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Key Points
- A survey of more than 2,000 Australian principals has uncovered alarming rates of aggression and bullying in schools.
- Around half of those surveyed have considered leaving the profession.
- Others, however, have reported high levels of job satisfaction despite the challenges.
Associate professor Paul Kidson from ACU was an investigator for the Principal Occupational Health and Wellbeing survey 2024, which flagged the highest level of school-based violence since the report began in 2011.
Source: SBS News
“These principals are human beings who are subjected to some appalling behaviours,” he told SBS News.
Almost all reports of physical assault in schools were caused by students.
Schools taking legal action to protect staff
Parents were also much more likely than students to cyberbully school leaders, which has prompted some schools to take legal action to protect their staff.
Source: SBS News
Kidson said this indicates “a significant and serious breakdown of the relationship between the family and the school”.
One particularly worrying statistic for researchers was the number of principals and senior leaders who had expressed an intent to quit, which was higher among staff with low job satisfaction.
Half of school principals considered quitting
“They often look after everybody else’s needs before their own, and an increasing number are saying: I just don’t know that I’ve actually got many more years in me now.”
Source: SBS News
The report flagged that loss of experienced school leadership could “exacerbate existing teacher shortages and create a nationwide leadership vacuum, placing further strain on an already overburdened education system”.
“That’s concerning because I think what’s going to happen if too many of those principals do throw in the towel, where are we going to get the next crop of principals from?”
An amazing job
“Even though there are some really hard days, there are some really tricky moments and there are really sad moments and there are really stressful days … it’s an amazing job and I’ve stayed in it for 30 years and I absolutely love it.”
Overnewton Anglican Community College principal Emily FitzSimons loves being a principal, but many others have considered quitting. Credit: Kim Selby Photography
FitzSimons first became an educator as she enjoyed caring for and nurturing students to see them grow and succeed.
She believed this step away from the classroom could be a reason some principals would consider leaving their job, separate from the levels of aggression or bullying they may experience.
School-aged children going through pivotal changes
“That’s usually in those early childhood years to the early school years. And then again peaking in about adolescence,” she said.
“So finding out what they’re thinking, how they’re feeling, and then being able to really clearly state that aggression is not okay and then figuring out what the alternatives could be useful.”
