The efficacy of a stress management and self-care training on student teachers’ stress levels

Teachers who experience long-term stress and have not developed healthy coping skills are more likely to leave the profession (Coronado, 2011). New teachers make up significant percentage of those leaving (Alliance for Excellent Education, 2014). This dissertation studied student teachers’ overall wellness by examining the effectiveness of a stress training on participants’ overall scores of psychological strain, coping resources, self-efficacy, and stress overload. The proposed study looked at student teachers rather than in-service teachers by taking a preventative stance on new-teacher attrition. Stress curriculum is often not a primary focus within teacher preparation programs, leaving new teachers to “learn as they go” while transitioning into their new role. This study provided a foundation for developing curriculum to be included in teacher preparation programs in the future. A MANCOVA was used to test the four hypotheses listed and the alpha level used was .05.