A Narrative Inquiry On Job Burnout Of Novice English Teachers In Rural Junior High Schools

The 2015 Rural Teacher Support Programme showed that rural teacher team building has attracted attention.However,literature shows a large quantity of rural teachers in China suffer from job burnout,which is not only detrimental to teachers’ teaching and personal development but also the growth and success of students and the development of rural education in China as a whole,and few research projects related to job burnout focus on rural novice teachers.Therefore,this study uses a narrative research approach,selecting three novice English teachers of rural junior high schools,Tang,Li,and Rong,as the co-researchers and implementing semi-structured interview and observation to collect text data,aiming to answer the following research questions:(1)What manifestations can be found in Tang,Li,and Rong’s job burnout?(2)How has the job burnout of novice English teachers in rural junior high schools been formed?(3)What factors are related to the job burnout of novice English teachers in rural junior high schools?Data analysis shows:(1)Rural junior high school novice English teachers ’ career burnout levels vary: The burnout in Tang,Li,and Rong falls into three main areas: emotional exhaustion,depersonalization,and low personal achievement.Tang is moderate in emotional exhaustion,depersonalization,and low personal achievement.Li is strong in emotional exhaustion,mild in depersonalization,and mild in low personal achievement.Rong is the most burned-out teacher of the three.She is strong in emotional exhaustion,depersonalization,and low personal achievement.(2)Rural junior high school novice English teachers’ burnout evolves through four stages: expectations and confidence;enthusiasm and challenges;doubt and persistence;burnout and avoidance.(3)Four factors are closely related to the job burnout:first,immature choices;second,the specificity of rural education;third,high intensity of work;fourth,low personal achievement;fifth,lack of emotional outlet.Based on the findings,six suggestions are provided: First,the public-funded directional normal students should be given the second opportunity to choose their career.Second,school leaders should act as a bridge between teachers and parents and between teachers and teachers.Third,the Education Bureau should strengthen post-employment requirements for teachers.Fourth,professional pieces of training for rural English teachers that align with the true context of rural schools should be set up.Fifth,novice teachers should be given a gradual increase in the content and intensity of their work.Last but not least,a department or agency should be established in the school or school district concerned with teachers’ psychological state.