Chapter 8: What are the Ethical and Legal Issues Facing Teachers? by Coral Tigert

As the English poet John Donne once said, “No man is an island”; therefore everyone on this planet has some kind of connection with his or her fellow humans. The systems of ethics and laws are a critical part of these connections. Ethics, the code of morality by a specific group or person, and laws, written rules that members of a society must follow, make civilized society and coexistence between people possible. It is a teacher’s responsibility to convey to their students the essential moral message that we are all legally and ethically bound to each other. Ethics and legal obligations are incorporated into teachers’ work every day.

In dealing with issues involving ethical judgment, teachers need to demonstrate six characteristics: appreciation for moral deliberation, empathy, knowledge, reasoning, courage, and interpersonal skills. With appreciation for moral deliberation, the teacher needs to see the complex moral dimensions of the problem and appreciate that care must be taken to protect the legal rights of all parties. The teacher also needs to be empathetic by feeling what the others in an ethically troublesome situation are feeling. A teacher needs to have impeccable knowledge to effectively deal with ethical issues; meaning he/she needs to be able to formulate reasonable approaches to the problem and from experience, anticipate the consequences of each approach. To go along with knowledge, the teacher needs to have sufficient reasoning skills to reflect systematically on an issue. In reasoning, the teacher will move through the issue step by step and compare a specific event or action with some moral principle and come to a conclusion. To act on ethical issues, a teacher needs to be courageous. Anyone can feel, know, and reason but it takes courage to take action on those feelings, knowledge, and reasons. Finally, the teacher needs to be able to use interpersonal communication skills to act with sensitivity.

These six characteristics are vital for every teacher because not be a day will pass in our teaching careers where we will not be faced with ethic and legal setbacks.

Chapter 6: What Makes a Teacher Effective? by Ivie Williamson

The Attitude of the Effective Teacher

There are four categories of attitude that affect teaching. They are a teacher's attitude toward his or herself, their attitude toward the children, their attitude toward their peers and their students' parents, and their attitude toward the subject matter. Along with having positive attitudes in these categories, it has been found that teachers who possess warmth, empathy, sensitivity, enthusiasm, and humor in their personalities are much more effective than those who don't.

First, teachers need to know and understand themselves before they can know and understand their students. They need to realize their strengths and weaknesses and be flexible in their methods of teaching.

Second, in order to treat students fairly, teachers need to treat each one differently. This might seem contradictory at first, but think about it. Each child is different and each one has needs unique to them. Each one learns differently, each one comes from different racial and ethnic backgrounds as well as different types of families.

Elliot W. Eisner said, "If teachers pretend not to see students' racial and ethnic differences, they really do not see the students at all and are limited in their ability to meet their educational needs."

Teachers need to believe that every student can learn and achieve academically. The key and challenge are finding and filling these needs. If all children came from the same dough and were cut by the same cookie cutter, it would be easy to teach them all by a certain set of guidelines to meet all the standards. But they don't. Just as different types of cookies need to be formed and baked at different temperatures, children must be taught using different strategies in order for them to learn and be successful.

Third, teachers need to cooperate and share ideas with each other in order to benefit the staff and the students. When teachers work with those in authority, they will be able to more easily overcome anxieties and avoid situations that cause anger. Teachers ought to value and be sincere with other teachers and parents, showing empathy as well as having realistic expectations.



Finally, teachers should have enthusiasm for their subject matter. After all, if a teacher isn't excited about a subject, why on earth should a student be?

Ch.4 - What Social Problems Affect Todays Students?, by Edith Mendoza

Bullying is defined as the act of intentionally causing harm to others either by physical assault or verbal harassment. I consider bullying to be the most serious social problem in schools today. Bullying is a serious issue because not only is it a common occurrence in most schools; it can also lead to other social problems like school violence, adolescent suicide, or even drug abuse by those who are being bullied.
Bullying can be as simple as name calling,gossiping, and nowadays can be done anywhere, including the internet, which is known as cyber bullying. Cyber bullying has recently grown rapidly because of the popularity of the social networking websites like MySpace and Facebook. Kids who are being bullied show certain signs of stress. Their grades begin to drop and they refuse to go to school. Some kids just exclude themselves from socializing altogether.

