Date Approved
4-25-2024
Embargo Period
4-28-2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ed.D. Educational Leadership
Department
Educational Leadership
College
College of Education
Advisor
Cecile Sam, Ph.D.
Committee Member 1
Hajime Mitani, Ph.D.
Committee Member 2
Jeremy Glazer, Ph.D.
Keywords
Burnout;Moral injury;Occupational stress;Teacher attrition
Disciplines
Education | Educational Leadership
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine how changes in the nature of teacher work due to factors such as high-stakes accountability systems and teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to teachers’ experiences of moral injury. Understanding moral injury is important because it is an issue for teachers who remain in the profession and for those who decide to leave. Moral injury has been examined in the context of American Public Education and scholars have contributed to the growing body of moral injury in teachers. However, a review of the literature reveals the need for more empirical data to understand teachers’ experiences of moral injury. The questions that guided this study are: What are teachers’ experiences of working in a classroom and how, if at all, do those experiences relate to moral injury? In what ways do teachers adjust their expectations about their profession over time and how, if at all, does this relate to moral injury? How do teachers make sense of any incongruence between what they believe is good teaching versus what they feel they can currently do? The method used was modified narrative inquiry. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight experienced teachers (five or more years) in one of six elementary schools in one district in New Jersey.
Recommended Citation
Ahn, Grace, "“THERE’S A TERM FOR THAT?”: MORAL INJURY IN K-5 TEACHERS" (2024). Theses and Dissertations. 3350.
https://rdw.rowan.edu/etd/3350
