Education promotes a table for teacher well-being that excludes teachers

PalmThe Ministry of Education and Universities has launched the Docent 360 working group with the objective of improving the emotional well-being of teachers. Despite being an initiative that seeks to reduce work-related stress, improve motivation, and generate a healthier environment, no teacher with daily classroom practice has direct representation, leaving out of the debate the professionals who suffer from the problems that are intended to be addressed.

The group is chaired by the Secretary General of the Ministry and is made up of the General Directorates of Teaching Staff and Diversity Care, representatives from Convivèxit, the legal department, teaching staff, as well as educational inspection and occupational risk prevention services. External experts also participate, such as the former dean of the Faculty of Education Miquel Oliver, the Official College of Psychology of the Balearic Islands (COPIB), and the Mediation Institute. The committee's aim is to analyze the emotional situation of teachers, identify stress factors, and propose improvements for working conditions, bureaucratic burden, and relationships within schools.

The composition of the group has provoked immediate criticism from the unions. SIAU denounces it: “From SIAU we express our rejection and indignation at one of the latest examples of cynicism by the Conselleria d’Educació: the creation of a committee to ‘promote the improvement of the emotional well-being of teachers’ where, paradoxically, there is no direct representation of the teaching collective, but rather of people who have exercised institutional violence against teachers”. The union adds that this absence “is not a simple oversight, but rather a further symptom of a way of doing things that systematically excludes the true protagonists of the educational system” and that talking about well-being without listening to teachers is “an exercise in institutional cynicism”.

STEI has also expressed its disagreement: “Profound disagreement with the composition of this working group, which does not take into account the legitimate representatives of the workers. In a sectoral meeting, we already showed our disagreement, also taking into account that STEI disseminated the UIB survey”. The unions agree that any measure on teacher well-being requires the direct participation of professionals, especially in the context of tension experienced by many schools.

Aggressions on the rise

The data shows that teachers face a worrying reality. Between May 15, 2025, and January 13, 2026, 39 professionals reported aggressions through the official NADIB protocol; of these, 13 were physical and 26 verbal, committed by both students and adults linked to the schools. According to unions and recent surveys, more than 75% of teachers perceive a climate of constant conflict within classrooms, with episodes that directly affect their emotional health and, in many cases, require psychological support. This situation highlights that talking about teacher well-being without listening to professionals means disconnecting from the daily reality of the educational system.

The Ministry, however, defends the composition of the initiative: “The committee that was created was only for experts. Likewise, any conclusion reached will go through the various educational committees, as with everything, they are not excluded”. Even so, unions and teachers warn that, without direct participation, the measures may be far removed from the real needs of the centers and the teaching staff.

In short, although Docente 360 has a clear objective, its effectiveness and credibility are questioned as long as teachers continue to have no voice of their own in decisions. For the unions, the first step to improve the emotional well-being of the teaching staff would be to sit down with the teachers and listen to their daily experiences, before implementing any theoretical or symbolic support structure.