I believe that with the implementation of zero-tolerance policies in schools, bullying can be reduced significantly. Another way to lower the amount of bullying incidents is to simply educate students. Students need to be aware of the consequences of bullying someone and of the damages done to someone who is at the other end. In regards to cyber bullying, I believe that parents should monitor their children’s internet use and make sure that there is good communication between child and parent.

What does it mean to be a professional? by Lareina Jackson

Teachers have an important role in the lives of children. Although children have many teachers in their lives, such as parents, ministers, older friends, ect., teachers are expected to give children/students important knowledge they can’t learn just anywhere.
When considering teaching as a profession there are a set of recognizable characteristics on page 494 in the text. Teachers are hired with a fixed salary and schedule. Teaching is a low paying high security job. In the school system teachers sit low on the chain of command. Like other professionals teachers are expected to take responsibility for their actions and are open to criticisms of their performance. In some schools the professionalism is deviated, but in some ways the standards met the requirements for teachers to be considered professionals.
There are organizations such as the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards to help get teachers recognized as being professionals. The organization provides support for superior teachers and establishes standards for teaching practices.
The role teacher’s play in our society cannot be replaced. Teachers are trusted to educate our children. They are expected to be committed and most teachers spend their own money on school supplies. Teachers are expected to be highly qualified. Not just anyone can be a teacher. According to the guild lines of “evolving profession” there is a process for teaching to become a full profession. Teachers should be more prepared for the job to be considered a full profession. The teacher has to be educated in the field which they teach and know what they are doing as well as know their job.
I believe the NCLB act is preventing our teachers from becoming better teachers or using their teaching skills to their full potential. The NCBL is creating bad teachers. The teachers are spending more time in the classrooms focusing on the state standardized tests. Teachers are going over test taking skills and teaching what the child needs to know to pass the tests. This leaves less room for creativity in the class room and not giving the teachers a chance to really excel. The time and money spent on NCLB could be spent on special programs to help our teachers become better teachers.
“Teach like you are the last best teacher they will have.” Olga Gomez
“Appraisals are where you get together with your team leader and agree what an outstanding member of the team you are, how much your contribution has been valued, what massive potential you have and, in recognition of all this, would you mind having your salary halved.”
Theodore Roosevelt

Are Teachers Professionals? by Clinton Cruice

Today a debate is going on over whether or not teaching is a profession. Some believe that teaching is not a profession for several reasons. The first of which is that students are not only educated by teachers, they can gain information from television programs, YouTube, and from any other person they meet. Teaching also does not require as much specialized training as other skilled trades. Teachers also do not have much autonomy because what they are required to teach is not decided by the teachers, but instead is designed by others. In the school structure teachers are also the second from the bottom in terms of amount of power, above only students. Teachers cannot refuse to teach certain students, because they are assigned to them, however other professions like doctors and lawyers can refuse to offer their services to clients they do not want to help. Teaching is also a high security, but low paying job, while other professions are low security, high paying jobs. Those who support teaching as a profession give several reasons to give credibility to their position. They say that because professionals are supposed to provide a service to others, teaching is a profession because teachers make many material sacrifices, so that they can be devoted to their service. They also believe that teachers possess a unique set of skills that are required to teach the young. These skills which are passed on to the students are considered essential to operate in modern society. These people also believe that teachers have a large amount of autonomy because they decide which parts of the curriculum they will focus on, and which parts they will only do an overview of. The ways in which the material is taught is also left up to the teacher. And after the first few years of teaching at a school they gain tenure, and are no longer routinely observed. I don't think that it matters whether or not teaching is considered a profession because all it really is is a title. And being able to call yourself a professional does not change anything, it does not help you do your job more effectively, and it does not give you more money. So in my opinion teachers should stop wasting time arguing over whether or not teaching is a profession, and should instead learn to develop more effective teaching techniques.

