How teacher wellbeing impacts students

What supports teachers’ wellbeing? Can improving teacher wellbeing impact students’ wellbeing and their learning?

In this episode, made in collaboration with the International Baccalaureate Organization (IB), Nina first talks to IB researcher Magdalena Balica from the Hague in the Netherlands. Magdalena looks at three elements of teacher wellbeing: Satisfaction with school life, positive emotions, a sense of purpose and meaning. Teachers’ wellbeing is often considered a personal matter, says Magdalena, but “in many cases, it’s a systemic problem that we need to support and address”.

Nina stays in the Netherlands to meet Claudia Casalino-Korevaar, a chemistry teacher and coordinator of the middle school years program at a school in Amsterdam. “When teachers take care of their own wellbeing, they are better positioned, leading to a more supportive and productive learning environment”, Claudia says.

Finally, Nina meets Sanja Vičević Ivanović, a language teacher and primary school years IB program coordinator in a school in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. They take wellbeing very seriously at their school, including for teachers. “Taking care of our own wellbeing is absolutely the key when it comes to taking care of students’ wellbeing,” Sanja says.

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Guests and resources

Magdalena Balica on LinkedIn, policy research paper What is well-being?

Claudia Casalino-Korevaar on LinkedIn

Sanja Vičević Ivanović on LinkedIn

International Baccalaureate

Research Well-being for schoolteachers, Why well-being matters during a time of crisis, Supporting student well-being in a digital learning environment

Podcast episode Teacher Wellbeing: The Key to Student Success

HundrED’s Spotlight on Wellbeing in Schools report