Teaching as a Profession
It is true that the work of teachers is driven by a moral ideal that activates and validates their integrity as human beings. This is because teaching is an important social good, and thus teachers have are responsible for safeguarding the moral quality of the teaching practice. Teachers are responsible for the construction of the full width of professional morality. This is because just like other professions such as medicine, law and engineering, teaching incorporates virtues and professional ideals that define teaching as a profession. Teachers play an important role in the society. They are responsible for imparting knowledge or skills. As such, it can be said that all other professions are dependent on the teaching profession. For example, a lawyer attains his or her professional status after going through an education process where teachers or instructors pass knowledge to that particular person. The same applies to a doctor, an engineer and many other professionals.
A number of aspects define the teaching profession. There is an overall vision and philosophy of the teaching profession which is to impart knowledge and skills. Just like other professions, the teaching profession has its standards whereby the teacher is viewed as a role model in the society, and students tend to follow him or her. As such, teachers are expected to be models of excellence and exhibit professional competency. The teacher is also an agent of social change and through his or her vision and wisdom; he or she can bring change to students. Teachers’ intellectual worth enables students to become imaginative, creative, ideological and diversified. Good teaching enriches the understanding of self, others and the world, expands the knowledge, interests and insights of students, and deepens the way of feeling and thinking of students. Therefore, teaching is a profession that demands the paying of moral and intellectual attention as a teacher.