CLIMB THE MOUNTAIN by Becky Bowser

The harder the challenges, the more glorious the triumph.

Challenges are what make life interesting, overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.

Everyone has challenges and problems. Success lies in dealing with them promptly and thoroughly.























Mt. Everest rises to approximately 29,035 feet making it the highest mountain on the earth.

A very famous blind mountain climber named Erik Weihenmayer quotes:

“One thing hasn't changed in the twenty years I've been rock climbing and that's the reach. We calculate and predict. We hope and pray. All our measurements lead us to believe we'll find what we are looking for, but we know there are no guarantees. It's that moment when we've committed to the reach, and we know it's almost impossible to turn back."

Another amazing fact about Eric is that he is the first blind person to climb Mt. Everest, and during that climb, he led a group of Tibetan blind teenagers with him to about 21,000 feet, then he continued with a few blind guides up the mountain. To get ready for the climb up Mt. Everest, it took him weeks of preparation such as eating a good diet, getting plenty of rest, performing strength exercises, taking motivational training, writing down goals, and practicing rope training. Many will give up on their first attempt at the climb. Some may get scared or fall and may not want to experience that pain again. There are many who won’t give up, but will look forward to the challenges and the rewarding sensation of completing that goal and reaching the top.



I would like to show you a video of Dan Osman (February 11, 1963 – November 23, 1998), an Asian American extreme sport practitioner, known for his dangerous sports of "free-soloing" (rock climbing without ropes or other safety gear); and "bungee jumping" (falling several hundred feet from a cliff then being caught by a safety rope), for which his record was over 1000 feet. His mountain climbing skills will always be remembered in the hearts of his family and friends. Here’s a quick side note about Dan. The mountain that you will be watching him climb is called Bear Reach in Lover’s Leap, California. This would take the average mountain climber 3 hours to climb with ropes. Dan did it in four minutes without any ropes.



Dan Osman Speed Climbing - The funniest bloopers are right here

No one said teaching is an easy job. Unfortunately most first year teachers overlook the challenges, and then walk into their classrooms unprepared and incapable of handling the challenges of teaching. 1/3 of teachers leave their profession in the first three years of teaching. Just like a mountain climber, a teacher has to prepare themselves for the climb.

So, what are some of the challenges that you may face as a first year teacher? Shortages of money,lack of supplies and planning time, overcrowded classrooms, stacks of administrative paperwork,plain frustration, parents who won’t support you by attending conferences, diversity of student achievement and ability levels, a difficult principal, difficult student body, teacher’s meetings, teacher evaluation, feeling humiliated by making a mistake, being on an emotional yo-yo ride, working in a school with a high drop-out rate, meeting the emotional needs of students as well as their academic needs, piles and piles of papers to grade, dealing with an unruly student, constant interruptions, and being a young teacher whom the children may have a harder time respecting because they consider him/her a peer.

In the next video, there is a small clip from the movie titled, "Dangerous Minds," with Michelle Pfieffer. Michelle plays LouAnne Johnson, the true story of an ex-marine who doesn't give up on 34 inner city sophomores students who were called the class from hell. LouAnne Johnson inherited this class from a teacher who'd been pushed over the edge, and had said that these kids had blood on their hands. She was warned that her new assignment would be dangerous, but where the school system saw 34 unreachable kids, Johnson saw young men and women with intelligence and dreams. Johnson broke the rules to give these kids belief in themselves, and the ability to beat the odds when statistics said they'd never graduate. This is a remarkable memoir of a tough, dedicated, inventive teacher, whose inspiring story later spawned a hit movie and television series. LouAnne Johson faced the challenges and didn't give up. To learn about 25 other teachers who changed the world, you can visit, http://www.teachingtips.com/blog/2008/07/02/25-teachers-who-drastically-changed-the-world/





Your first year or your future years as a teacher may feel like total chaos, but there is always hope. Here are some tips for the first year teacher mentioned in Those Who Can, Teach book. (chapter 14, pages 483-487)

