, and they know what laziness, selfishness, and narcissism look like, all of which I have observed in such teachers and coaches. They are masked by excuses, including burnout. 

Many, or most, students enjoy having a teacher who is retiring because the work load and expectations will be far easier than usual; however, that enjoyment is not the type we should seek when we desire for our classes to be enjoyable. These negative consequences will affect not only a student’s learning and ability to improve and learn necessary skills, but they also tend to diminish a student’s sense of self-worth and a school’s culture, which will hold students back well into their adult lives. 

I have learned that students will not always rise to a teacher’s expectations, and we must be careful not to set crippling expectations; however, I also learned that a student’s sense of self-worth will improve when teachers and coaches value that student, and that happens when students and athletes see passion and energy demonstrated. In a profession that is constantly losing support, we must work to stay in high gear all the way to the final whistle (yes, that is the first of many wrestling references). It is important for every teacher to defend against burnout and take the role of educator seriously. I might be an extremist about this, but lives are on the line. Our lives are on the line. Our loved ones’ lives are on the line. And the lives of our students are on the line. 

Fellow teachers and coaches, keep yourselves in high gear. That takes work, and it starts now. Remember why you got into teaching and coaching, and if that reason is not strong enough to keep you in high gear, resign before you fall into coasting gear.