EDPS Mind Map

EDPS Mind Map

Conclusion

Jay-Ann Prymych & Tasha Frank

A teacher’s professional duties are continuously integrated into their personal lives, as they complete work during personal time and bring the stress of the job home. While the workload aspect of the teaching career is well known and evident, the ways in which a teachers personal decisions affect their professional persona is much more ambiguous and “there is no unanimity as to what constitutes a suitable model” (Crook &Truscott, 2007, p.54). That being said, Crook and Truscott express that “one of [the] most powerful concepts of teaching is that of being a role model and mentor” (Crook & Truscott, 2007, p.54). Keeping this in mind, we have thoroughly examined the boundaries between a teacher’s personal and professional life through both case studies and articles and have concluded that it is the teacher’s professional life that should take the lead role in all personal choices. In exploring the opinions expressed in the articles via the case study, there is an overwhelming amount of evidence in regards to the ways teachers are scrutinized and prosecuted for the activities they engage in and the opinions that they express within their personal lives. Although it would be ideal to have both separate professional and personal lives, the boundaries between the two are often blurred and to protect the professional reputation, teachers must constantly be cautious in every aspect of their life. How teachers choose to act during their personal time is viewed as a representation of their conduct within the profession. Therefore, it is a requirement that teachers “display consistency between in-school and out-of-school behavior” (Crook & Truscott, 2007, p.68).

Cromer vs. B.C.T.F Case Study

In order to analyze the case

study in regards to our thesis,

we will be reflecting on articles

which deal with the same

topic, but offer unique insight or contribute to the theme with

current and relevant issues.

Facebook Can Kill Careers

In this article, the prevalent affect of social media websites on teaching careers is explored through a recent case study. In spring of 2007, B.C. principal Mark Classen was vacationing in New Zealand when his wife took nude pictures of him. While the photos were taken in private, and were meant to remain so, they were accidentally uploaded onto a social media site where the parents of students attending Classen's school were able to view them. As the community became involved in the scandalous issue, the principal was painted as a possible child abuser and put on administrative leave for two months. Although an investigation concluded that the incident was nothing more than a mistake, the entire ordeal was extremely damaging to Classen's reputation.

The article then goes on to advise teachers of appropriate Facebook and social media use, stating that while teachers do have the right to obtain such accounts, these sites are viewed as public domains. Therefore, it is necessary that teachers remain informed of proper security settings and be very cautious about what they post; It is critical that teachers protect themselves by being aware of the ways in which their posts may be viewed by the community. Furthermore, the article cautions teachers about accepting friend requests from students and parents, as this can potentially blur the line between ones professional and personal life and impose upon student teacher boundaries. (The Gazette, Montreal, 2008)

Relating this to the case study: personal opinions are often expressed on social media forums and being that it is considered a public domain teachers need to consider all possible implications of what they post. As a teacher, it is essential to ask yourself, "to what degree do we have to censor our opinions and roles online?". Although the lines seem to be blurred between our professional identities and our personal/online identities, it is important to consider that people of the community can often access these postings and we are expected to act in a professional manner at all times.

The accused in this case is a teacher who violated the code of conduct by publicly speaking out against a colleague who works in a different, but local, school. However, the accused teacher attended the meeting as a parent who was concerned about the delivery method of the sexual health component of the curriculum. In this case, it was argued that the accused was acting in the role of the parent, and therefore should not

be charged with violating the code of conduct that she is to abide by in her professional life. The results of this case indicated that the accused was found guilty because her criticisms of the teacher were of a personal nature and did not directly apply to the teacher's approach to teaching the sexual health course.

Taggart, Aikins & Lambert [1986] Cromer v. B.C.T.F. CarswellBC 177.

Teachers' Private Lives

An article written by Teresa Ferri-Tellier in December 1995 (The Canadian School Executive) explores the lives of teachers and the ways in which their private lives are scrutinized by the community they teach in. Specifically, this scrutiny comes from parents, students, colleagues and society itself. Since teachers are regarded as role models, it is society's view that their private lives should reflect their professional standing within the community. The author argues that there is ambiguity about what is deemed acceptable behavior in a teachers' life away from the job, before analyzing relevant case studies to observe the implications of personal decisions on professional roles.

The first case study analyzed revolves around two married teachers who sent nude pictures of themselves into a magazine to be published. The second case study involves a female teacher who worked for a Catholic school board and was dismissed for having children out of wedlock. The third case study focuses on a teacher who was deemed unfit to teach, solely based on the behavior they demonstrated in their private life.

Using all three of these case studies, the author concludes that if the private life choices of the teacher does not affect their abilities to perform professionally then these choices should remain private. However the author also warns that although this would be an ideal compromise, it is important to realize that unrelenting scrutiny is part of the teaching profession and thus teachers who choose to partake in an alternative lifestyle should continuously strive to keep their private lives separated from their public roles.

Our original case study exemplifies how the roles we take on in our personal lives can so easily become blurred with our professional responsibility. Although it would be ideal for our roles, such as those of educator and parent, to be viewed as separate, both this article and our primary case study have indicated that this is not always a possibility.Teachers are held to a higher moral standing, expected to be held to the code of conduct at all times, and must be extremely cautious in the activities they partake in and the opinions they express in all situations.

Introduction / Thesis

Workload and Stress Relief

In Andrea Sands' article that was recently published in the Edmonton Journal (January 5, 2015), junior high social studies and language arts teacher Joe Bower discusses a recent study being undertaken by the provincial government and thousands of teachers across Alberta. The purpose of the study serves to understand the work load that teachers are responsible for, as well as the challenges they face on a daily basis. While the article goes into detail about how the study is being conducted and the possibility of the government implementing changes to assist teachers, it is how the article ends that really resonates with us. As a concluding comment, ATA president Mark Ramsanker notes that "Alberta teachers are overworked and some of the hardest working in the world".

Though the relevance to our case study may not be explicit, both the personal and professional lives of teachers are implicated within this article. In taking on a large workload, teachers are continuously completing components of their work during personal time, and carrying work related stress into their personal lives. In addition to stress coming from curricular obligations, it is also induced by the heavy scrutiny that teachers endure. Furthermore, while a teacher may engage in a wide variety of activities to relieve stress, they must be continuously aware of how the activities they engage in are reflected upon in regards to their professional role. If teachers do not engage in various situations with extreme caution, there is the potential for severe consequences to occur. Our next article is a prime example that explores this issue.

In examining the boundaries between a teacher’s personal and professional life, we want to know the degree to which an educator’s personal life can be imposed upon by their professional position, versus the extent to which an educator can allow their personal lives to interfere with the teaching profession.