Sian Chapman

Teacher wellbeing is important, not least for the role teachers play in supporting students’ social, emotional, physical, and academic wellbeing. Effective teachers need to be physically and mentally healthy however much of the research about this focuses on burnout or stress and the deficits these create, rather than what keeps teachers well. This research examined how teachers conceptualise positive wellbeing. We refer to influential ecological influences that support and sustain teachers as the bridge building necessary to support long-term, sustainable teacher wellbeing, as opposed to stop-gap band-aid fixes. A scoping review identified 52 studies from the extant literature identified ecological factors (individual, relational and contextual) that impact teacher wellbeing. Three interrelated themes provide a basis to examine first, influential individual factors shaping teachers’ wellbeing; second, relational factors characterising teachers’ work; and third, contemporary contextual factors associated with enhancing or eroding teacher wellbeing. Analysis shows enhanced teacher wellbeing as a dynamic interplay and interconnectedness of influential factors that promote, support and it (bridge building), where all weight-bearing components (influential factors) are essential to integrity of the overall structure (teacher wellbeing). In the absence of positive influential factors other components become weak and vulnerable and weaken the entire structure (impacting negatively on overall wellbeing). A focus on distinct factors of wellbeing, viewed in isolation or without regard for its broader ecology emphasise what we refer to as band-aid responses. These are characteristically short-term solutions that initially provide relief but have limited long-term efficacy or sustainability. This review contributes to enhanced understanding of contextual factors influencing teacher wellbeing and what fosters and supports meaningful, long-term, systematic wellbeing initiatives.

Over the past twenty years, change in secondary education has been driven primarily by the relentless march of technology. More recently though, through the global disruption of the COVID 19 pandemic, a landscape of further learning opportunities has been unveiled. Based on a small-scale study, this presentation explores how teacher beliefs and perceptions, the online pandemic teaching response and other sociocultural factors influenced digital technology use in Western Australian secondary English classrooms. The study explored the space where technology-enhanced learning (TEL), multiliteracies and post-digital education intersect to both unsettle and stabilise. Findings suggest that during the COVID-19 emergency response, teacher agency may have increased and TEL may have accelerated. Further, English department cultures play a critical role for TEL in secondary English classrooms. While nuanced stakeholder discussions are recommended to leverage digital devices to support disengaged students, teaching healthy digital habits and self-regulation are necessary to combat habitual problematic use. This study strengthens the idea that technology profoundly changes society, individuals and the education of young people in the twenty-first century. Consequently, TEL provides an opportunity to reconceptualise education and curriculum in a relevant, safe, and positive way.

In the era of alternative truths and complex school contexts, online resourcing of arts teaching is growing. Online platforms, such as Pinterest, offer ready-made activities and therefore simple answers for some classroom teachers, who are struggling to plan and implement the arts for their students. However, a lack of criticality can underscore the unexamined 'advantages' of such accessible resources. Criticality and connoisseurship are two key issues in understanding why teachers prefer online platforms for the sourcing of arts teaching resources, rather than curriculum documents written for them by 'curriculum experts'. Critically competent curriculum decisions require informed knowing about value and how the decision impacts on practice and student learning. Combined in an arts context and drawing on interviews with sixteen classroom teachers, criticality and connoisseurship are used to highlight the systemic issues of context, value and pedagogy that impact on teachers practice. Understanding the participatory nature of the internet and the multi-modality of digital texts are two suggestions for increasing teachers' criticality. These ideas are explored as a means of improving teacher's connoisseurship and arts learning for young people.