1.

0 ISSUES AND CHALLENGES

In the dawn of the 21st century, education has gone through many changes as
the era moves on. Educators along with the learners have to cope with the change over
time. Teachers especially, are deeply affected by this. Unable to cope with the system,
teachers are prone to stress and burnout more often than before. For centuries,
teaching profession has been said to be emotionally taxing and frustrating (Lambert,
ODonnell, Kusherman, & McCarthy, 2006, cited by Fisher, M. H. (2011). According to
Minarik, Thornton, & Perreault( 2003) as cited by Fisher, M. H.(2011), it is said that the
rate of teachers leaving their profession is significantly higher than any other profession.
Sorenson (1999) as cited by Fisher, M. H. (2011. states, Stress is a condition
of twenty-first-century education that continues to increase as more accountability
standards and new policy initiatives are introduced. Stress and burnout is often related
to the pressures of work. As teachers, there are various kind of pressures that they
have to face in their routine as educators. The first challenge that they have to face
every day is the poor attitude of the students, especially disciplinary problems. Being a
teacher means there is no avoiding the students, be they good or bad. The duty of an
educator is not to judge but to nurture. However, not every teacher could handle the
misbehaviours of the students and this could build up their stress. Another aspect that
pressures the teachers is the clerking workload that has nothing to do with teaching. In
fact, teachers nowadays had to handle so much extracurricular activities and paperwork
to a point that it hinders them from focusing on teaching.
In the old days, teacher is considered a sacred duty that society revere and
respect. Back then, when teachers punish their pupils, parents will accept that as their
children making the mistake and the teacher is right. However, it is not quite the same
these days. When teachers punish their pupils, parents would blame the teacher,
sometimes to a point of threatening and eventually violence itself. These threats do not
only harms the teacher physically but also leaves emotional scars that could affect their
work. The pressure from being threaten by both students and parents could lead to
premature end of career as the teacher might not be able to cope with it anymore and
eventually suffers a breakdown. For some old and weathered teachers, the need to be
ICT and tech savvy these days could also pressure them as they are unable to cope
with the changes. Just as the saying old dogs cant learn new tricks goes, certain
older teachers prefers to stay with their old methods. This could cause their students to

become bored and unable to follow the lesson, which makes the teacher feel no longer
relevant.
2.0 EFFECTS OF EMOTIONAL STRESS ON TEACHERS
According to Newtons Third Law, every single action is always countered by an
opposite reaction. The same applies to stress. The accumulating levels of stress, if not
managed properly could cause them to commit certain acts that might not fit an
educator. It can be said that the human psyche could be compared to a string, it could
only bend to a certain point before it snaps.
Under duress, teachers who are unable to handle their stress might commit
certain conducts of discipline breach. For some teachers who are unable to cope with
the ever increasing workload, they might end up neglecting it or sometimes shove it to
younger teachers in training. These kind of teachers also tend to be less enthusiastic in
both teaching and other extracurricular activities, resulting in lackluster performance. As
the pupils see the lack of effort in their teacher, it will even affect their own learning. The
pupils could easily lose their interest in the lesson.
Some teachers who are too focused to their work also could suffer from stress in
another way. In such cases, these kind of teachers could suffer from anger
management issues where they could no longer hold their temper. Their judgment could
also be clouded which leads them to become more impulsive. This kind of stress could
be a danger to both the teacher and pupils. Some of them result in violence committed
by the teacher on the students that caused injuries. In more severe cases, it could even
involve sexual harassment or abuse.

3.0 ACTIONS THAT CAN BE TAKEN UPON TEACHERS UNDER THE RULES FOR
CIVIL SERVANTS (BEHAVIOUR AND DISCIPLINE)1993(REVIEWED IN 2002)
In order to ensure the effectiveness of an organization, public officers are
required to follow the rules of (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations 1993
(Ammendment 2002). The regulations serves the purpose of guarding the civil servants
behaviour and actions and perform their duty with utmost responsibility and display high
competency, at the same time upholding the image of public service. As a civil servant,
teachers actions should reflect their profession.
According to the Regulations of Conduct and Discipline, there are five types of
disciplinary action that can be taken upon civil servants, teachers included according to
the severity. The first action is oral or written warning that will be issued by the Head of
Department who do not abide by the rules of conduct. This kind of action is mostly for
minor misconduct. The second type of action is a fine or forfeiture of emoluments. The
fine imposed on the officers should not be more than the amount equal to seven days of
their salary. The next action is deferment of salary movement of an officer. During the
punishment, an officer should not be entitled to receive any salary movement. In a more
serious case, the public officer will face reduction in salary. The salary is reduced
accordingly by deducting it horizontally in the same wage level, the reduction also
cannot exceed three salary flow and the duration of the sentence shall not be less than
twelve months but shall not exceed thirty-six months. If the case gets worse, the public
officer could be demoted to a lower rank.

4.0 STEPS TO BE TAKEN BY TEACHERS TO AVOID STRESS IN THEIR CAREER

Where theres a will theres a way. While stress could lead to many negative
outcomes, it can also be managed for positive results. In a profession such as a
teacher, stress is almost inescapable. By learning how to manage and control the stress
level, a teacher could remain exemplary in their job.
According to Rashed Assadi(2009), there are five major steps in managing
emotional stress. The first step is acceptance. The life of a teacher is not always sweet.
By lowering our expectations and face reality, we could attain a little bit of peace and
will be less likely to be disappointed. Another step is by evaluating. A man could only
think about a few things in a moment. We should stop thinking too much on many
things at once. There are times when we need to evaluate things and focus on only one
subject at a time. The next step is to accept reality and be down to earth. We need to
accept certain difficult statements or critiques. By being open minded, we will be able to
learn and improve from our weakness and find solutions to various problems. In
complex or critical cases, one could still find solutions by viewing the problems from a
positive point of view. Solutions can always be found out when you think calmly.
Alternatively, stress can be handled by focusing on your faith. One could handle
stress by praying and remembering Allah, for every hardships are merely obstacles that
we must endure. Sometimes stress happens because were just too far away from
remembering God. By remembering that all the good and bad things comes from Him,
then stress could be avoided and be in a much more controllable state.
Theres an old saying all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. In a working
environment, too much workload easily could cause stress to buildup. Therefore, fun
becomes a necessity. Leave your job at your workplace, and have fun at your home.
Stress can be easily handled when one have a hobby that they can enjoy. By splitting
work and fun, life becomes easier and at the same time boosts productivity.

Fisher, M. H. (2011). Factors Influencing Stress, Burnout, and Retention of Secondary

Teachers.
Current Issues in Education, 14(1). Retrieved from
http://cie.asu.edu/