Promoting VET Teachers’ Mental Health and Wellbeing Erasmus Project

Project Title

Promoting VET Teachers’ Mental Health and Wellbeing

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Pedagogy and didactics; Health and wellbeing; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

<< Background >>

The teaching profession is intellectually and emotionally a highly demanding job. Teachers are exposed to a variety of stress factors, such as excessive workload, negative work-life balance, unsupportive school leadership, and challenging student behaviour (Richardson et al, 2013). Stressful working environment affects teachers’ motivation, self-efficacy and job commitment, which in turn can result in higher staff turnover and lower gains in student achievement. There is a growing recognition that for teaching and learning to be effective, teachers should have high levels of wellbeing (OECD, 2018).
The latest research, however, proves that teachers’ wellbeing is an issue of concern. In the UK, more than 75% of educational professionals, including those in the VET sector, experience work-related behavioural, psychological or physical symptoms. 57% of teachers and 63% of senior leaders have considered leaving the profession within the past two years (Teacher Wellbeing Index 2018). The numbers are not much different for other European countries. For example, the Bulgarian Ministry of Education has been registering the highest rate of teachers leaving the profession in the last two years (2018). If unaddressed, the issue of poor wellbeing in schools would leave the educational systems in the EU without qualified and motivated staff, so needed for the development of the younger generation in the age of rising global competition. When national VET systems are struggling to recruit new teachers and retain their existing staff, VET teachers’ wellbeing has been an unfairly neglected topic (CEDEFOP, 2004, 2016; Boldrini & Sappa, 2017). In addition to the stress factors common to all levels of education, VET teachers face specific adversities, which have negative effect on their wellbeing. These include: undervalued image of the VET sector; unattractive career pathways for teachers; poor vocational motivation of students; ongoing changes in national VET systems due to harmonization processes at EU level; continuous changes in VET content due to rapid development of science & technology. The analysis of existing teacher wellbeing support schemes in partner countries, however, shows a lack of professional development opportunities for teachers to build the skills they need to deal effectively with the challenges of their working environment.

<< Objectives >>

VET-WELL project has addressed the teachers wellbeing challenge by planning to develop a comprehensive wellbeing support programme for VET staff, which is based on the rationale that: Teacher wellbeing is a complex construct with multiple dimensions: cognitive (self-efficacy), psychological (emotional regulation), social (collaboration and collegiality), and physical (working conditions); Improving teachers’ wellbeing requires strengthening of the skills and abilities to manage their own wellbeing (e.g. self-awareness, empathy, interpersonal relationship, stress management, conflict resolution) and to tackle their work effectively (e.g. efficacy in classroom management, instruction and student engagement); The culture and environment of a VET school have a profound influence on teachers’ wellbeing. The need for the project implementation was to support wellbeing programme for VET teachers that should be part of a whole school approach to wellbeing promotion, involving positive leadership practice, stress-free and inclusive environment, students’ wellbeing, and proactive engagement with families and the community.

<< Implementation >>

A summary of the implemented activities:
O1-Framework for Teachers’ Wellbeing in VET
PLANNING:
O1/A1 Methodology and action plan – completed and proof documents enclosed to final report
DEVELOPMENT
O1/A2.1 Research into VET teachers’ wellbeing
COMPLETED: literature review, skills sets, etc., surveys, focus groups reports – completed and proof documents enclosed to final report
O1/A2.2 Framework development – completed and proof documents enclosed to final report

O2-Professional Development Programme implemented O2 activities were:
PLANNING:
O2/A1 Syllabus, methodology and templates (M6)
-Development of O2 methodology – completed and proof documents enclosed to final report
-Syllabus – completed and proof document enclosed to final report
DEVELOPMENT
O2/A2.1 Development of modules (M7-M11)
-Modules’ content (incl. case studies and exercises) – completed 3 out of 7 and proof document enclosed to final report
O2/A2.2 Development of workshop scenarios (M8-M12)
-Workshop scenarios – completed 3 out of 7 and proof document enclosed to final report

<< Results >>

The following outputs and results our project have been produced:
O1 Framework for Teachers’ Wellbeing in VET
O1.R1 Research methodology incl. questionnaire for survey,guidelines for focus group interviews
O1.R2 Research report summarizing survey results and focus groups results
O2 Professional development programme
O2.R1 Syllabus
O2.R2 Modules (learning content, incl. case studies and exercises) – completed 3 out of 7
O2.R3 Practical workshop scenarios completed 3 out of 7
A1 Project Management and Implementation
A1.R1 Partnership agreements
A1.R2 Project management plan, project finance and work plan
A1.R3 Interim and final technical and financial reports
A2 Project Quality Management
A2.R1 Quality management plan
A2.R2 Internal evaluation reports:
-Report 1 Evaluation of the project implementation process
A3 Dissemination
A3.R1 Dissemination and exploitation strategy prepared by EuroPA
A3.R2 D&E reports: prepared by EuroPA based on partners’ inputs;
A3.R3 VET-WELL website: developed by EuroPA M1-M4 and maintained for 5yrs
A3.R4 visual identity (logo, templates, design of promotional materials, etc.): developed by EuroPA
A3.R5 promotional materials, prepared by all partners for all activities involving project stakeholders.

Project Website

http://www.vet-well.eu/project/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 79931 Eur

Project Coordinator

EuroPartnership Agency Ltd & Country: UK

Project Partners

• UNIWERSYTET LODZKI
• EUROPEAN CENTER FOR QUALITY OOD
• PROMIMPRESA SRL
• PSICHIKOS SVEIKATOS PERSPEKTYVOS VIESOJI ISTAIGA
• EUROPAISCHER VERBAND BERUFLICHER BILDUNGSTRAGER (EVBB)
• WISAMAR BILDUNGSGESELLSCHAFT GEMEINNUTZIGE GMBH