Coping or Surviving? Exploring the Work-Life Balance of Special Education Teachers

Special education teachers face multiple professional career challenges, resulting in mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion. Although previous research has explored professional stressors and burnout for teachers, limited research has examined the interaction between professional and personal stressors and how teachers cope with these complex and compounding factors. This qualitative study explored special education teachers’ experiences working with students who faced emotional and behavioral difficulties and on work-life balance, and the strategies that these teachers employed to keep burnout at bay. The results reveal how stress associated with their jobs has impacted these teachers’ personal lives and their ability to cope with work-related burnout and prioritization of self-care. This study has strong implications for teachers and administrators and makes recommendations for both parties. These recommendations include establishing sustainable measures that can help alleviate teacher burnout, such as the implementation of mental health support and specialized training for staff and administrators to foster a supportive work environment.