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When we started to study the changes related to epidemics in schools, we thought that we would find that educational management systems that rely on technology to improve the work of teachers could help to make the work of teachers easier. Instead, we found that teachers whose schools use instructional management strategies he had high rates of fatigue.
Our findings are based on a survey of 779 US teachers conducted in May 2022, and follow-up groups conducted later that year. Our study was peer-reviewed and published in April 2024.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, when schools across the country were ordered to close, schools followed suit new technologies support remote learning in times of crisis. This technology also included learning management systems, which are online platforms that help teachers plan and manage their lessons.
We were surprised to find that teachers who use a learning management system like Canvas or Schoology also reported more burnout. Ideally, these tools should simplify their tasks. We also thought that these systems would help teachers to manage documents and assignments, especially since they can store everything digitally, thus, reducing the need to print documents or bring piles of student work home.
But in the following groups we didthe data told another story. Instead of being used as a replacement for old ways of completing tasks, learning management was another thing on teachers’ plates.
A common pattern was seen in the preparation of studies. Before the pandemic, teachers often gave hard copies of lessons to administrators. However, when schools implement learning management systems, some teachers are expected to not only hand out paper plans but also add digital forms to learning management using a completely different approach.
Asking teachers to use new tools without getting rid of old ones is a solution to burnout.
The teachers who taught the first grades had many complaints about the management of education because the system was not compatible with their students. A kindergarten teacher in Las Vegas shared, “Now my kids can’t count to 10 when they first come, but they have to learn six numbers” for Canvas. “I admit that… it does lead to fatigue.”
In addition to technology-related challenges, teachers also identified other factors such as leadership support, teacher autonomy and mental health as predictors of burnout.
Why is it important?
Teacher burnout has been a pressing issue in education, and one that has become particularly prevalent reported during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
If new technology is being used to help teachers do their jobs, then school leaders need to make sure it doesn’t add to their workload. If it increases or increases the workload of teachers, then increasing technology increases the likelihood of teacher burnout. This probably forces many teachers to abandon the course.
Schools that use new technologies must ensure that this is the case improving the teaching profession by reducing other tasks, not just adding more tasks to their workload.
The main lesson of this research is that the quality of teachers should be the most important factor in implementing school change.
What’s next
We believe that our research is relevant not only to learning management systems but also to other new technologies, including emerging artificial intelligence tools. We believe that future research should identify schools and districts that successfully integrate new technologies and learn from their successes.
The A Brief Survey and take part in an interesting academic project.
David T. MarshallAssistant Professor of Educational Research, Auburn University; Tenna MooreResearch Assistant on Teaching, Learning and Assessment Methods, University of Kansasand Timothy PressleyAssistant Professor of Psychology, Christopher Newport University
This article was reprinted from Discussion under a Creative Commons license. Read the book the first story.
