Standard #9: Professional Learning and Ethical Practice
The teacher engages in ongoing professional learning and uses evidence to continually evaluate his/her practice, particularly the effects of his/her choices and actions on others (learners, families, other professionals, and the community), and adapts practice to meet the needs of each learner.
The teacher understands that collaboration with other teaching professionals as well as students and their families is necessary to meet learning goals. Good communication and teamwork skills establish and maintain meaningful connections between the groups. The teacher utilizes technological tools and contributes to research to help advance the profession. The teacher accepts their role as an advocate for students while supporting their colleagues and advancing the school’s mission.
Embodying this standard is fundamental in the teaching profession. If a teacher does not monitor the way they present themselves, they could potentially offend parents, embarrass their school, put students’ well-being at risk, and jeopardize their own employment. Professionalism must continue outside of the classroom and while no one seems to be watching.
For me, this standard is all about understanding one’s place in the teaching practice and searching for ways to contribute to its betterment.
Throughout my master’s program, I became familiar with resources related to ethical practice such as laws pertaining to handling suspected child abuse or recognizing potential learning disabilities, autism, and dyslexia. These same training modules are important to reference during employment of any nature to ensure difficult situations which may arise in the classroom are handled in both ethical and legal ways. Additionally, training arms teachers with accurate information about the experiences of exceptional learners, so classroom materials can be modified to better suit student needs.
Part of professionalism is appreciating the wealth of knowledge surrounding content and the teaching practice that your colleagues possess. Just prior to my student-teaching placement, I completed an internship where I got to observe high school A.P. and Gen.Ed. United States history classes. I collaborated with a teacher to create a lesson to help students tackle the document-based essay section of the APUSH exam. I led a brief lecture and guided practice, then shared recordings of myself teaching with my Hollins supervisor and other student teachers. I annotated my intentions behind components of the lesson and received helpful feedback which I carried into my student teaching.
Maintaining membership in Virginia’s National Education Association grants me access to professional development opportunities, knowledge about legislation, and protections as a professional. Other professional organizations that are content area-specific, such as the National Council for the Social Studies, offer professional development webinars to educate oneself about what high-quality social studies instruction looks like.
