Exploring Vietnamese Tertiary EFL Teachers’ Perception of Burnout and Reflective Teaching across Career Stages

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Mabel

Qualitative research examined how burnout relates to reflective teaching among Vietnamese tertiary EFL teachers across career stages. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with nine teachers from two institutions, the study applied thematic analysis to interpret lived perceptions in a Vietnam-specific cultural and educational context. Findings identify stage-dependent effects of reflective teaching on burnout, highlight institutional support as a mediator, and show cultural influences on both burnout and reflective practices, alongside coping and resilience strategies varying by stage.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages14

Reading Time35 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Background on burnout in tertiary EFL teaching

Reflective teaching and its role in teacher development

Research gap and study motivation

Exploring Vietnamese Tertiary EFL Teachers’ Perception of Burnout and Reflective Teaching across Career Stages Pham Trut Thuy Nam Can Tho University,Vietnam, [ptthuy@nctu.edu.vn](ptthuy@nctu.edu.vn) Le Thanh Thao Can Tho University,Vietnam, [thaole@ctu.edu.vn](thaole@ctu.edu.vn) This qualitative study explored the relationship between burnout and reflective teaching among Vietnamese tertiary English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers. Set within the specific cultural and educational context of Vietnam, the research engaged nine EFL teachers across varying career stages—novice, mid-career, and near-end career—from two different institutions. Utilizing semi-structured interviews, the study sought to delve into the teachers’ personal experiences and perceptions, with the data analyzed through thematic analysis. The findings reveal several key themes: the varying impact of reflective teaching on burnout across career stages, the critical role of institutional support in mediating burnout, the influence of the Vietnamese cultural context on burnout and reflective teaching, differences in burnout experiences and coping strategies across career stages, and the personal coping strategies and resilience-building techniques employed by teachers. For novice teachers, reflective teaching initially exacerbates stress and burnout, while for mid-career and near-end career teachers, it evolves into a valuable tool for managing and preventing burnout. The study also highlights the pivotal role of institutional support, which needs to be tailored according to the career stages, and the significant influence of the Vietnamese cultural context on both burnout and reflective teaching practices. Furthermore, the importance of personal coping strategies and resiliencebuilding across different career stages is emphasized. This research contributes to the understanding of teacher burnout and reflective teaching, particularly in non-Western contexts, offering implications for educational policy and practice. Keywords: burnout, career stages, reflective teaching, Vietnamese tertiary EFL teachers INTRODUCTION Teacher burnout in the field of tertiary education, particularly among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instructors, has emerged as a critical area of concern in educational research (Nayernia & Babayan, 2019) . This is especially pertinent in the context of Vietnam, where EFL teachers encounter unique challenges inherent to their professional environment (Beisser & Thoma, 2021; Nguyen & Newton, 2021) . EFL teachers in Vietnam often face large class sizes, limited resources, and high expectations for student performance, all of which can contribute to increased stress and burnout. Moreover, the cultural context, which places a high value on educational success, adds to the pressure experienced by these educators. Reflective teaching, which involves a continual process of self-evaluation and adaptation in teaching methodologies, is widely acknowledged as a fundamental aspect of high-quality education (Schön, 1983, 2017) . It empowers teachers to responsively address the diverse and evolving needs of their students, thereby enhancing the learning experience. Research in various educational contexts has shown that reflective teaching can lead to improved teaching practices and student outcomes (Farrell, Citation: Thuy, P. T., & Thao, L. T. (2025) . Exploring Vietnamese tertiary EFL teachers’ perception of burnout and reflective teaching across career stages. Anatolian Journal of Education, 10(2), 37-50. [https://doi.org/10.29333/aje.2025.1024a](https://doi.org/10.29333/aje.2025.1024a) 2015) . However, the demanding nature of reflective practice, combined with the high-stress atmosphere typical of tertiary education, could potentially intensify experiences of burnout among teachers (Gobena, 2020; Shirazizadeh & Moradkhani, 2018) . Burnout, defined as a state of emotional, mental, and sometimes physical exhaustion caused by p

FAQs

How does reflective teaching relate to teacher burnout across career stages in the study?

Reflective teaching shows different effects depending on career stage: it initially worsens stress and burnout for novice teachers, while it becomes a useful tool for managing and preventing burnout for mid-career and near-end-career teachers.

What role does institutional support play in mediating burnout?

Institutional support is identified as a critical mediator of burnout, and the study emphasizes that it should be tailored to teachers’ career stages.

How does the Vietnamese cultural context influence burnout and reflective teaching?

The study highlights that Vietnam’s cultural and educational emphasis on success shapes both burnout experiences and how reflective teaching practices are carried out and perceived.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Mabel