School of Education
Division of Learning and Teaching
Professionalism in Teaching – Assessment Task 1
Topic: Discursive Analysis
Course Code: ELT523
Due Date: 31st of March, 2023
Student: Quinsley Naramus
ID No.: 2023511160
Program: Post Graduate Diploma in Education
Lecturer/Tutor: Mr. P. Boku
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Background
Unprofessional demeanours and dispositions of teacher’s adversely influence professional
development of learners both in personal and public life. Educationist theorist and practitioners
accepted the effectiveness of teacher as not only possessing a teaching qualification, but possess a
combination of a quality content knowledge, preparation and ways of thinking and behaving. The
way a teacher prepare, think and behave towards students is also essential for students’
professional development. Awareness of the implications of the concept ‘unprofessional
demeanuors and disposition of teachers’ is vital indeed. Webster online dictionary defines
demeanours as the way a person behaves towards other person. Disposition is defined by John
(2021) to be the social, verbal and physical attitudes of a teacher in relation to students. Teachers’
unprofessional demeanours and dispositions in this analysis is defined as social, verbal and
physical attitudes of a teacher towards students that violates PNG Teachers Code of Ethics (2004).
The analysis expounded some arising issues of PNG teachers’ attitudes that violates local teachers’
code of ethics.
Introduction
The analysis closely looked at the impacts of teachers’ unprofessional demeanours and
dispositions, and its implications on students learning and general conduct in personal and social
life. Teachers are role models whose general attitudes, behaviors and presence can have a
tremendous influence on students’ social and emotional development. To be effective teachers
must be very careful with their appearance, behavior and attitudes when interacting with students,
as students easily adopt and practice what is seen accepted from their teachers. In this respect the
analysis employed and discussed five of many unprofessional teachers conduct that have negative
implications on students’ academic and personal development. The analyzed topics include;
teacher’s absenteeism, unprofessional shewing of betel nuts, unaccepted dressing code, receiving
calls during class time and teachers sexual misconduct. These are only few of many topics needed
to be discussed for a quality education and professional development for Papua New Guinea.
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Teachers’ absenteeism
Teacher’s attendance is a critical determinant of the quality of education. The PNG National
Research Institute (2022) reported that teachers frequently absent from classes or are very late to
attend. In rural schools teachers may absent for two to three days or a week or more. Some teachers
in urban schools also absent a day or two or even weeks. According to the National News Paper
(2019) a parent reported that the teacher of his child in grade seven usually misses class for
Mondays and Fridays and sometimes on Tuesdays. Teacher’s lateness in class is also common in
schools today. Absenteeism and lateness of teachers possibly influence students to accept and act
in that manner afterwards and crucially absenteeism create knowledge gap in students learning and
make students uncompetitive. This has drastic impacts on students learning process and ultimately
on exams results which in turn, contribute to the failing standards of education in PNG. Schools
and relevant authorities responsible in monitoring teacher’s attendance must ensure that teachers
are committed to their duties.
Unprofessional shewing of betel nuts
Chewing of betel nuts is becoming a controversial issue in respect to the teachers’ professionalism.
Some teachers attend classes with betel nut stain teeth. Others request or share betel nuts with
students on table markets or hidden places in school yards. Teachers even shew within the
classroom. Such attitudes violates section 1 (1) of PNG Teachers Code of Ethics were teachers are
expected to set an example in behavior, dress and appearance acceptable to the community. Those
attitudes had become habit to some betel nut shewing teachers. According to the National (2022)
a parent of a grade four student claim that his child started chewing betel nut as it is becoming
normal for all students in the class. Since teacher are believed to be role models to students they
easily adopt what they observed from their teachers.
To ensure that students achieve quality education with high moral and ethical values teachers need
to be aware of their actions and behaviors when interacting with students. Students are most likely
to be like their teachers since they spend most of their hours with teachers and not parents at home.
Teachers need to revisit their code of ethics an act in accordance to promote high level of
professionalism in teaching.
