This emerging reality, a workforce with rising cases of ADHD, autism, anxiety, trauma and depression, presents unique and pressing challenges for leadership and school stability.

School leaders, who could be forgiven for previously believing that their workforce are able to just 'get on with the job' and to do it with a high level of autonomy and expertise, are being called to broaden their understanding and to lead with greater empathy, flexibility and deeply human insight.

A healthy education system depends not only on safe and supportive learning environments for students, but also on the wellbeing of those who teach them.

As schools become more inclusive for students with diverse needs, the same principles must apply to staff. For early career teachers with neurodiversity and mental health challenges, the stakes are high - and so is the potential for impact when they are supported well.

It is in our best interest as school leaders to replace any sense of our own disbelief, frustration and irritation at the lack of apparent professionalism, work-ethic and resilience of Gen Z teachers, by embracing a model of leadership grounded in care, flexibility, and a deep understanding of human variation.

Only then can schools become not just places of learning, but sanctuaries of growth for all.

Newly-minted teachers who have graduated in the past couple of years are entering the profession with a very interesting and unprecedented social profile.

For those born around the year 2000, they were five years old when YouTube first appeared, they were eight years old when the first iPhone was introduced, 10 years old when the first iPad arrived in consumers hands and also when Instagram was launched, 11 years old when Snapchat burst onto the scene and 16 years old when TikTok was released.

They have literally been immersed throughout their childhood, adolescence and early adulthood in new and highly addictive technologies, which may be having significantly problematic impacts on their mental and emotional health.

Added to this, they have completed high school and university during a global pandemic which has intensified social anxiety, disrupted practicum experiences, and left many graduate teachers underprepared.

As well as exposure to these powerful technologies and social media platforms, they also had superfast and almost unfettered access to limitless information.

While this digital immersion has its downsides, it has also cultivated a generation that is highly aware of pressing global issues, particularly around mental health and the environment, during a time when both challenges have intensified dramatically.

Let's not forget that incoming cohorts of Gen Z teachers have grown up with highly addictive technologies.

As young adults they have also lived through a global financial crisis and consequent cost of living crisis, wars, a global pandemic, an escalating climate emergency and a mounting mental health crisis.

Autism diagnosis in Australia in the year 2000 was measured as 1 in 200 people. In 2025 it is 1 in 40. Anxiety rates in 16-24 year olds in Australia have grown from 26 per cent in 2007 to 51 per cent in 2025.

These issues are impacting all workplaces and employers, however, it is the environment of a school which is perhaps the most confounding.

As educators, we understand better than most, the increasing needs and challenges of making accommodations and adjustments for a significantly changing cohort of students, but how do we manage when those making the accommodations are also in need of similar, if not the same, adjustments themselves?

When early career teachers experience sensory overload, emotional dysregulation or a sense of overwhelm, their ability to manage students, particularly those with challenging behaviours, is severely compromised.

At a time when we are experiencing an absolutely unprecedented number of students with learning disabilities, individualised learning plans, mental health diagnoses and neurodiversity, even our most experienced and capable teachers are struggling.

What does this mean for new graduates who are struggling with both their own personal challenges and also a lack of professional experience?

Some of the significant negative impacts that we are seeing in Australian school environments in the current ecosystem are having a profound impact on the day-to-day running and effectiveness of our schools.

These include:

Reduced classroom stability and student outcomes

When teachers experience emotional dysregulation, burnout or cognitive overload, their classroom management may become inconsistent.

They can experience significant cognitive dissonance when managing the behaviour of students with whose behaviour they personally identify.

Heightened empathy for these students, due to lived experience of the struggles they may be facing, can impair teacher professional judgement.

This could lead to increased behavioural issues, decreased student engagement, and lower academic outcomes - particularly for students who rely on structured, calm environments.

Increased staff turnover and absenteeism

Teachers facing emotional overwhelm or mental health issues may be more likely to take frequent sick leave, reduce their hours or leave the profession entirely.

This disrupts continuity of learning and creates additional burdens on already stretched school teams to cover absences or to find replacements.

This can also lead to significant issues with teachers ‘teaching out of area’ ie. teaching subjects for which they were not trained and in which they may have neither skill nor interest.

The impact of this on student engagement and learning can be devastating. It can also very directly lead to behavioural issues in the classroom.

Strained collegial relationships

Emotional distress or neurodiverse challenges may lead to communication difficulties, social withdrawal or conflict among staff. Tensions in staffrooms or planning meetings can lower morale and fracture the collaborative culture necessary for effective whole-school improvement.

