Senior Program Officer in the Ministry of Education and former principal, Simeon Joseph, in delivering the featured address at the teachers’ rally on Friday, recalled that on September 11, 2001, many firemen, policemen, and safety personnel were running into the World Trade Tower building while many were running out of it. In like manner, young teachers ought to choose in which direction they will run in their chosen profession. He encouraged them to run away from fellow teachers with negative attitudes and behaviors.
He said, “Run away from those who will encourage you to be late and unprepared; run away from those who will set low standards in their dress and who do not follow the protocols and procedures of the school or of the education system; run away from those who encourage procrastination and disrespect and lack of confidentiality in the profession; run away from those who resist change and innovation and spread negativity; run away from those who do not know how to be confidential and professional in school matters; run from those who do not support school management and who undermine school authority and do not support their colleagues in school matters; run from those who choose to behave unprofessionally in public or among the students, Run!”Positively, Joseph suggested who the young professional needs to run towards.”
Run instead towards those who inspire trust in their students and who are passionate and positive and enthusiastic about their work; run towards those who take charge of their classrooms and also pride in the process and product and who take an interest in every child; run towards those who keep up to date with their marking and grading of their students; run towards those who are mentors to their students and put the safety of their students first and foremost and make the inclusion and consultation of parents their practice; run towards those teachers who take responsibility for their students results and can captivate their students attention; run towards those who keep abreast with education policies and legislation and also constantly seek new subject knowledge to share with their students; run towards those who let excellence be their aim, who constantly seek improvement and set high standards and expectations for themselves and others”.
Joseph acknowledged that young teachers seek more feedback; want more assistance from peers, principals, and admin; want more time and opportunity to improve practice through meaningful collaboration; believe that their effectiveness cannot be accurately measured through test scores alone; are enthusiastic about new networking technology that can improve teaching and learning. In light of this positive attitude in young teachers, he said that it is the responsibility of all to seek how we can help them to stay in the profession. He said that we must devise a vision to serve the needs of 21st-century children and the teachers who serve them. As we imagine a brighter furture, we must ask young teachers how the workload affects their work-life balance; ask about their mental health concerns; how do they feel about extended hours; whether the profession is appealing; has their morale declined or increased since they started teaching; are they satisfied and happy with the level of support; do they feel undervalued and suffer poor management; do they feel in that in a typical week they have more meetings, briefings, and more school detentions; are they often taken advantage of by the more senior teachers to do the more menial tasks that they themselves don’t want to do.
Further, Joseph said that changes must be made in order to attract and keep the young teacher. He asked, “Can we not consider a unilateral across the board increase for teachers up to a decent level of livelihood? ” To which the crowd resounded in applause. He continued by saying that in order to make a case for teaching and make the profession desirable, changes must be enacted, that teaching should not only be viewed as honorable but as desirable by both teachers and society. One of the ways to do that is to ‘ pay teachers more’.
The rally was held under the theme, ‘Young Teachers: The Future of the Profession’.
