Standard 8

Educators contribute to the profession

professional standards for bc educators

This standard means that educators give back to the profession and help make the profession better or help other educators in their work. I think of this standard as “educators help the art of feaching grow.” When I first started the Education program, I thought the only way to give back to the profession was by publishing research and doing talks and workshops. Now, I see that contributing to the profession is also smaller things. Sharing resources, helping a coworker with a problem, or welcoming a student teacher into your class.

As a new teacher, I felt I would not be at a place where I could give back to the profession yet. During my second practicum, I was proven wrong. I did a unit in Career Education generational roles and responsibilities, and decided to read a book that had been a favourite in my family Love You Forever by Robert Munsch. The lesson was about how our roles and responsibilities in our families changes over time. When the lesson was done, my Coaching Teacher told me she loved the lesson and was going to use the book next year when doing this unit.

At the end of my practicum, my Coaching Teacher asked for some of the worksheets I’d made during my time there to use in the future. A Career Education sheet where students discussed how they viewed the roles and responsibilities of children, adults and elders/grandparents in their communities was one of them, and a sheet where students came up with a question and made double bar graphs was another. The Make Your own Double Bar Graph is here:

These were not big things, but they gave me confidence that even as a new teacher, I can give back to the profession even in small ways. As much as I take in, I can also put something out there too. As time goes on, I will find bigger ways to add to the profession. Though I know every educator has a unique perspective, voice and technique in the classroom, I felt I was just like everyone else, that I was not doing anything unique or interesting. Even if I’m doing the same thing someone else does, not everyone knows about it or does it the same way.