Professional Roles and Values: Critical Essay

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The underpinning roles and responsibilities of a teacher are to practice effective lessons using numerous delivery methods, and teaching strategies, that are engaging and relevant to the individual. Furthermore, provide support to learners, giving regular assessment, feedback, and guidance. (Eduk. 2016) Subject-specific, educators need to be able to know of and consider numerous rules, regulations, and legislation, to maintain professional practice, this includes but is not limited to, adhering to codes of conduct, legislation, values, child protection, and health and safety. Moreover, teachers should constantly be evaluating and reflect on their practice, utilizing CPD to ensure the well-being of the learners and the improvement and quality of information being given. When planning effective lessons, ETF standards must be considered to uphold professional standards, values, attributes, and skills to ensure learners’ individuality, diversity, the implementation of maths and English, and personal needs. Within this text, I will delve deeper into what roles and responsibilities teachers need to comply with, focusing on cultural, social, and contextual factors.

Tutors, professional or training, are required to adhere to a multitude of legislation, regulatory requirements, and codes of practice. It is the teachers’ responsibility to conduct themselves in a professional manner, coherent with such laws and regulatory requirements, to maintain a safe and productive learning environment. (Roles and regulatory requirements,2018) Subject-specific, legislative and regulatory acts within higher education include but are not limited to, ‘The Health and Safety Act’ (1974), ‘SEND Code of Practice’ (2014), ‘The equality act’ (2010), ‘The Prevent Duty Act’ (2015), ‘safeguarding of vulnerable groups Update’ (20062015), and ‘the data protection act’ (1998). The legislation ensures responsible care of yourself and others, ‘tending to and adapting for the different needs of individuals (skillsforcare.org.uk,2013) The roles and responsibilities of teachers differentiate by subject specificity. Those within the Dance sector must comply with the legislative requirements, however, the context and setting practical classes are conducted, as opposed to theoretical classes, must be considered.

The safeguarding of vulnerable groups act (2006) and the safeguard update (2015), regulate who can work alongside and with vulnerable individuals, children, and those with disabilities, including vulnerable adults. The act prevents maltreatment, lack of care, or recognition, of who may be in harm’s way or heading toward it. To maintain the safety and best interest of learners, tutors have a responsibility to get DBS checked. An ‘Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service’ (DBS) certificate illuminates an applicant’s ‘entire criminal record history…These checks are necessary to prevent any unsuitable candidates from working with children( or vulnerable adults) in any capacity.’ DBSChecks.org.uk (2020) This ensures the tutors ‘do no harm’, adhering to the overall safeguarding policies and health and safety Acts. Tutors must also understand their professional boundaries when it comes to interaction with learners. This includes knowing how to navigate situations where tutors are either alone with a student, getting information from a student that implies the risk to their safety, or if a student poses a threat to themselves or others. Responsibility includes knowing how to convey concerning information up the chain of command without causing further distress to those involved. Otherwise, the trust and healthy student-teacher repour may become damaged.

In addition, tutors need to implement ‘fundamental Values promoting pupils’ social, moral, spiritual, and cultural development’.ubub.9by0 teachers need to promote tolerance and understanding of others to build mutual respect amongst individuals to create inclusive, safe, and open learning environments. ‘Warwick governance safeguarding policy’ (2015) states ‘In the context of university safeguarding policy, the risk of being drawn into extremist ideologies and radicalization is considered to be a significant safeguarding concern which is of equal weight alongside other forms of abuse and mistreatment of children and adults at risk’. This relates to the Equality Act (2010) which prevents Age, gender, race, socioeconomic, and disability discrimination. The Public General Act(2010) states the equality act(2010) ‘allows an employer or service provider or other organization to take positive action so as to enable existing or potential employees, or customers to overcome or minimize a disadvantage arising from a protected characteristic’. This places the duty on the tutor to uphold, advocate and demonstrate such legislative requirements when strategizing how to conduct themselves and their classes. (legislation.gov.uk) Should discriminative, radical, and terrorization acts occur, tutors carry the responsibility to report any signs that violate the well-being of learners. Moreover, tutors should increase knowledge of their subject specialism regarding legislative requirements, values, safeguarding, and related, through courses like Prevent Training and other forms of CPD.

Continuing professional development (CPD) is the process where individuals dictate their learning, to develop skills relevant to their subject specialism, through continuous cycles of reflection and action. (Megginson, Whitaker.2007) ‘Continuing Professional Development helps individuals to regularly focus on how they can become a more competent and effective professional.’ CPDUK (2020) Continuing professional development (CPD) contributes to tutors’, pedagogical and pedagogical approaches, as new relevant knowledge is introduced to their practice, enhancing overall safety and quality in planning and delivery. In effect, tutors continually strive to meet their roles and responsibilities, ensuring the best interests of the learners. Additionally, teachers are expected to evaluate, reflect and develop their teaching standards to maintain the well-being of the individual learners. The ‘Education and Training Foundation ( 2014), motivates tutors to ‘act with honesty and integrity to maintain high standards of ethics and professional behavior in support of learners and their expectations’. Through the configuration of professional standards, ‘Professional Values and Attributes, professional Skills, Professional Knowledge and Understanding,’ ETF(2014) tutors can refine their practice considering wider aspects of relevance, individual needs, learning strategies, diversity, ethics, inclusivity, among others, to provide well-rounded learning opportunities in class.

