Addressing the mental health crisis of our school teachers

Sadly, this is a common reality in Bangladesh. Studies conducted on both government and non-government school teachers have found that they face intense emotional and psychological burnout. Expanding on this, Afsana Zesmin Mitu adds, "In our profession, we get very limited time between lesson planning, grading, and meetings. Most of us do not get adequate time to recharge ourselves, which deteriorates our mental health. Apart from that, the payment structure does not always match the emotional investment this profession demands. That might also be a source of stress for many within our community."

Regarding time constraints in school teachers' lives, Mim Das, an English teacher at Imperial International School Narayanganj, points out that teachers are often required to do extra work beyond their job description. In addition, there is a constant demand for perfection, which takes a toll on their mental health. She elaborates, "In school teaching, sometimes there is work even after school hours, which hampers my personal time and affects my mental health. Moreover, perfection is given so much priority in English medium schools that even a small mistake creates a lot of pressure and mental stress."

Apart from time constraints and the constant juggling of job-related tasks, students' classroom behaviour can also be a source of stress for teachers. Animesh Kumar Saha, a Biology teacher at St. Joseph Higher Secondary College, feels demotivated by his students' preference for social media over classroom activities. "Since the post-COVID period, I have been noticing a sharp decline in my students' participation in classroom activities. As a teacher, this is not the easiest thing to witness. It makes me feel demotivated," he points out.