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For the sake of those led, teachers must rest.

Article Excerpt
Abstract

The purpose of this article is to inform teachers about rest and renewal. These attributes show up as some of the most misunderstood and least applied aspects of effective teacher leadership. I will show that rest and renewal are essential, and those who have such understandings place themselves in very advantageous positions. A primary outcome of this article is that teachers will commit to seriously valuing the necessity of getting sufficient rest and renewal, which in turn helps them produce transformational change in the classroom.

Introduction

Rest and renewal are significant matters that education leaders should begin advocating as leadership deals with massive teacher turnover, most of which result from burnout. This trend will most likely continue as teachers attempt to keep up the fervent work pace placed on them. Leadership proves to be an exhaustive endeavor, but I propose in this article that by getting proper amounts of rest, teachers will have the energy and drive to transform their organizations. Leadership rest or renewal is about effectively fighting off burnout. Maslach & Leiter (1997) found the following:

The time has come to recognize the truth about burnout--it takes an emotional toll on the worker and it takes an economic toll on the workplace. And the time has come to start taking new action to prevent burnout and to build engagement. The new action that we are advocating involves the job environment, not just the person. People cannot continue to ignore the powerful influence that the social context exerts on individual behavior.... [T] he hard truth is that there are no simple answers to the complex problems of burnout.... With patience and resistance on the part of both individuals and the organization, progress can be made toward the healthier and more humane workplace of the future. (pp. 153-154)

The fact that many teachers only work nine or ten months out of the year should not suggest that burnout should not be a serious consideration regarding job performance. For instance, as a teacher in the Florida school system, I personally observed many teachers obtaining part-time...

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