Stress among Maltese primary teachers and how they cope with it : a qualitative study

Abstract

This study seeks to find out how individual Primary School teachers are experiencing stress and how it is impacting on their personal lives and professional practice. After briefly reviewing what we know to date about the subject of teacher stress, I explain the qualitative methodology which I adopted, based on nine semi-structured interviews with female teachers from three Maltese schools (State, Church and Independent) and on eighteen classroom observation sessions. The analysis of the findings shows that the teachers experience teaching as both stressful and satisfying. Correcting pupils' work at home, examination pressure, vastness of syllabus and parental expectations emerged as important causes of teacher stress. The teachers manifest a number of symptoms of stress. Occupational stress is affecting them both personally and professionally. The research also shows that the teachers are using a mixture of action-based and palliative coping strategies.