Supporting Teacher Wellbeing: Practical Self Care Tips for Educators Around the World
In international education, wellbeing has become a foundation rather than an afterthought. The newly released ISC Research white paper, How International Schools Are Prioritizing Wellbeing for Staff and Students, shows that when teachers feel supported, students thrive.
Across the world, schools are building health and wellness into their culture, recognizing that mental health for teachers directly affects learning quality, staff retention, and school community strength.
For many educators, especially those working internationally, the question is not why self-care matters, but how to sustain it. This article draws from ISC’s findings and offers practical self-care tips for teachers, along with accessible health and wellness resources for teachers that can help educators maintain balance, resilience, and connection wherever they teach.
Why Teacher Wellbeing Matters
ISC Research highlights that academic success and staff retention depend on communities where educators feel valued and supported. International teachers often take on many roles such as instructor, mentor, counselor, and cultural bridge. While rewarding, these roles can lead to stress, fatigue, and burnout.
The 2024 IBO study Well being for Schoolteachers reinforces this point, noting that teacher-related factors are among the most important elements influencing learning outcomes. When teachers are mentally and emotionally healthy, they bring creativity, empathy, and patience into the classroom. Strong teacher wellness creates stronger student performance.
Challenges Facing Teachers Today
Teachers everywhere face pressure, but international educators experience added layers of complexity.
Common Challenges:
- Cultural adjustment: Moving to new countries requires adapting to different values, traditions, and expectations.
- Isolation and mobility: Frequent relocation disrupts friendships and personal stability.
- High expectations: Schools and parents expect consistent excellence, leaving little time for rest.
- Invisible workload: Beyond teaching, educators manage mentoring, extracurricular activities, and emotional support for students.
Recognizing these realities helps teachers and leaders design systems that promote health and prevent burnout.
Embedding Wellbeing into School Culture
The ISC white paper identifies that schools succeed when wellbeing becomes part of their culture, not a side project.
Light International School in Mombasa made wellbeing a shared responsibility across the community. Parents, teachers, and students contributed to policies and initiatives that improved trust and retention. Peer mentoring and professional development built a positive cycle of wellbeing for everyone.
This shows that self-care for teachers works best when the entire school models it. Leaders who prioritize balance and staff who collaborate to protect healthy routines create environments where wellbeing grows naturally.
Making Time for Wellbeing
Time is one of the clearest indicators of value. Strothoff International School in Germany redesigned its curriculum to include daily wellbeing lessons, integrating mindfulness, empathy, and balance with academic content.
Simple Ways Teachers Can Protect Their Time
- Set boundaries for email and grading to end the workday at a reasonable time.
- Take short breaks during the day to stretch, breathe, or walk.
- End each week with reflection to process successes and challenges.
- Meet with colleagues for informal support or mentoring.
Small, consistent steps like these protect energy and prevent exhaustion before it starts.
Using Data to Improve Mental Health for Teachers
Wellbeing can feel abstract, but data helps make it measurable. Transylvania College in Romania introduced short check ins for students and staff to track stress and morale. Leaders used this feedback to guide adjustments in workload and mentoring.
Teachers can use simple tools like journals or apps to record patterns of stress or satisfaction. Awareness helps identify what strengthens energy and what drains it, allowing for small but meaningful changes in routine.
Practical Self Care Tips for Teachers
Prioritize Rest and Recovery
Sleep is the foundation of wellbeing. Keep consistent hours and wind down without screens or work distractions.
Create Healthy Boundaries
Empathy is essential, but teachers must also protect their time and energy.
Reflect Regularly
Spend a few minutes journaling about lessons, challenges, and moments of gratitude.
Move Often
Incorporate small amounts of physical activity to reset your body and mind.
Stay Connected
Build supportive relationships with colleagues, family, and friends to reduce isolation.
Seek Professional Support
Many schools now offer counseling or training on wellbeing.
Celebrate Small Wins
Recognizing small daily successes boosts motivation and helps maintain perspective.
Health and Wellness Resources for Teachers
Educators can strengthen their wellbeing through professional learning and community resources designed specifically for teacher wellness.
- ISS EDUlearn® Passport: Offers over 200 professional learning courses, including sessions on stress management and emotional health.
- Safeguarding Bundles: Learn more about how to create a safe environment in educational settings and gain knowledge and tools to protect every child effectively.
- EDUrecruit Job Fairs: Connects teachers with international schools that value staff wellbeing and development.
- World Health Organization Wellbeing Toolkit for Educators: Practical advice for creating supportive classrooms.
- Mindful Schools: Mindfulness training that integrates social emotional learning into daily teaching.
These health and wellness resources for teachers reflect ISC’s recommendation that wellbeing must exist in both systems and daily habits. Schools and individuals share responsibility for creating supportive environments that make wellbeing part of everyday teaching.
Building a Culture of Care in Education
Wellbeing is not a temporary program. It is a shared commitment. The ISC white paper shows that schools that thrive build communities where students and teachers can flourish together.
For educators, this means practicing intentional self-care and encouraging open discussion about mental health. When teachers support each other, model balance, and advocate for manageable workloads, they strengthen their entire school community.
At ISS, courses and professional networks continue to advance teacher wellness. From emotional intelligence pathways to leadership training that promotes compassion, ISS helps educators sustain their passion for teaching while caring for themselves and their peers.
Conclusion
In a profession centered on giving, self-care is essential. Effective teachers protect their mental health, set boundaries, and model resilience for their students.
By investing in wellbeing, educators sustain creativity and energy while inspiring others to do the same. Explore professional learning opportunities at https://iss.education to discover how wellbeing can become an integral part of your teaching journey.