IS TEACHING A PROFESSION?
INTRODUCTION
Profession
is
defined as “a job that needs special Education and training”. This means that
there is a requirement from employers to have a standardized set of proven
competencies attesting to an individual’s capability to perform in the role of
a professional. It can be define as “an especially desirable and dignified
occupation with an implication of intellectual training and a largely mental
expertise”.
WHO
IS A TEACHER:
Teachers are distinct occupational group of people specially equipped by
training to execute the task of educating students in institutions socially
assigned the responsibility for education. However, teacher Education as the
education given to would- be teacher in institutions such as teacher training
collages, National collage so that they will be in a position to acquire,
inculcate and impart knowledge to learners.
WHAT
IS EDUCATION:
Education is the process of facilitating learning, or the acquisition of
knowledge, skills, values, beliefs, and habits. Educational methods include
storytelling, discussion, teaching, training, and directed research. Education
frequently takes place under the guidance of educators, but learners may also
educate themselves. Education can take place in formal or informal settings and
any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or
acts may be considered educational. The methodology of teaching is called
pedagogy. Education is commonly and formally divided into stages such as
preschool or kindergarten, primary school, secondary school and then college,
university or apprenticeship. A right to education has been recognized by some
governments, including at the global level: Article 13 of the United Nations'
1966 International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recognizes
a universal right to education. In most regions education is compulsory up to a
certain age.
IS TEACHING A PROFESSSION
For the
last 50 years, educators have devoted a great deal of energy to the debate over
whether teaching can be considered a profession. Unfortunately, this turns out
to have been the wrong question, and so led us to the wrong sort of answers.
For example, there was a very heated debate in the 1960s and 1970s over whether
teachers could organize strikes and still claim that they were members of a
professional association, rather than a union. This controversy only makes
sense, however, if one accepts that professions are fundamentally different
from other types of occupations, and by the mid-1970s, social scientists were
beginning to realize that this was not the case. They argued that the
professions had changed so much over the past 100 years that there is now
little left to distinguish professionals from other workers.
Firstly, teaching is generally referred to as
a profession. This does not necessarily make it one. To determine whether
teaching really qualifies to be regarded as a profession in the real sense of
the word, I will mention characteristics that will determine is teaching a
profession. They are as follows:
(1) Provision
of continued competence programmes
(2) Setting
up of professional standard and code of ethics for members.
(3) Provision
of skilled social services.
(4) Founded
upon a systematic body of knowledge
(5) Lengthy
period of training
(6) Credible
registration and complete autonomy in their work
(7) Urge to
be of serious society
(8) Closely
knit professional organization
(9) Offers
a life career and permanent membership to its members
(10) Characterized
by public recognition
(1) PROVISION OF CONTINUED COMPETENCE PROGRAMMS
Teaching satisfies the characteristics
of demanding continuous in-service growth. Teachers stop being effective the
moments he stops reading and that no teacher is a finished product. The state
universal basic Education Board (SUBEB) post primary school management board
(PPSMB) universities have from time to time organized conferences, workshops,
seminars etc for teachers to come together and rub minds on current issues and
researches on teaching and learning. Some teachers acquired additional
certificates through the sandwich programme or other enjoyed study leaves with
or withpay. With this, teaching is a profession.
(2) SETTING UP OF PROFESSIONAL STANDARD AND
CODE OF ETHICS FOR MEMBERS.
Teachers
have no means of setting up any standard for themselves. Teachers in Nigeria do
not control entry into teaching, neither do they have opportunity of punishing
erring teachers.Teachers have code of
Ethics and some other means of self direction and regulation to ensure that
their practice is above political,
economic and personal self interests.
(3) PROVISION
OF SKILLED SOCIAL SERVICES:
Teachers
have the necessary and required knowledge and skill for practicing the
occupation which is really esoteric and limited to them. They render social service by involved in the
educational, socio- cultured, economic, political and technological upliftment
of any society.
(4) FOUNDED
UPON A SYSTEMATIC BODY OF KNOWLEDGE: Teaching has its intellectual body of
knowledge and also its training and practical aspect. The body of knowledge is
also constantly refreshed and replenished through research funding, seminars,
conferences, workshops and symposia.
(5) LENGTHY
PERIOD OF TRAINING:
A full qualified teacher with an NCE,
First degree in Education, up to Masters or doctorate degree in the subject,
the period of training would be equivalent to or even longer than those of
medicine and Law professions. With this, teaching qualifies as a profession.
(6) CREDIBLE
REGISTRATION AND COMPLETE AUTONOMY IN THEIR WORK:
Teachers Registration Council (TRC) by
Act No 31 of 1993, teaching qualifies as a profession. In teachers code of
conduct, the (TRCN) Act section a(6) empowers the council to make rules which
are not inconsistent with the act as to acts which constitute professional
misconduct.
(7) URGE
TO BE OF SERVICE TO SOCIETY:
Teaching is service orientation for
some specific purposes and needs of society. In his consideration, teaching
qualifies to be regarded and accorded the status of a profession. The academic
excellence through selfless service are good qualified teaching and the desire
of all good teaching and students.
(8) CLOSELY
KNIT PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION:
There are other teachers’ organization
at different levels like, Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) collages
of education, Academic staff union (COEASU). The existence of an organized and
disciplined association for teachers as represented by the NUT, would qualify
for the status of a profession and teaching now has a teachers registration
council established by decree 31 of 1993.
(9) OFFERS
A LIFE CAREER AND PERMANENT MEMBERSHIP TO IT MEMBER:
The
occupation of teaching is made up of people who are in it not because they have
trained for it or that they want to be in it, or that they possess the
qualification but because they have nothing better to do. Majority of them are
people who are teachers because they failed to secure their dream jobs.
(10) CHARACTERIZED BY PUBLIC RECOGNITION:
Teaching
does not enjoy public recognition as its prestige is very low. According to
Igwe (1992-239) “teaching suffers from a circle of low status”. Salary is not
regular, it is not attractive and teachers are not well taken care of.