CHAPTER 7: The Teacher and the Community: Teacher's Ethical

and Professional Behavior

Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this Chapter, you should be able to:
 elaborate on community's expectations from teachers and on teachers'
expectation from communities
 describe teacher's ethical and professional behavior in the community by
giving concrete examples

Code of Ethics for Professional Teachers, Article III

The very title of this Unit indicates that teachers are expected to be part of
the community. To be part of the community definitely means to participate in the
life of that community. What is that community referred to here? The 8 Sections of
Article III of the Code of Ethics refers to the community within the school and the
community outside the school. How can teachers be a part of the community? The
various Sections of Article III give more details.

Teacher as Facilitator of Learning

Article III, Section 1 states that the teacher is a facilitator of learning and the
development of the youth... therefore shall render the best service by providing an
environment conducive for such learning and growth.
Facilitator comes from the word "facilitate" which means to make something
easy or easier. You as, the professional teacher, facilitate learning or make learning
easier. Learning is a difficult task and is made easier when you make dry lesson
interesting, exciting and enjoyable. As a professional teacher, you make learning
easier when you simplify the complex and concretize the abstract. This is what is
ethical for every professional teacher like you ought to do. This you can do after
four long years of academic preparation.
What happens sometimes, however, is teachers complicate the simple and
teaches only at the abstract level.
To facilitate learning, a conducive learning environment is necessary. It has
been proven that learners learn best in a pleasant environment. A pleasant
environment is where the learners can be themselves because teachers are caring.
No need to put best self forward because teachers and classmates truly care and
take you for who you are. All forms of bullying has no place in a conducive learning
environment. A conducive learning environment makes learners believe they can do
the work and they feel accepted. A favorable learning climate is not competitive
where everyone is tense.
The teacher who believes that "Every child deserves a champion, an adult
who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection and
insists they become the best they can possibly be like Teacher Rita Pierson in TED
Talk is a facilitator of learning.

Teacher Leadership and Initiative for Community Participation

Section 2 refers to the "leadership and initiative of the professional teacher
to participate in community movements for moral, social, economic and civic
betterment of the community." As professional teachers you do not live in an ivory
tower, meaning are not supposed to be removed nor aloof from community life.
Schools are at the heart of communities and you as professional you teachers are
expected to be be-in-the-world and to be-in-the-world- with-others and for others
(borrowing the words of Heidegger).
The words in Section 2 of Article III are "provide leadership and initiative..."
This implies that as a professional teacher you have not to wait for community to
ask for help. Section 6 further explicitates how you can show your professional
leadership, to wit: "Every teacher is an intellectual leader in the community,
especially in the barangay. and shall welcome the opportunity to provide such
leadership when needed, to extend counseling services, as appropriate, and to be
actively involved in matters affecting the welfare of people."
You do not just welcome the opportunity to lead. Section 2, states that you,
the professional teacher ought to take the initiative to offer your help for the
improvement of the community. Many a time, you can be a guidance counselor, a
prayer leader, commentator or reader in religious celebrations, fiesta coordinator,
judge in or coach for a contest, financial adviser, a nurse, a doctor, commentator,
prayer rolled into one.
Providing leadership and initiative also means working with the community.
This means getting the parents and other members of the community participate in
school activities.
Teachers, as they participate in community affairs prove that they "are the
most responsible and most important members of society because their
professional efforts affect the fate of the earth."
Professional Teacher with Honor and Dignity
Section 3 states: "Every teacher shall merit reasonable social recognition for
which purpose he shall behave with honor and dignity at all times and refrain from
such activities as gambling, smoking, drunkenness, and other excesses much less
illicit relations." Obviously, if as a professional teacher, you are an inveterate
gambler, chain smoker and alcoholic or if it is common knowledge that you are
engaged in an illicit relationship, how can you have moral authority? Who will listen
to you when you advise your class not to smoke, not to drink alcoholic drinks, not to
gamble, etc? Your audience will say "Look, who is talking!" It is a matter of "do what
I say not what I do." Society expects so much of teachers that when they fail to to
live up to the challenge to behave or model good behavior, they are "condemned
without trial!" It is no wonder why many are afraid to answer the call to teach.
Society seems to expect much more from professional teachers than from
any other professional and so look at teachers with scrutinizing eyes, The quotation
states "The influence of a good teacher can never be erased" but the influence of a
dishonorable teacher is as lasting."

