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Technology is compromising the health and well-being of teachers, blurring the already-indistinct boundaries between work and home and leading to an unsustainable 鈥渁lways on鈥� mentality, researchers assert in a .

It鈥檚 not an entirely new problem. For decades, educators have labored under the twin pressures of expanding responsibilities at work and increasing domestic demands. As dual-income families became the norm, larger class sizes, more paperwork, and a gradual shift in caretaking duties toward school systems have strained the capacity of educators, encroaching on personal time traditionally set aside for family and friends. Well before the pandemic, stress topped the list of reasons teachers quit, according to a , which identified long hours and the burden of taking on second jobs to supplement income as primary factors in early retirement. 

Technology is rapidly pushing things toward a breaking point. The proliferation of computers, and especially cell phones, is putting the last vestiges of personal space at risk, compelling teachers to spend more time outside of school hours planning tech-enriched lessons while responding to nighttime emails and text messages. This pattern of incursion鈥攔esearchers call it 鈥渢echno-invasion鈥� or 鈥減ervasive connectivity鈥濃�攃an make them feel as though they鈥檙e on call at all hours of the day and even late into the night, explains Caroline Murphy, a researcher at the Kemmy Business School at the University of Limerick, in the current study. 

For teachers, there are few places to turn to for respite. While the public sector has typically traded lower wages for better work-life balance, the commodification of teaching鈥攄riven by a greater focus on test scores and evaluating teacher performance鈥攈as led to what some experts call the 鈥渕arketization of education.鈥� Increasingly, the profession looks like the private sector, 鈥渋n particular in relation to demands around working time, and the development of an 鈥榓lways on鈥� culture,鈥� Murphy points out. In what amounts to a broken promise, the expectations keep growing, but the pay hasn鈥檛 . 

Without new policies defending teachers鈥� fundamental right to disconnect鈥攖o reclaim time with their families and friends, and to relax and restore themselves鈥攖he outcomes are all too predictable. Rising job dissatisfaction and deteriorating mental and physical health are real risks, according to the research. The issue is serious and growing, and it demands immediate attention.

Internet Leakage

Online communications have led to a pervasive 鈥渆ncroachment of work on individuals鈥� time off through ubiquitous connectivity,鈥� says Murphy. The mere expectation that an email or text may arrive from a principal or student, and demand a response, is an intrusion into a teacher鈥檚 personal space.

Theoretical emails eventually become real ones. The average teacher receives up to , a staggering amount that can feel insurmountable鈥攁nd the pressure to reply quickly can feel irresistible. In a , employees reported that they started responding to emails 6 seconds after receiving them. Meanwhile, in a , researchers observed that employees experienced 鈥渟ignificantly lower daily stress鈥� when limiting the frequency of checking email to three times a day, compared with those who had no restrictions. 

There鈥檚 also a significant cognitive tax to checking emails and other notifications, like texts or reminders: According to a , the barrage of pings and warnings emanating from our phones are almost impossible to ignore, even when the phone is off and turned upside down on the table. 鈥淭he mere presence of one鈥檚 own smartphone may occupy limited-capacity cognitive resources,鈥� the researchers conclude, 鈥渢hereby leaving fewer resources available for other tasks and undercutting cognitive performance.鈥� Shutting the cell phone off and abandoning it in another room was the only way to restore sanity. 

The Technology Learning Curve

The deluge of new technologies unsupported by adequate training鈥攆rom learning management systems to new apps, videoconferencing software, and multimedia lesson-planning鈥攊s undermining competence and professionalism, Murphy argues.