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Unaccepted teachers dressing code
Teachers have mandated to facilitate and help learners acquire quality knowledge, skills and values
which becomes essential tool for life. In the process teachers are also expected to shape learners
with moral values. Dimka (2015) claimed that educators, in nature of their profession, are meant
to be role models to convey moral values by living up to their code of conduct. Regardless of this
faith some teachers dress anyhow and attend to class. Cut jeans and untrimmed hair is common
for male teachers in rural schools. Some female teachers trying to be very expensive with tight
cloths and become very distracting to students. Students imitate teachers and being distracted away
and also accept such dressing as norm which in turn, becomes normal to students thereafter. This
added to the unprofessionalism and conflict with section 1 (1) PNG Teachers Code of Ethics
(2004). The code requires teachers to have commitment to students and ‘set an example in
behaviour, dress and appearance acceptable to the community’. Responsible authorities should
collaborate with schools and other stakeholders to negotiate and address the issue.
Receiving calls during class time
The flow of teaching and learning process sometimes interrupted by unexpected incoming calls
during class time. Teachers sometimes excuse students and answer the calls but in most cases
apologized to students and hang up calls and shutdown or set their phones on silent mode. In both
cases students are being disturbed. Distracted students pretends to laugh away unaware that they
were being disturbed. Some students may easily recapture from where they were disturbed,
whereas others may find it difficult to retune into the flow of the lesson. Even teachers may spend
a minute or more to retune to the lessons’ explanation which in turn, scuffles them to catch up with
the time. In doing so some students fail to flow with the lesson and may be late to catch up with
other students. The lessons may not be completed on that hour and be carried forward to the next
contact period which further drag teachers to achieve their unit outcome on time. Teachers have
to careful and consult their attitudes and prepare in advance to perform to their professional
standards and achieve their professional goals.
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Sexual Misconduct
Gibson (2009), revealed in USA that some incidences of educators’ sexual misconduct such as
sexual touching, request for sexual favor and unwelcome sexual advance have been exposed
by learners in various parts of the country. Similarly those unethical practices is happening
but only few has been reported in Papua New Guinea schools. A female student from Angoram of
East Sepik Province was reported having close relationship with her class teacher in which she
spends after hours with him. Family of the student aware of the situation but were reluctant to act
differently as they know the teacher is a public servant. It sounds good to student and her family
in terms of financial support from the teacher but is breaching section 1 (6 & 7) of PNG Teachers
Code of Ethics (2004), in which teachers were urged to ‘take all possible steps to safeguard
students from physical or physiological and sexual abuse’. Teachers must be discourage from such
unprofessional acts and uphold and perform their teaching professions in accordance with their
code of conduct.
Conclusion
Teachers’ professionalism is paramount for the well-educated and moral and ethically accepted
society. For educated Papua New Guineans to be of high moral standards and professionalism it
comes back to where they have been educated. Teachers as the primary source of education to all
others professions have to be qualified and act with high moral values, and be concerned with their
verbal, social and general appearance in learning environment. It is professional requirement of
every teachers of Papua New Guinea to serve with integrity and in accordance to Papua New
Guinea Teachers Code of Ethics (2004) to create well-educated and the society of high level of
moral values and professionalism. Established responsible authorities must ensure that teachers
perform within their boundaries and necessary mechanism needed to be unitized to penalize
teachers who breach the code of conduct.
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References
National Research Institute. (2022). The Challenges Teachers in Papua New Guinea Continue to
Face. Spotlight; Inquiry inform influence, 4 (1), 11-14
Dimka, D. (2015). Teachers Conduct in the 21st Century: The need for Enhancing Students’
Academic Performance. Journal of Education and Practice, 6 (35), 23-25.
John. H. (2012). A professional teacher dispositions through peer reviewed literature from 19852021. A Narrative Review, 15, 8-10.
Gibson, A. M., & Wang, J. R. (2009). Teachers Behaving unprofessionally: Stories from students.
International Journal of Educational leadership Preparation, 4 (1), 23-25.
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