Sometimes when you prepare a lesson and students domnt show up on time or not at all can make you stressed.
Joanne, So true. It's hard to push back on students who need more of our time than we had originally planned for. They are often our priority. At the same time, in order to continue to serve student needs, we must make ourselves a priority as well. When we have what we need, we are in a better position to help them.
Dr. Melissa Read
I am a substitute lab instructor and my stress at work is learning the material so that I can teach it per the school requirements. My other stress is rushing from my first job (with a very demanding boss) to my evening classes and somehow fitting dinner into the equation. I also have a 20 year old daughter that requires my time and energy.
Balancing work time with personal time. When you're a caregiver you also have to remember to carve out time for yourself (and not feel guilty for it), or get overwhelmed. You need to spend time prepping. Do enough, but not overdo it. Some terms students need to discuss more things with you. You may not have planned for the extra time. Their neediness may impact work and personal time.
Creighton, Sounds like your role is particularly stressful and you have stress coming at you from all sides! That can be tough. At a guess, the only people who really understand what you are going through are people in your exact same position at your career school. If you haven't done so already, I might recommend you reach out to them to connect on shared experiences. This could really help you learn more about how others are managing through stress and give you some ideas for how to best move forward.
Dr. Melissa Read
Joanne, So true. For instructors, schedules change each semester or term and this can throw off your routine. To your points, this can impact your personal life. While we cannot always control these changes, some instructors try to find ways of holding other things in their lives constant. For example, you could try to teach the same classes from term to term. This way, you do have some consistency and time savings to rely on.
Dr. Melissa Read
A major stressor is that your schedule can potentially change term to term. This can impact other areas.
* If you're a caregiver the appointment schedule changes. People who help with the caregiving may not be available on your new schedule.
* Friends on a 9-5 schedule say that they finally are use to your schedule, and now it's going to change.
* You have to mentally organize differently because you're working different days.
* If you prepared for your class early in the week you may have to change to the end of the previous week.
A major stressor is that your schedule can potentially change term to term. This can impact other areas.
* If you're a caregiver the appointment schedule changes. People who help with the caregiving may not be available on your new schedule.
* Friends on a 9-5 schedule say that they finally are use to your schedule, and now it's going to change.
* You have to mentally organize differently because you're working different days.
* If you prepared for your class early in the week you may have to change to the end of the previous week.
A major stressor is that your schedule can potentially change term to term. This can impact other areas.
* If you're a caregiver the appointment schedule changes. People who help with the caregiving may not be available on your new schedule.
* Friends on a 9-5 schedule say that they finally are use to your schedule, and now it's going to change.
* You have to mentally organize differently because you're working different days.
* If you prepared for your class early in the week you may have to change to the end of the previous week.
As far as my career stressors go I find that the major stressors tend to be such things as getting through all my material each term with the students getting a clear understanding of most concepts because each term is different and every class moves at a different pace and sometimes I find myself moving little faster in the classroom than I normally would becuase I feel behind. Another big stressor is grading. Again, I am in a program where there are alot of writing projects and it takes a good of time to get through all of them and again I get stressed that I will not finish. Some other minor stressors include getting to each class on time and being ready to start when class is to start, having everything copied for that day and several days to come, and having all other administrative paperwork complete and in on time.
As far as my personal life stresses, I would say my work hours and preparation hours. I find it difficult depending on my schedule to be able to participate in my children's activities to the degree that they would like and that I would like along with just being able to spend family time with them. I miss watching family shows, going for walks and visiting family and friends. Also, I sometimes feel that I spend just as much time working on school stuff at home as I do at school and I am trying to take steps to reduce how much time I work on things at home.
I am responsible for scheduling instructors, lab supply ordering and certifications; plus teaching on top of all that. Most of my job duties have a due date which can be very stressful when also dealing with student issues.
As a Chef Instructor at a culinary school- we deal with many stresses.
Organizational Stressors- incorrect recipes, inconsistent procedures, inconsitency of grading parameters, Consisitent uniform code.
Student Needs Stressors- Assisting in the managing of students lives both at school and at home. So many extrinsic factors can affect a students ability to be successful in an educational environment. Often times we have to identify those issues and help them solve them. If not , they become overwhelming and the students education is affected.
College Requirement Stressors- students meeting minimum requirements to enter school, continue and to graduate. Retentioon is a major stressor and sometimes out of the hands of the school and faculty. I just stepped out of a position where the job requirments were a composite of 3 other dept heads that had been elimnated and placed on the Exec Chef. Unrealistic expectations for a position and trying to meet those expectations can prove very stressing.
Patricia, Glad to hear your personal life does not have as much stress as work. It's nice to know that you are not taking stress from all sides like many of your fellow instructors. This makes your stress a little more manageable I'm sure.
Dr. Melissa Read
Work related stress:
Long commute with lots of traffic
Not being told what class will be taught until right before the module starts
Not much personal stress!
The one thing that stresses me out the most is when management makes last minute changes to our syllabi and grading criteria. It is very difficult for me to plan an entire sememster for seven courses with one day notice especially if it is a new course or new book that I am teaching. This falls under college requirements/administrative standards.
There is allot of factors what can cause stress, your personal live plus your job can cause big problems. It is even a bigger problem if you take your personal problems to work. That will effect your performance with your teaching to your students.
Cheryl, These are all tough stressors. Internal politics can be particularly challenging. It's tough when we feel like some of the people we are working with are not on our side or are even actively against our initiatives. When working through political struggles, I recommend having face-to-face conversations where possible. This can help minimize the chances of misunderstanding and strengthen your working relationships too.
Dr. Melissa Read
James, so true. It's tough to separate your worlds when you have access to both of them in one location. A home office is both a blessing and a curse. It's critical in these situations to create boundaries and set expectations for people working in these kinds of environments.
Dr. Melissa Read
Dixie, Nice! I like the way you are working with traffic patterns and not against them. Some cities are tough to get around in with a car. Atlanta is definitely one of them. Sounds like, in your case, working odd hours really pays off.
Dr. Melissa Read
Lisa, Sounds like you have stress coming at you from all sides. That's tough. Some instructors have family or work as an outlet, but many experience stress from both of these sources. Balancing priorities in work and life can be tough too. Sounds like you are managing through it well.
Dr. Melissa Read
