Teachers are overwhelmed with administration according to a new study by the research group UGent@Work, they say they spend no less than 33% of their working time on tasks they perceive as a planning burden.
"A very high figure," said doctoral student Jolien Muylaert. "Especially since teachers have been complaining about it for so long and the government says it is actively working on it. From the interviews I conducted with teachers, they actually see it getting worse."
Plan burden encompasses all the obligations, rules and administration that teachers perceive as inconvenient and unnecessary, keeping them from their core task: teaching.
"My research shows a clear link between the burden of planning, emotional exhaustion and ultimately the decision to leave teaching."
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In her PhD, Muylaert examined the extent to which the introduction of digital learning environments – like Smartschool – affects that plan burden. Contrary to what you might think, it did not improve.
"Just because those learning environments make it so easy to add things, principals ask for even more." According to Muylaert, school directors should ask less of their teachers and the Flemish government also bears a great responsibility.
