Living the Overlap: Roles, Resources, and Social Life of Teachers in Teaching Senior High School Students

Abstract

Teacher well-being is shaped not only by classroom instruction but also by the social and institutional demands that accompany teaching. This qualitative descriptive study explored how senior high school teachers manage their social lives amid overlapping professional roles and limited resources. Data were collected from 12 purposively selected public senior high school teachers in Davao City through three focus group discussions. The discussions were transcribed, translated where necessary, and analysed using thematic analysis. Findings showed that teachers’ responsibilities extended beyond instruction to include administrative, advisory, and event-related duties. These overlapping roles created role strain by consuming time, energy, and emotional resources that could otherwise support personal relationships, rest, and social participation. Teachers used coping resources such as time management, scheduling, prioritisation, financial planning, resilience, and self-care strategies. However, these resources often functioned as survival mechanisms rather than as sufficient supports for balance. Participants described their social lives as constrained, interrupted, and continuously negotiated around work and family responsibilities. Experiences of exhaustion, blurred boundaries, professional intrusion, and compromised well-being were common across accounts. The study concludes that teachers’ social lives are not entirely absent, but they are reshaped under pressure from cumulative professional demands. Institutional support, clearer role delineation, reduced non-teaching tasks, and stronger well-being programmes are needed to support a more sustainable teaching experience.