An Analysis on Private School Teachers Being Scapegoated For Organizational Problems

The purpose of this study is to explore the views of private school teachers regarding the organizational problems they encounter. This research employs a phenomenological design, which is a qualitative research model. The participants of the study include 20 teachers working in private schools in Ankara in the year 2023. The selection of participants, determined on a voluntary basis, was carried out using the criterion and snowball sampling methods which are the purposive sampling techniques. Data for the research were collected through a semi-structured interview form. In line with the themes identified based on the relevant literature for the purpose of the study, the collected data were analyzed using content analysis method. According to the research findings, the organizational problems reported by teachers include job insecurity and temporary contracts, inadequate salaries, excessive workloads, role ambiguity, workplace mobbing, limited or no participation in decision-making, administrative pressure, and poor physical working conditions. The study also revealed that, during in-service training sessions at their schools, teachers reported receiving explicit and/or implicit messages suggesting that these problems were their own fault and that they were solely responsible for self-improvement. In addition, teachers reported that they were not involved in the decision-making process regarding these training sessions. These findings highlight how teachers felt unfairly held responsible for challenges largely beyond their control, with little attention given to addressing the root causes of these problems. The research also concluded that teachers felt scapegoated as they are unfairly blamed, experienced occupational alienation and a sense of occupational burnout. Accordingly, it is recommended that organizational problems beyond teachers’ control be addressed and resolved first in order to empower education rather than holding teachers responsible for these problems.