Sources of Occupational Stress Experienced by Primary School English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Teachers in Shaanxi Province

Abstract

Teaching is a challenging and stressful occupation for teachers teaching English as a Foreign Language in a primary school in Shaanxi Province in China. When teachers are stressed, they suffer from a variety of health issues. Such issues will affect their teaching performance in a negative way. As a result, the students’ academic performance will naturally be affected. This main aim of this study is to investigate the sources of occupational stress experienced by primary school EFL teachers in Shanxi Province teaching English as a Foreign Language. The research design employed in this study is qualitative in nature. Twelve teachers were selected using purposive sampling technique. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve teachers in the school. The interviews were recorded and transcribed manually. Data collected were reviewed meticulously to develop themes and codes. Thematic analysis was used for data analysis. Findings showed that the sources of stress experienced by primary school EFL teachers in Shaanxi Province were workload, external demands, maintaining classroom order, availability of resources, additional duties outside of teaching, and individual circumstances. The findings from this study have demonstrated that teachers need the social support that serves as a safeguard for them against stress in a broad sense.