Higher workload for school leaders and mentors

When early career teachers struggle to meet demands, school leaders and mentors often absorb additional emotional labour. This can lead to leadership fatigue, reduced capacity for strategic planning, a reduction in those who are pursuing leadership positions in schools and burnout among senior staff.

Compromised wellbeing culture

If mental health is not openly supported or acknowledged, it can foster a culture of stigma and silence. Conversely, if it is widespread but unsupported, it can create an atmosphere of emotional exhaustion and helplessness across the school community.

Additionally, and very importantly, when it is some staff who are asking for regular support, time off, special consideration etc, it can lead to significant disharmony amongst staff members who feel that they are being leant on to carry the load for others. The potential negative impacts of this are obvious.

Neurodiverse teachers need tailored mentoring support that recognises their specific cognitive and emotional profiles.

What can school leaders do? 

Supporting these educators requires more than kindness; it demands structural shifts in how schools function. Here are several practical and research-informed strategies for the consideration of school leaders:

Personalised mentoring and coaching

Traditional one-size-fits-all mentoring, which is often based around curriculum implementation, falls short. Neurodiverse teachers need tailored support that recognises their specific cognitive and emotional profiles.

Coaching should include executive functioning strategies, emotional regulation support, and trauma-informed mentoring.

Associate Professor Rebecca Collie's (UNSW) research on teacher wellbeing emphasises that sustained mentoring significantly improves retention and capacity.

Flexible workload and planning structures

Rigid planning cycles and unrealistic timelines can derail teachers with ADHD or anxiety. Leaders could build in buffer periods, collaborative planning time, and optional check-ins, rather than relying solely on high-stakes assessments or fixed deadlines.

Universal Design for Learning principles can guide more inclusive professional expectations. These principles are grounded in neuroscience and are designed to make learning accessible and effective for all students, including those with diverse learning needs.

They are equally valuable for adults presenting with forms of neurodiversity.

Peer networks and collective care

Isolation worsens stress. Establishing networks of peer support - through wellbeing teams, shared reflection groups or co-teaching models, allows teachers to lean on each other in moments of overwhelm.

Professor Barbara Fredrickson’s 'broaden-and-build' theory of positive emotions shows that connectedness can buffer against burnout and promote resilience.

Psychological safety and open dialogue

Teachers need to feel safe disclosing their challenges without fear of judgment or career consequences. The work of Dr Susan David from the Harvard Medical School on emotional agility reminds us that workplaces thrive when emotions are acknowledged, not suppressed.

Building a culture of psychological safety, using the work of Professor Amy Edmondson from the Harvard Business School invites honesty and helps leaders offer meaningful accommodations.

Strength-based role design and recognition

Neurodiverse teachers often bring unique strengths - creativity, empathy, hyper-focus, deep subject knowledge - that can be leveraged meaningfully.

Leaders can help staff flourish by aligning roles with individual strengths (eg. assigning quiet spaces for planning or offering leadership in areas of passion).

Publicly recognising diverse contributions also helps challenge deficit-based thinking and builds a culture of inclusion.

Research from Dr Thomas Armstrong on neurodiversity in education emphasises the importance of redefining ability through a strengths-based lens.

Embedded wellbeing and regulation routines

Rather than placing the burden of wellbeing on individual teachers, school leaders can consider embedding structured wellbeing practices into daily operations.

This could include scheduled mindfulness breaks, sensory-friendly staff zones, protected non-contact periods, and access to EAP programs.

These small but consistent interventions help regulate stress and model the self-care practices we hope teachers pass on to students.

The Australian Psychological Society and Be You initiative highlight the importance of systemic, not just individual, responses to teacher stress.

Clarity, consistency and predictability

Many neurodiverse individuals benefit from clearly defined expectations, transparent communication, and routine.

School leaders can reduce anxiety and overwhelm by offering consistent messaging, accessible planning tools and clear decision-making processes.

Avoiding last-minute changes, providing visual schedules, and clarifying timelines for reports or curriculum changes can ease the executive function load for teachers with ADHD or anxiety.

This aligns with inclusive leadership practices advocated by Professor Laura Crane and the Centre for Research in Autism and Education at the University of Birmingham, UK.

 

These strategies are a starting point for providing a compassionate, research-informed framework that empowers school leaders to embrace the complexity of their teams while ensuring that all educators - regardless of neurological or emotional profile - can thrive in their professional roles.

And as a result, our key concern, the best possible educational environment for our students, can be cultivated to suit the conditions of our current landscape.

Tim Perkins works closely with school leaders, executive teams, teachers and early career educators to help them thrive professionally and personally. Contact him via email: tim@cutthroughhq.com