Main Article Content
Abstract
This study explores the influence of mental health on the instructional approaches employed by higher education English lecturers in the Kurdish region. The primary objective of this study is to find effective techniques that may be implemented to enhance the psychological well-being of these teachers. The qualitative method was used by conducting semi-structured interviews with 5 lecturers at the National Institute of Technology in Kurdistan. The selection of these individuals was crucial in order to get critical insights and perspectives. The results indicate that there is a positive relationship between more significant levels of well-being and instructional practices, resulting in enhanced levels of participation, inspiration, and pleasure. The fundamental qualities that are emphasized are autonomy in teaching, competency, and effectiveness, as well as healthy student interactions. The study findings indicate that using several tactics, such as autonomy assistance, building skills, interaction, acknowledgment and feedback, and a healthy balance between work and life, is a means to enhance the overall well-being of higher education English lecturers. This study is based on a literature review on the topic of teacher well-being, offering valuable insights that may inform pedagogical administrators, staff members, and instructional programs in their efforts to cultivate a conducive atmosphere for professional development and the delivery of successful English language teaching.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
Ghafar, Z. N. (2024). Enhancing the Psychological Well-Being of Higher Education English Lecturers: A Qualitative Study. Basic and Applied Education Research Journal, 5(1), 17-26. https://doi.org/10.11594/baerj.05.01.03
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Uitto, M., & Estola, E. (2009). Gender and emo-tions in relationships:a group of teachers recalling their teachers. Gender an-dEducation, 21(5), 517-530
Brackett, M. A., & Katulak, N. A. (2013). Emo-tional intelligence in the classroom: Skill-based training for teachers and students. In Applying emotional intelligence (pp. 1-27). Psychology Press.
David, S. (2016). Emotional agility: Get un-stuck, embrace change, and thrive in work and life. Penguin.
Dewaele, J. M., Gkonou, C., & Mercer, S. (2018). Do ESL/EFL teachers’ emotional intelligence, teaching experience, proficiency, and gender affect their classroom practice?. Emotions in second language teaching: Theory, research and teacher education, 125-141.
Etherington, S., Hanks, J., & Alshehri, E. (2020). Sticky objects' and pathways to well-being and resilience: Teacher understand-ings of and practices in positive psychol-ogy in their classrooms. ELT Research Papers, 20(1), 1-31.
Ford, M. T., Cerasoli, C. P., Higgins, J. A., & De-cesare, A. L. (2011). Relationships be-tween psychological, physical, and behav-ioural health and work performance: A review and meta-analysis. Work & Stress, 25(3), 185-204.
García-Álvarez, D., Soler, M. J., & Achard-Braga, L. (2021). Psychological well-being in teachers during and post-covid-19: Posi-tive psychology interventions. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 769363.
Gmelch, W. H., Lovrich, N. P., & Wilke, P. K. (1984). Sources of stress in academe: A national perspective. Research in higher education, 20, 477-490.
Greenier, V., Derakhshan, A., & Fathi, J. (2021). Emotion regulation and psychological well-being in teacher work engagement: a case of British and Iranian English language teachers. System, 97, 102446.
Hascher, T. (2008). Quantitative and qualitative research approaches to assess student well-Being. International Journal of Educational Research, 47(2), 84–96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2007.11.016
Houben, M., Van Den Noortgate, W., & Kuppens, P. (2015). The relation between short-term emotion dynamics and psychological well-being: A meta-analysis. Psychological bulletin, 141(4), 901.
Kocabaş-Gedik, P., & Ortaçtepe Hart, D. (2021). “It’s not like that at all”: A poststructuralist case study on language teacher identity and emotional labor. Journal of Language, Identity, and Education, 20(2), 103–117. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348458.2020.1726756
Linville, H. (2021). Advocacy for student and teacher empowerment. In P. Vinogradova & J. K. Shin (Eds.), Contemporary foundations for teaching English as an additional language: Pedagogical approaches and classroom applications (pp. 249–256). Routledge
MacIntyre, P. D., Gregersen, T., & Mercer, S. (2020). Language teachers’ coping strate-gies during the Covid-19 conversion to online teaching: Correlations with stress, wellbeing and negative emo-tions. System, 94, 102352.
McCallum, F., Price, D., Graham, A., & Morrison, A. (2017). Teacher wellbeing: A review of the literature. Association of Independent Schools of NSW.
Mercer, S. (2021). An agenda for well-being in ELT: An ecological perspective. ELT Journal, 75(1), 14–21. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccaa062
Mercer, S. (2023). The wellbeing of language teachers in the private sector: An ecologi-cal perspective. Language Teaching Re-search, 27(5), 1054-1077.
Mercer, S., & Gregersen, T. (2020). Teacher wellbeing. Oxford University Press
Montero, M. K. (2019). Humanizing literacy instruction for refugee newcomers: Implications for teacher education. In J. Mueller & J. Nickel (Eds.), Globalization and diversity in education: What does it mean for Canadian teacher education? (pp. 316–353). Canadian Association of Teacher Education.
Mousavi, E. S. (2007). Exploring ‘teacher stress’ in non-native and native teachers of EFL. English Language Teacher Education and Development, 10, 33-41.
Myeong, H., Lee, A., Park, E.-A., Gong, Y. E., Kim, M., & Jo, H. (2020). Psychosocial-adjustment needs of North Korean refugee youth from the perspectives of alternative-school members. Journal of Refugee Studies, 1–20. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/feaa008
Nikoopour, J., Farsani, M. A., Tajbakhsh, M., & Kiyaie, S. H. S.(2012). The relationship between trait emotional intelligenceand self-efficacy among Iranian EFL teachers. Journal ofLanguage Teaching and Research, 3(6), 1165-1174.
Salimzadeh, R., Saroyan, A., & Hall, N. C. (2017). Examining the factors impacting academics’ psychological well-being: A review of research. International Education Research, 5(1), 13-44.
Sarı, H. (2005). How do principals and teachers in special schools inTurkey rate themselves on levels of burnout, job satisfaction,and locus of control? Alberta Journal of Educational Research,51(2), 172-192.
Schmitt, M. T., Branscombe, N. R., Postmes, T., & Garcia, A. (2014). The consequences of perceived discrimination for psychological well-being: a meta-analytic review. Psychological bulletin, 140(4), 921.
Short, D. J., Becker, H., Cloud, N., Hellman, A. B., & Levine, L. N. (2018). The 6 principles for exemplary teaching of English learners: Grades K-12. TESOL Press.
Talbot, K. R., & Mercer, S. (2018). Exploring university ESL/EFL teachers’ emotional well-being and emotional regulation in the United States, Japan and Austria. Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics, 41(4), 410–432. https://doi. org/10.1515/cjal-2018-0031.
Uitto, M., & Estola, E. (2009). Gender and emo-tions in relationships:a group of teachers recalling their teachers. Gender an-dEducation, 21(5), 517-530