Why 1 in 5 education professionals experience burnout symptoms

For many education leaders, this is a familiar story. The figures are frankly alarming: 1 in 5 education professionals experience burnout symptoms (AOb).What does this say about how education is organized? And what can be done to turn the tide?

The pressure in education is mounting

Education professionals experience a unique mix of pressures:

- Teaching – the core task that brings satisfaction – is often overshadowed by peripheral tasks.

- Administration and accountability are increasingly time-consuming.

- Personal involvement with students demands energy, especially when complex care needs are involved.

- Staff shortages mean that teachers are increasingly taking on extra tasks.

The result: the balance between what gives energy and what costs energy is fundamentally disrupted.

Drivers: more than one motivation

According to the white paper Burnout is (not) a choice, the core issue lies not only in workload, but in the extent to which work aligns with personal drivers. Everyone has a unique mix of drivers: expression (what determines your thoughts and actions) and resistance (where you lose energy).

For one, it's the creative design of lessons, for another, the structure and order in the classroom, and for yet another, teamwork. When that balance is missing, because administrative obligations stifle creative space, or because schedules are unpredictable and chaotic, energy slowly drains away.

A teacher driven by innovation becomes frustrated if there's no room for new ideas. A colleague who values order and clarity can be exhausted by constant last-minute changes. It's never one factor, but always the combination of motivations that determines whether someone thrives or burns out.

The Cost of Absenteeism

When a teacher is absent due to burnout, recovery takes an average of 300 days; almost an entire school year. For the school, this means gaps in schedules, temporary replacements, and immense pressure on the remaining colleagues. For students, it means less continuity, less guidance, and sometimes literally fewer lessons.

For administrators, it's not just about personnel costs (which can quickly amount to tens of thousands of euros per employee) but also about continuity, reputation, and the quality of education.

What Administrators Can Do

Prevention here is not a side issue, but a strategic necessity. It starts with understanding the motivations of employees and teams.

A motivation analysis reveals:

·      Which tasks align with teachers' motivations.

·      Where the greatest risks of energy depletion lie.

·      How teams can be put together complementarily, so that differences reinforce each other.

For administrators, this provides actionable insights for policies that go beyond "more vitality programs." It translates into sustainable employability: organizing work in such a way that employees can stay in front of the class longer with energy and enjoyment.

In Conclusion

The fact that 1 in 5 education professionals experience burnout symptoms is not just an individual problem but a collective challenge. It calls for policies that look beyond workload alone and pay attention to the unique motivations of employees.

For administrators of educational organizations, this is key: investing in understanding makes the difference between teachers who burn out and teachers who continue to practice their profession with energy and pride.

➡️ Curious to know how this works in practice? Download the white paper Burnout: (Not) a Choice and discover how insight into motivations helps to transform energy loss into sustainable motivation, and make education future-proof.

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