Teaching on empty: Alberta teachers among the world’s most stressed and overextended, OECD report

Teachers in Alberta are the most stressed in the world, and their workload is among the most demanding, shows new evidence in an international report released October 7.

In a study of teachers conducted in more than 50 nations, 42 per cent of Alberta participants reported experiencing stress “a lot” in their work. This was the highest among all participating jurisdictions. Australia was next, at 34 per cent. The global average was 19 per cent.

The Alberta results mark a sharp increase from the 27 per cent reported in 2018, when the study was last conducted. The results are shared in the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) 2024 report.* The study takes place every five years.

Weekly workload

According to TALIS 2024, Alberta teachers also rank near the top in the world for highest weekly work hours. The data show that Alberta teachers work 47 hours per week, which is behind only Japan, New Zealand and Singapore and is five hours more than the global weekly average.

A typical workweek for a teacher involves not only teaching students but also planning lessons, marking student assignments, conducting student assessments, leading student extracurricular activities, communicating with parents and completing administrative duties.

Disrespect

Since the last TALIS report, in 2018, Alberta’s teachers have experienced the sharpest decline in how valued they feel by policy-makers. According to the TALIS 2024 report, the percentage of Alberta teachers who believe that their views are respected by the government fell to just 13 per cent, a drop of 25 percentage points, which is the largest drop among all Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries.

“Much of the data in this report confirms what our own research has been telling us for years: Alberta teachers are feeling stressed out, overworked and underappreciated by government. Without urgent changes, teaching is quickly becoming a career that is unsustainable for many, despite their passion for teaching and supporting students.”

—Jason Schilling, ATA president

*About the study

TALIS is the world’s largest international survey of teachers and school leaders, examining demographics, workloads, resources and working conditions across education systems. Conducted by the OECD every five years since 2008, TALIS provides comprehensive global data on teaching and learning. In the 2024 cycle, 50 countries and 55 education systems contributed to the findings, with 280,000 teachers globally and a sampling of over 1,800 from Alberta.

Alberta is the only Canadian jurisdiction that has participated in the main TALIS teacher and principal survey (Grades 7–9, ISCED 2) in every cycle since 2013. The Alberta sampling was paid for by the Government of Alberta.

See the detailed findings here: www.oecd.org/en/publications/2025/10/results-from-talis-2024_28fbde1d.html.

The Alberta Teachers’ Association, as the professional organization of teachers, promotes and advances public education, supports teachers’ professional practice, and serves as the advocate for its 51,000 members.