EDF5855 · The teaching profession and the professional teacher

Overview

Becoming a teacher requires an understanding of what it means to be a professional, including the elements of self-regulation of the profession and each professional. As a member of a profession, this includes understanding the basis of your employment (the industrial agreements and professional codes of conduct under which teachers operate); behaving in a professional manner with parents/carers, other teachers, other professionals and community members more broadly; and operating within a legislative, administrative and organisational policy and procedures regime designed to meet community expectations of what it means to be a teacher. An important element of this is the legislated obligations teachers have under Child Safe Standards and the development of strategies to support teacher and student wellbeing and safety, including the safe and ethical use of ICT in learning and teaching. Professional teachers’ pay attention to: communicating with and involving parents and carers in the educative process in effective and sensitive ways that ensure confidentiality when necessary; continuous professional learning through career planning; engaging in learning that meets personal professional needs as well as those of the teaching context; and consideration of work/life balance including the building of resilience as well as mental and physical health.

Offerings

Assessment

The Handbook does not list a final examination among the assessment items. That is not a guarantee there is none.

Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.

Requisites

The Handbook lists no prerequisite, corequisite or prohibition for this unit.

Learning outcomes

1. recognise and respond to the range and depth of teachers' work (including ethical, professional, industrial, legal, emotional, intellectual and physical dimensions)
2. engage critically with the legislative, administrative and organisational policies and procedures that are part of the teaching profession
3. demonstrate understanding of legislation and codes of conduct, and school policies and processes, and strategies for teachers to support learner and teacher wellbeing and safety, including the safe and ethical use of ICT, and demonstrate deep, authentic, and critical reflection about your work and responsibilities as professional educators
4. demonstrate understanding of ways to cultivate collaborative working relationships with parents, carers and community members through acknowledging the role these people play in supporting quality learning and teaching
5. understand how ongoing professional learning and teacher research enable educators to respond to challenges and pressures facing the profession; and articulate your goals and targets as part of a plan for ongoing professional learning and career progression

Workload

The minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per teaching period comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. Usually, you can expect to engage with: • 24 hours* of scheduled learning delivered on campus via weekly/regular directed learning activities; and • the remaining hours to be allocated towards self-directed/independent study Scheduled learning activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement. *Subject to variation due to professional experience requirements

Student experience, not official rules. Nothing here changes what the Handbook says.