Workplace bullying in the early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector is a pervasive and significant issue in Australia and globally. Workplace bullying can negatively impact early childhood professionals' mental health, contributing to staff turnover and attrition. Given the current, and predicted, future shortages of ECEC staff, it is…

This paper shares data from a longitudinal study into secondary performing arts teachers' perceptions of their first five years of teaching. Utilising Deleuze and Guattari's concept of rhizomatic becomings and Braidotti's posthuman knowing subject, our research explores the embodied, relational, and fluid identities of early career teachers. This…

Teacher mental health and wellbeing is neglected in policy relative to student mental health and wellbeing. Yet there are ongoing concerns around teachers' stress levels and their impact on students and teacher shortages. Through a desk-based literature review relevant literature, current reports and statistics were examined to ascertain…

The COVID-19 pandemic has put unprecedented pressure on teachers around the world, raising significant concerns about their workload and wellbeing. Our comparison of 2019 (pre-pandemic) and 2020 (first year of the pandemic) survey data (n = 362) from teachers in New South Wales, Australia, demonstrates that their morale and efficacy declined…

Australian policymakers are currently attempting to address an 'unprecedented teacher shortage'. Through a survey of 905 teachers in Australian government schools, this paper examines some of the key factors influencing the career intentions of teachers in Australian government schools. Drawing upon the concept of the psychosocial work environment…

Historically, research on educator wellbeing has focused on ill health including stress, burnout and emotional exhaustion. There is a dearth of research examining healthy workplace wellbeing among early childhood educators, which makes developing strategies to support their wellbeing difficult. Moreover, there is a lack of clarity about the…

This article presents evidence from across the segregated secondary school system in NSW, Australia, through the close analysis of three cases of teachers' work in contrasting schooling contexts. Through this comparative approach, the relationship between school context and the work of the early career teacher is foregrounded, troubling views of…

Early-career music teachers are described in the literature as being in the first few years of the profession. This research explores the motivation, sense of value, and areas of stress affecting early-career music teachers in Australian secondary high schools. The research is a part of a larger qualitative study which contains a national survey…

This paper explores the hyper-performative expectations of early career teachers (ECTs) in the context of neoliberal education assemblages. The need to support and retain beginning teachers is a salient issue in the context of troubling rates of teacher attrition. The study explores how ECTs perceive teacher identities in response to national…

The role of two leadership factors (autonomy-supportive and autonomy-thwarting leadership) and one personal resource (workplace buoyancy) were examined as predictors of three teacher outcomes: somatic burden, stress related to change, and emotional exhaustion. Data were collected from 325 Australian teachers in May, 2020 during the first wave of…

Correlates of turnover intent among primary (N = 580) and secondary (N = 675), male (N = 254) and female (N = 999) teachers, were examined through the lens of the job demands-resources (JD-R) model. Multigroup structural equation modelling indicated that job demands (workload, student misbehaviour), and the personal demand of work-family conflict,…

Purpose: It may be argued that some shared psychological mechanisms (attribution) and structures (schemas) are likely to play a role in how individuals perceive stress. This paper seeks to propose and test some hypothesised relationships between stress attribution domains and burnout dimensions. Design/methodology/approach: The participants were…

The role of the generalist teacher is now affirmed as being an important component in the success or otherwise of inclusive education practice. Issues about the effectiveness of teacher preparation for working in inclusive classes have arisen. An evaluation of pre-service teachers' perceptions regarding their preparedness for inclusion had some…

Teachers in culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms work in highly charged contexts where policy, curriculum, student backgrounds, equity issues and pedagogical expertise provide both resources and constraints. Often, these classrooms are in underachieving schools in low socio-economic areas. This study investigated one school in…

The Vinson report (2001) into public education highlighted the growing incidence of behavioural problems within the NSW public school system. One disorder that is currently causing particular concern is Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) as the outcomes for students with ODD who do not receive intervention are dire. Barcalow (2006) claims that…