Identifying the factors that cause stress to mathematics teachers

Abstract

In schools, the teachers’ responsibilities are not just limited to preparation for teaching, handling students, preparing and marking examination papers, but they also have school administration responsibilities. The amount of administrative workload may also be perceived as an interference with the time for the teachers to plan and prepare for their teaching. There has been an increase in the number of Mathematics teachers in Brunei Darussalam who chose to change their career path from being a teacher. In addition, few incidents have been reported where teachers were emotionally affected by the amount of their workloads. This study investigated which aspects contributed to Bruneian Mathematics teachers’ stress, and how do these teachers manage their workload stress inside and outside their schools. In total, 116 Mathematics teachers responded to an online questionnaire, which was based on a 4-point Likert scale. The participants comprised of Mathematics teachers who taught at the primary (38), secondary (49), post-secondary (20) school levels, and also at the tertiary level including the technical schools in Brunei (9). The main factors that were found to have contributed to the Mathematics teachers’ stress were the teachers’ workload, the public’s perspective of a teacher, financial burden and the students’ behaviour and performance. In managing workload stress within the school, 56% of the respondents believed that teamwork on the workload can help them lessen the stress acquired. Meanwhile for outside school, workload stress may be reduced with family activities or going on vacations. The existence of stress on our Mathematics teachers and how they can cope with stress will need to be addressed accordingly if we are to promote a healthy workplace culture.In schools, the teachers’ responsibilities are not just limited to preparation for teaching, handling students, preparing and marking examination papers, but they also have school administration responsibilities. The amount of administrative workload may also be perceived as an interference with the time for the teachers to plan and prepare for their teaching. There has been an increase in the number of Mathematics teachers in Brunei Darussalam who chose to change their career path from being a teacher. In addition, few incidents have been reported where teachers were emotionally affected by the amount of their workloads. This study investigated which aspects contributed to Bruneian Mathematics teachers’ stress, and how do these teachers manage their workload stress inside and outside their schools. In total, 116 Mathematics teachers responded to an online questionnaire, which was based on a 4-point Likert scale. The participants comprised of Mathematics teachers who taught at the primary (38), secondary ...