In recent years, the ‘Further Education Sector’ (FE. 2020) has undergone significant reforms, diverting more attention to the implementation of ‘new technical education routes and the delivery of high and raising standing of English and mathematics’ Greatbatch, David; Tate, sue (2020) Implementing functional skills within vocational classes aims to prepare young people for the industry building competence in their subject specialism. English and maths implementation within vocational training, focusing on ages 16-19, places responsibility on the tutors to embed these skills in classes. It is argued ‘not all vocational tutors have the confidence and ability in their own English and maths to fulfill this new requirement’ Harden (2015) Therefore it places more strain on tutors who do not specialize in such subjects. The prioritization of functional skills HE setting led to the ‘educational Training foundation’ (ETF) running workshops in maths and English up to level 2. ‘The workshops currently taking place across the country, aim to develop personal maths and English skills and improve teaching techniques and confidence.’ Harden (2015) Although training is offered to teachers it can be argued, the responsibility of carrying on functional skills should go to tutors within those specific fields to meet educational requirements. However, HE tutors of all fields need to fulfill that extra role without extra payment, which could discourage tutors from developing such skills. This, however, conflicts with the roles and responsibilities of tutors, regarding learners’ needs so it is the tutors’ test of competence and dedication to the role tutors must overcome. Additionally, Dance tutors arguably use these skills within lessons through, vocabulary, musical counts, and timings, among others naturally. Therefore, tutors are responsible for implementing these skills in their lessons more strategically, alongside paying attention to the individual needs of those who struggle with these subjects.

Identifying learner needs enables tutors to motivate learners, in the correct environment, to optimize learning capabilities. For tutors to do this, they must see their students as individuals and recognize them as such. Individuals have independent learning styles and cognitive approaches; this can be stripped down to deep, and surface learning. ‘A deep approach consists of studying for its own sake, for personal interest, and is meanings-related. A surface approach is essentially the opposite. It consists of studying to fulfill extrinsic demands and relying on memorizing, whilst making little attempt to relate the material to previous knowledge’. Bloom’s taxonomy establishes six forms of cognitive learning ‘remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating.’ How a student learns and the method of learning available to them may determine what subjects they take and how well they do in them. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the tutor to create learning opportunities that can facilitate and be personalized to the learner’s cognitive and humanistic needs. (Jarvis.2001) Learning styles are commonly categorized as visual. Auditory, kinaesthetic, reading, and writing. Therefore, it is the tutors’ responsibility to create opportunities in class where these styles of teaching are accessible. Teachers must strategize when these learning styles appear in lessons and allow time to give regular feedback parallel to these learning styles.

To keep checks on knowledge and encourage deep learning, various methods should be used over different periods to maintain motivation. To nurture a growth mindset, encouraging words like ”not yet”, and ”you’ll get there” embed the possibility that they will achieve their goals through hard work and dedication. This encourages learners who may struggle due to individual needs to keep trying. As a result, behavior, compliance, productivity, and willingness to try to improve. (Dweck.2014) Maslow’s hierarchy of needs focuses on how to increase motivation by meeting the learner’s needs. ‘Human needs arrange themselves in hierarchies of pre-potency… one need usually rests on the prior satisfaction of another, more predominant need.’ (def) Tutors need to meet the lower immediate needs like sustenance, Inclusivity, and safety, allowing the learner’s higher, personal growth needs to take dominant focus. Tutors also need to reflect on how they teach considering diversity, differentiation, inclusivity, and social tasks, amongst others, within lessons to increase the prospect of meeting individual needs that could be caused by the environment the tutor created, however unintentionally.

As previously discussed, teachers and trainees have a multitude of roles and responsibilities to prepare youths for the workforce in whatever field they choose. ‘The age-old concept of teaching-learning has undergone tremendous changes and the teacher now is considered more as a helper, a higher role has become much more complex and multi-faceted. This calls for a change in teaching style from verbal to all possible modes of communication.’ Dr. S. Pandey (2009) By demonstrating good teaching practices, complying with legislative requirements, and good ethics, tutors help individuals to become the best that person can be. Acting as role models for future generations it is the responsibility of tutors to embed skills that promote employability, longevity, and competence. Moreover, tutors should encouraging and enthuse their love for learning so others can be encouraged to do the same.

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