School Leaders Matter: Preventing Burnout, Managing Stress, and Improving Wellbeing PDF
Preview School Leaders Matter: Preventing Burnout, Managing Stress, and Improving Wellbeing
School Leaders Matter This book outlines practical steps that both government and schools can imple- ment to signifcantly reduce the demands placed upon school leaders. It also provides highly efective tools and strategies to enable school leaders to refect upon and improve their own wellbeing. Packed full of research-led approaches, this book: – Examines school leader burnout, what causes it, how to recognise it, and how to prevent it – Refects on why school leaders fail to prioritise their own needs and how this can be addressed – Provides a comprehensive framework for schools to support leader thriving and resilience – Shares efective, evidence-based coping strategies for leaders. This is a must-read book for all school leaders and those looking to support and improve school leader wellbeing. Helen Kelly is a researcher, writer, speaker, and consultant in the feld of school wellbeing. As a principal, she led international schools in Bangkok, Berlin, and Hong Kong. Prior to this she was a solicitor in the feld of health and safety at work. School Leaders Matter Preventing Burnout, Managing Stress, and Improving Wellbeing HELEN KELLY Designed cover image: © Getty Images First published 2023 by Routledge 4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2023 Helen Kelly The right of Helen Kelly to be identifed as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identifcation and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 978-1-032-05633-3 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-032-05634-0 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-003-19847-5 (ebk) DOI: 10.4324/9781003198475 Typeset in Dante and Avenir by Apex CoVantage, LLC To all the school leaders who have shared their stories with me To Dave for his support and patience Contents Foreword ix Preface xi Acknowledgements xx Introduction 1 PART I What Is Causing School Leader Stress and Burnout? 11 1 The Intensifcation of the School Leader’s Role 13 2 T he Emotional Demands of the School Leader’s Role 20 3 Workload Demands and Other Stressors 37 4 Leading Through a Crisis 49 5 The Challenges of Leading an International School 61 6 More About Burnout 76 viii Contents PART II Preventing Burnout, Managing Stress, and Improving Wellbeing 85 7 What Governments Can Do 87 8 W hat Schools Can Do: A Strategic Approach to Prevent School Leader Burnout 104 9 What Schools Can Do: Addressing Workload 124 10 W hat Schools Can Do: Supporting Leaders’ Mental Health and Wellbeing 142 11 What Schools Can Do: Building Community 157 12 What Leaders Can Do: Managing Stress 174 13 W hat Leaders Can Do: Addressing Self-Sabotage Behaviours 192 14 What Leaders Can Do: Recovering From Burnout 205 Conclusion 217 Index 219 Foreword Several years ago, I was fortunate enough to examine Helen’s doctoral thesis. Now she has taken that learning, and her own deep experiences in practice, to write this book. Reading it, I was struck that many of the issues have not changed since I began to write about stress and leadership in the 1990s; but what has changed, I think, is a deeper awareness of the toll policy change and fnancial issues have had on leaders in schools. This can be seen both in educational writing nationally and internationally, and also in consult- ancy and expertise provided to schools. It is sobering to note that this huge body of work seems to be marginalised in the schools where it is needed most. As Helen says, school leaders matter, and it is a source of worry to me that successive governments have taken a “replace/disposable” attitude to school leadership, rather than looking at leaders’ needs. Hopefully, this book will be used by school leaders to plot their own course through the difcult times that we live in and emerge the other side, thriving and with an extended capacity to help others with whom they work. This book is well written, and, importantly, since the readers are busy people, it is structured in such a way that you are able to dip in and out of it, reading the parts that are most relevant to you at the time. The author’s passion for the subject shines through, and her advice to leaders to listen to their bodies and take the time to refect and regroup is something that school leaders fnd hard to do, because they are so keen to help others. This book is something that no school leader should ignore, as it gives them opportunities to see how they can balance life and work in a way that helps them both personally and professionally.
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