Educator Burnout: Spring Semester Struggles

Educators highlight spring semester/February as a particularly difficult month for mental health as they begin to prepare for the end of year and standardized testing.

  • “I had a teacher friend say that February is always the worst month for people in education. I agree now that I think about it. February has always been discouraging, but why? Anyone have theories on why that is? My theory is the weather and the huge gap between breaks.” —High School Math Teacher in Illinois
    • “I agree with that-we have no break between January and spring break in March. I know for me I feel like the pressure is on. We’re more than halfway through the year. Are the kids making the progress they need to be making to be prepared for next year? It’s stressful.” —Teacher in Texas
    • “It’s a long month, lousy weather, lack of sunlight, busy (interviews and IEPs due) and the kids are reacting to the weather and lack of sunlight too. February is a hot mess.” —SPED Teacher in Toronto 
    • “Also it’s the point in the year where the ‘honeymoon’ is over, and teachers are feeling the anxiety of the ‘full court press’ to prepare for standardized testing.” —Educator in New Jersey
    • “I agree. It’s so hard. Long time without breaks, seasonal depression, getting sick, covering colleagues’ classes because they are sick, wishing for a snow day (only to be disappointed), etc. I think the kids feel all that too, which makes it harder.” —High School Foreign Language Teacher 
    • “The Ides of March, nothing beats that in terms of terrible times in teaching. It’s when a lot of decision making starts to happen in terms of jobs, there are NO holidays, testing is on the horizon.” —Elementary Educator
    • “Yes. We trade holiday season for testing season and the days have less sun, literally and figuratively.” —High School English Teacher in Texas
  • “I cried today. Cried because my students need more than I can emotionally and financially provide. Cried because I feel like I’m failing. Yet I pick myself up because they are our future leaders.” —Elementary Teacher