McGill led program aiming to help future teachers manage stress

“Stress among teachers is a global issue,” according to Naz Böke, Academic Associate in the Faculty of Education at McGill University, which is why the university’s Faculty of Education has developed a program to help future teachers.

The Regulating Emotions and Stress for pre-Service Teachers Program (RESST) was created to assist those looking to become teachers deal with stress-related challenges they will face when they begin practising their profession.

“We’re seeing in research that a large portion of teachers are leaving the profession within the first five years, largely due to burnout, stress, workload, or working-conditions issues,” said Böke.

This also leads to an impact on academic achievements and classroom atmosphere for students.

Through studies, the research team spoke to education students, instructors, administrators, and directors of teacher education programs across Canada, as they tried to find an optimal program that would work to support teachers’ well-being. Such as mindfulness, the ability to handle stress, and good mental health generally.

This process led to a 78 to 96 per cent satisfaction rate in those participating in the various surveys and programs, which Böke said, “really indicates the value added for their professional and personal development.”

Now, through RESST, future teachers can do the self-paced program through 13 universities across Canada.

“The strategies that we’re sharing in the RESST program are all evidence-based general strategies that have been studied for their effectiveness for stress management and regulating emotions,” said Böke.