Preparing for the Profession: Building Resilience with Preservice Teachers

Abstract

In this qualitative study we examined how preservice teachers (PSTs) navigated self-care and professional resilience during a junior-year clinical experience. A thematic analysis of data from forty-two PSTs, which included video reflections, written logs, surveys, and exit interviews related to self-care and wellbeing led to the identification of three central themes: (1) Strengths and Struggles, including the protective role of social support and the undermining effects of loneliness and negative self-talk; (2) Limitations of a Curriculum, highlighting the gap between self-care knowledge and practice, and (3) Secondary Trauma, with PSTs affected by the emotional weight of students’ lived experiences. While many participants valued the self-care curriculum for increasing awareness and fostering peer connection, data suggested that isolated interventions are likely insufficient for long-term resilience. These findings underscore the need to shift self-care from an individual responsibility to a shared, structural priority in teacher preparation.

Keywords: Preservice teachers; professional resilience; self-care; pedagogical wellness; teacher education

DOI: 10.7176/JEP/16-9-09

Publication date:August 31^st 2025