鈥淚 have NEVER been this exhausted,鈥� exclaimed Sarah Gross, a veteran high school English teacher who did hybrid teaching last fall, according to the . 鈥淭his is not sustainable.鈥�

Gross isn鈥檛 alone: In 2021, researchers analyzed and found that teachers were being pushed to adopt technology in their classrooms without the 鈥渢echnical resources and equipment necessary for its correct didactic use,鈥� a particularly insidious problem that culminated in 鈥渃onflicts between teachers, as well as in their relationships with colleagues or with other people involved in the environment, eventually producing, in the worst case, damaged personal and interpersonal relationships that affect their health.鈥�

In a published earlier this year, researchers found that nearly half of the teachers surveyed spent 20 or more hours per week creating new lessons, adapting materials to online classrooms, and troubleshooting tech issues. Notably, this pattern is expected to as schools commit to deeper integration of technology and even offer some form of remote instruction permanently.

A Heavy Toll

This new source of anxiety is not only linked to decreased job satisfaction, motivation, and competency but is also a health and safety concern, 鈥渃ausing physical ailments such as headaches, sleep issues, muscle cramps, back aches and high blood pressure,鈥� according to Murphy. 

It鈥檚 not technology itself that鈥檚 the problem鈥攊t鈥檚 that technology erodes the boundaries that have historically constrained altruistic teachers. 鈥淲e may feel that if we don鈥檛 get a task done, our students will suffer or programs will fail,鈥� explains John McCarthy, a former teacher and current consultant. 鈥淗owever, if we become mentally exhausted, overtired, or drained of energy, we risk a complete shutdown mentally or physically鈥攁nd at that point, no tasks will get done.鈥�

According to a , 78 percent of teachers feel physically and emotionally exhausted at the end of the day, and while technology isn鈥檛 the sole source of stress, it is 鈥渙ne of the most significant contributing factors to increasing stress levels,鈥� Murphy points out, adding that educators routinely report that 鈥渋nvasion of privacy鈥� is a 鈥渟ignificant source of work exhaustion.鈥�

Pushing Back鈥擶ithout Going Back

That鈥檚 not to say that Ludditical solutions like banning technology should be pursued; technology creates enormous efficiencies and is here to stay, but it must be carefully managed. Murphy asserts that we need to establish and adopt policy that 鈥渟upports the healthy adoption of technology outside of school hours by both teachers and students.鈥�

While the United States is lagging behind other countries, has been proposed in New York to protect workers from being penalized if they choose not to respond to emails after work hours. Meanwhile, major companies have begun to acknowledge the problem. banned internal emails from being sent or received through its servers during off-work hours in 2012, following 鈥渃omplaints that staff鈥檚 work and home lives were becoming blurred.鈥� And in 2016, giving employees the right 鈥渢o not have to take calls or read emails related to work during their time off.鈥� The law鈥檚 stated goal is to 鈥渆nsure that the employees鈥� non-work hours, vacation time, and personal and family life be respected.鈥�

So what should be under consideration for schools?

• Model better practices: Consider developing policies or guidelines that encourage school leaders to avoid sending emails after school hours, except in the case of emergencies. What may seem like a simple question or request can have bigger implications as teachers feel the need to regularly check email at night to avoid appearing nonresponsive.
• Give 鈥減ermission to disconnect鈥�: Leaders can provide explicit permission giving teachers the right to disconnect from work-related communications outside of normal school hours. The policy should be socialized among all stakeholders in the learning community and honored with no questions asked.
• Survey your staff: Conduct work-life balance surveys to gauge staff well-being. Ask questions such as 鈥淗ow often do the demands of your job interfere with your family life?鈥濃�攇ood lists of questions can be found in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention鈥檚 and the from Broward County Public Schools.
• Keep your cell phone clean: Teachers should consider removing access to work emails from their smartphones, and school and district leaders should encourage it. 鈥淵ou may find it more helpful to only check email on your computer鈥攖hat way, when the school day ends, you can close your computer and walk away from the pings and the temptation to check your inbox,鈥� suggests classroom teacher Lauren Huddleston.
• Be transparent about your obligations: Block visible time on your calendar for typically unstructured tasks like writing emails, grading papers, and planning lessons, suggests educational consultant and former teacher Marissa King. Consider clearly demarcating your work hours on your calendar as well, and set up out-of-office messages that state your work hours and indicate when you鈥檒l respond to late emails.