Code of Professional Practice

The Code of Professional Practice is the path that every teacher must follow, no matter how hard some of the points may be to comply with.  In my personal opinion I think that the code is very helpful, especially for new teachers.  The code gives us the guidelines needed to know how to handle some tough situations that teachers are unfortunately put into quite frequently.  I find that the code is written in an "easy to read style", and that the points are pretty clear.  MTS does a very good job of explaining each individual rule and I know from a quick internet search and the information that we received at our education orientation, that they are more than willing to answer questions about the code if you are having any kind of dilemma with one or more of the rules.

I now want to take some time to highlight a few of the points out of the Code of Professional Practice.

4. A teacher speaks and acts with respect and dignity, and deals judiciously with others, always mindful of their rights.  

This is a very important point within the code because it reminds teachers that they are at all times a professional.  Teachers do not have the luxury to be a teacher for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week.  Even though some teachers may not agree with the casting, once you put on the teacher hat you are forever going to be a teacher.  This rule helps up to be mindful of our professional duties as well as how we must choose to live out all of our life since we have taken on the immense responsibility of becoming a teacher.

10. A teacher makes an ongoing effort to improve professionally. 

I like the fact that this is one of the rules found within the code because it means that the profession is always trying to keep up with the latest technologies and advance with the times.  For example, technology is booming right now and it is quickly becoming an integral part of our school systems.  In order for the teachers to improve themselves professionally they must take courses and learn how to use these new advancements, thus mastering some new skills so they can in turn teach their students new and exciting innovations.

1. A teacher’s first professional responsibility is to her or his students.

Due to the very nature of the teaching profession, this is the number one rule on the list.  Teachers are in a unique position with children, because they are sometimes like a second parent to the child and the students spend the majority of their time in class with a teacher.  Trust needs to develop between the teacher and student in order for the relationship to be strong and healthy.  For early years teachers especially, this responsibility can be very hard to handle because you must become the advocate for the child because they cannot always defend themselves or know what is right or wrong.