It was just like jumping into a deep pool and do your best.: The experience and wellbeing of primary school teachers entering the teaching profession

• Main Authors: Tryggvadóttir, Álfheiður, Gunnarsdóttir, Sigrún
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: Icelandic
• Published: Menntavísindasvið Háskóla Íslands 2024
• Subjects: Iceland
• Online Access: https://ojs.hi.is/index.php/tuuom/article/view/3923

Recent studies show that well-being among teachers is diminishing and the main reasons are considered to be an increased workload and lack of support. The demanding and extensive work of teachers is often a challenge for new teachers, leading to limited job satisfaction, poor well-being at work and high turnover among teachers. Research findings have indicated the importance of providing support to new teachers in order to promote their well-being at work and thus to prevent high turnover and teacher shortages. In recent years, knowledge has increased in connection with the importance of well-being at work and has drawn attention to numerous ways of strengthening the well-being of employees. A healthy work environment and a positive workplace culture enhance employees’ well-being and job satisfaction, as well as improving the overall performance of the organization. To promote a healthy working environment in schools and teachers’ well-being, it is important to emphasize supportive leadership, good communication and constructive collaboration. The aim of this study was to examine the experiences and well-being at work among new primary school teachers. A qualitative study was conducted, interviewing nine teachers, all of whom were active primary school teachers in various locations in Iceland with one to two years of work experience in a primary school subsequent to their graduation as teachers. Efforts were made to shed light on the teachers’ experiences in connection with the induction process at the beginning of their work, communication and support from managers and colleagues. Following data analysis, three themes emerged describing participants’ experience as new teachers: 1) The well-being of teachers at the beginning of their work 2) Managerial support at the initial stage of work and 3) The first steps as a supervisory teacher, team support and collaboration. The findings show that the participants experience their work as diverse and challenging and in general they saw the start of their career as ...