Percepções de sobrecarga e desinteresse dos alunos: as faces do estresse docente em escola pública

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to analyze the perception of psychosocial stressors and their relationship with certain aspects of working conditions (employment status, classroom workload, and the number of students per class) among teachers in a public school in southern Minas Gerais state, Brazil. METHOD: The participants were 35 teachers who completed the Evaluation of Psychosocial Stressors in the Labor Context Scale and a sociodemographic questionnaire. In addition, interviews were conducted with eleven of them. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, and correlation analyses were applied to the quantitative data, and the interviews underwent content analysis. RESULTS: The results demonstrated that tenured teachers, compared to their temporary counterparts, perceived greater role overload and work-family conflict. Teaching at multiple schools was associated with perceptions of work-family conflict and lack of autonomy. The number of students per class was correlated with perceptions of role conflict and ambiguity. Classroom workload was the variable correlated with the perception of a higher number of stressors. The narratives largely corroborated these findings, underscoring work overload as a key source of strain in the workplace and highlighting student disinterest as an additional stressor, due to deteriorating relationship quality and frustrated professional expectations. CONCLUSIONS: The findings emphasize the consequences of precarious working conditions on basic education teaching.