Teacher's Attitude Toward Local Customs and Traditions

Section 4 expects every teacher to live for and with the community and shall,
therefore study and understand local customs and traditions in order to have a
sympathetic attitude, therefore, refrain from disparaging the community." The
professional teacher is neither ethnocentric nor xenocentric. He/she is not
ethnocentric and so does not look down on community's culture because of the
thought that his/her culture is superior to the culture of the community. Neither is
he/she xenocentric and so looks at his/her culture as inferior in to other
community's culture.
Fortunate and happy is the community that has teachers who live with them,
exert effort to understand their local customs and traditions and consequently
appreciate the same. This author sees no culture as perfect. Every culture including
hers has its positive and negative aspects. What we need to pass on are the positive
aspects of the culture. We need to purify, however, the negative aspects with
teacher pointing them out tactfully and sincerely.
 The Professional Teacher and Information Update
Section 5 states that the teacher "shall help the school inform the
community about the school's work, accomplishments, needs and problems.
Community here refers to internal as well as external stakeholders. Internal
stakeholders include the students, the parents of the students and the teachers.
The external stakeholders are the other parents in the community without children
enrolled in school, barangay officials and other government officials, non-
government organizations, government organizations, alumni /alumnae and
retirees.
Why do these stakeholders have to be informed? The school is there for the
community and so the community has the right to be informed about its activities,
accomplishments, needs and problems Informing them about the school's projects,
needs and problems give them a sense of ownership. Having a sense of ownership,
these stakeholders will participate more actively in the resolution of school's
problems and needs.

The Parents-Teachers Association

We have Parents' and Teachers' Associations (PTA) in place in every school.
Some private schools call it Home School Association or Family Advisory Council.
This is for internal stakeholders only. A PTA is an association of teachers and parents
with children who are enrolled in a school. It is a forum for discussions on school
problems and how they can be solved.

The School Governing Council

Other than the PTA is the School Governing Council. The SGC has different
membership and functions. A School Governing Council as a policy-making body has
the school head as Chief Executive Officer, Manager and Chief Operations Officer.
The formation of SGC in every school is a proof of school head sharing his/her
leadership with members of the community.
It determines general policies on student welfare, discipline, well- being; it is
concerned with the development and implementation, monitoring and evaluation
of the School Improvement Plan (SIP), and reporting of the progress of the SIP
implementation to the Schools Division Superintendent and the community.
In addition to PTAs are the School Governing Council in every public school.
This School Governing Council shares in the management of the school with School
Head as Chair. This School Council is another opportunity for communities to
participate in school activities.
The Professional Teacher and Government Officials and Other
Professionals
Section 7 states: "Every teacher shall maintain harmonious an pleasant
personal and official relations with other professionals, with government officials
and with the people individually or collectively." As a professional teacher, you
cannot afford not to be in pleasant relations with others especially those with
whom you work with like other professional teachers. It is always best to be in good
terms with everyone else in the community
Desiderata gives this advice: "As far as possible, without surrender, be on
good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to
others, ven the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story."

The Professional Teacher Does not Use Position to Proselyte

Finally, Section 8, says: "A teacher possesses freedom to attend church and
worship as appropriate, but shall not use his position and influence to proselyte
others. To be in a position means to have power or influence for a purpose, i.e. for
you to use that position to perform your job as a professional teacher. It is highly
unprofessional for a teacher like you to use your position of influence to proselyte.
Besides freedom of religion is guaranteed by the 1987 Philippine Constitution. "No
law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and
worship, without discrimination or preference, shall forever be allowed." (Article II,
Section 6).

TAKEAWAYS
 Article III of the Code of Ethics for Professional Teachers states that a
professional teacher shall live for and with the community.
 The community includes internal stakeholders (learners and their
parents/guardians, teachers and the school head) and external stakeholders
(members of the community who have no children enrolled in the school
such as community non-government officials, church leaders, non-
organizations and government, organizations)
 For the learners, you facilitate learning and the development of the youth. To
do this, you have to create a nurturing, positive learning environment.
 For the community, you are a leader. You take the initiative and leadership to
actively participate in community affairs and movements and in turn to
involve the community in school activities for the upliftment of both school
and the community. This can readily happen if you are in a harmonious
relations with all people in the community.
 To keep parent and community involvement in school, they must be updated
with happenings in the school- accomplishment, achievements, problems
and projects.
 At all times, at all places and for all people, don't misuse nor abuse that
authority or power bestowed on you as a professional teacher. For you to be
credible as a community leader, you shall behave with honor and dignity
twenty-four hours a day, 7 days a week, respect community culture and seek
ti understand them or else lose your "flavor" as a community leader.