• Make a study of your strengths and weaknesses. For example, if shyness is your weakness, start speaking to people right now before you begin managing a classroom.
• Keep a teaching journal where you can write your teaching thoughts and suggestions. A journal serves as a constant reminder that you are preparing to actually be in charge of your own classroom, and can serve as a personal record. Plus, as years go by, you can reflect upon the challenges you faced, and may in return, help a first year teacher.
• Maintain proper frame of mind such as realizing that you are someone who is untested and who has a great deal to learn.
• Find an experienced teacher who can mentor you daily.
• Make your students’ parents your allies. Difficult parents will be a part of your teaching experience, but if you maintain the proper attitude by making the parents your friends, then you have already conquered the difficulty.
• Take Evaluation seriously. When you are being evaluated, be yourself, not someone else. Show the principal or administration the type of person you are when THEY are not in the classroom. Professor Robert Leblanc won a Seymous Schulich Award for Teaching Excellence in this article where he wrote about 10 points on how to be a good teacher all the time, not just on evaluation days, such as good teaching is as much about passion as it is about reason. It's about not only motivating students to learn, but teaching them how to learn, and doing so in a manner that is relevant, meaningful, and memorable. It's about caring for your craft, having a passion for it, and conveying that passion to everyone, most importantly to your students. You may read the other 9 points if you visit this website. http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/topten.htm
• Take care of yourself. Get plenty of rest. A teacher friend of mine goes to bed at 9:00 every school night. Be bacteria or virus aware. You will be around more germs than you want to know about that are creeping around in your classroom. Proper hand sanitation, Vitamin supplements and airborne are just a few ways you can help yourself fight germs. This website lists great tips to keep yourself healthy during your teaching career.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2036559/back_to_school_health_tips_for_all.html?cat=5

Will you be part of the 1/3 of teachers that quit their climb in the first three years? Or, will you be the one who faces the challenges and who climbs to the top of your teaching career? What can you expect the first year of teaching? Challenges. Finally I would like to encourage all of us future climbers by remembering, “Life is all about the climb.”

What Are Your Job Options in Education? By Idania Duarte

Teaching is a large occupation, representing 4 percent of the entire civilian work force. There are more than twice as many K-12 teachers as registered nurses and five times as many teachers as either lawyers or professors. Factors influencing teacher supply and demand are: Student Enrollment in Schools, Class Sizes, Geographical Location, Subject Matter and Grade Levels Taught, Retiring Teachers, Teacher Turnover, Returning Teachers and Economic Conditions. One of the greatest teacher supply-and-demand problems concerns minority teachers. At a time when the minority school-age population is increasing = rapidly, the number of minority teachers is decreasing. The shortage is severe now and appears likely to become worse. This shortage of minority teacher is problematic for several reasons. First, the growing number of minority children deserve to have positive minority role models who can help guide them in a world still plagued by racism. Second, white children also need to have minority role models to help them overcome the effects of stereotyping and racism. Third, it is important for our country's well-being to have a teaching staff that reflects the diversity of racial and ethnic backgrounds in our country's population. A large employer of teachers is the U.S. government. The Department of Defense operates 224 elementary and secondary schools in seven stats, Puerto Rico, Guam, and fourteen countries around the world, making it the twenty-second largest school district in the United States. These schools enroll approximately 106,000 students and employ about 9,000 educational personnel. Private education is a highly significant part of the American educational system. There are more the 26,000 private schools with an enrollment of more than 6 million preschool, elementary, and secondary school students and a staff of 413,000 teachers. What are teachers paid? We might answer this question by saying, "Not nearly enough." No one ever went into teaching because of the lure of big money. Most of teachers' satisfactions come from being of service to others and helping students learn. The 2001-02 average salary of classroom teachers in the United States is estimated to be about $44,600. Many indicators point to a strong demand for teachers in the coming years. Impending retirements in the current teaching force and increased school enrollments are encouraging signs for prospective teachers. America has become an education-oriented society. This means we are committed to more and better education, to life-long learning in and out schools. More than seventy years ago, President Calving Coolidge said, "The business of America is business." Today and into the future, the business of America is education. Teaching is where the action is and will continue to be!