This document discusses the teaching profession in three ways: as a profession, as a mission, and as a vocation. It provides details about each: as a profession, teaching requires long preparation, commitment to excellence, and dedication to moral values; as a mission, teaching is a task one is assigned to prepare for; as a vocation, teaching is an answer to a call to commit oneself to total learner transformation. The document also discusses professional ethics for teachers and strategies for ongoing professional development.

1. THE TEACHING
PROFESSION
TYPES OF TEACHERS
Some teachers are teachers by:
Choice
Chance
Force
Accident
Copyright ©, otb2008

2. THE TEACHING PROFESSION
Can be regarded in three ways:
Teaching as a profession
Teaching as a mission
Teaching as a vocation
Copyright ©, otb2008

3. Teaching as a profession
The word “profession” is synonymous to:
Occupation, job, career, work, line of work
The word “professional” means long & arduous
years of preparation, a striving for excellence, a
dedication to public interest and commitment to
moral & ethical values.
“Teaching is a noble profession”
Copyright ©, otb2008

4. You must be willing to go through a long period of
preparation.
You must be willing to go through continuing education
(continuous development of potentials)
You must strive for excellence
You commit yourself to moral, ethical and religious
values & dedicate yourself to service.
If you consider teaching as a profession
then:
Source: The Teaching Profession by Bilbao et alCopyright ©, otb2008

5. Teaching as a mission
The word mission is derived from the Latin word
“misio” which means “to send”.
The Webster’s Dictionary defines “mission” as “task
assigned”.
Copyright ©, otb2008

6. If teaching is your mission then it means:
a. It is the “task” entrusted to you in this world.
b. It is your assigned task thus you’ve got to prepare
for it!
c. It calls for a continuing professional
education.
“Once a teacher, forever a student”
Copyright ©, otb2008

7. Teaching as a vocation
The word “vocation” comes from the Latin word
“vocare” which means “to call” thus vocation is a
“call”.
For believers, the CALLER is GOD Himself.
For Non-believers, the CALLER might be a man
calling another man.
“Many are called but few are chosen”
Copyright ©, otb2008

8. If teaching is your vocation then it means:
You said YES to your call to teach!
You commit yourself in the total transformation of
the learner.
You consider teaching as a lifetime commitment
thus aim through the years towards quality
teaching.
“Teaching may not guarantee financial security but
love of teaching has served as a motivating factor to
many teachers through the years”. Teaching has
remained inspiring & fulfilling.
Copyright ©, otb2008

9. Professional Ethics
The professional :
• renders service and shows concern
for people.
• does not require close supervision
or direction.
• does not work by the hour or expect
to be paid by the hour.
• assumes responsibility for personal
behaviour.

10. • maintains good physical, emotional,
and mental health.
• continually seeks to improve.
• is loyal to colleagues.
• does not attempt to advance at the
expense of others.
• possesses good communication and
public relation skills.

11. • gives others credit for their ideas
and work.
• meets commitments and obligations
fully and on time.
• is proud of the teaching profession.

12. Going beyond...
“It has been said that teachers who
have been teaching for twenty years
may be divided into two categories:
those with twenty years’ experience
and those with one year’s experience
repeated twenty times.”

13. In other words
• Sheer time on the job does not ensure
experience
• Successful teachers are those who
continue to develop throughout their
professional lives – the completion of
an initial qualification is just a
beginning
(Ur, 1996)
• It is difficult to mantain a sense of
engagement when using the same old

14. lesson routines or reading texts time
after time
• If we do not take steps towards
development,
it is difficult to mantain the initial
enthusiasm
(Harmer, 2007)

15. ‘You can train me, you can
educate me, but you can’t develop
me – I develop’
(Piai 2005:21, in Harmer, 2007)

16. Professional Development
Strategies
• Attending Conferences
• Taking courses
• Getting a certificate, diploma or
degree
• Peer observations/formal
observations
• Lesson planning and reflection
• Reading
• Writing
• Getting online