The Nobility of Teaching
The problem is, can teachers begin, by themselves, to restore the dignity of their profession?
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There is presently nothing so worrying as the situation of teachers today. Many negative images have tainted the profession, such as acts of violence that have gone viral in the media, dishonesty, professional and pedagogical incompetence and the general welfare of teachers. Restoring the dignity of teachers should be a priority of education policy.
These negative images are not solely due to internal weaknesses in the teacher. The teacher of today faces complex problems that come from within and from outside.
Two challenges
The problem from within is the challenge of teacher professionalism. The key word here is the integrity of the educator. How does the teacher reflect that his/her profession is a vocation of dignity? Rampant cases of teacher violence within the school as well as outside the school complex and the banality of dishonesty while carrying out their duties are only a couple of the issues we could mention.
Challenges from the outside involve the demands of the state, the community and the progress of the times. Demands from the state come in the form of various regulations, which shackle the teachers\' creativity. Demands from the community can be in the form of hopes, ideals and wishes of parents for the presence of teachers who can become partners in the formation of their children\'s characters. Meanwhile, challenges posed by the social and cultural advancement of society are reflected in the advancement of information and communication technology, which necessarily requires teachers to always update their knowledge and skills so as not to be left behind by the advancement of the era.
The constraining regulations, which make teachers the object of evaluation and assessment through systematic, technical and mechanical supervision schemes, reduce the work of teachers to administrative activities. A teacher’s performance becomes a kind of factory-style production process that must be controlled by the quality standards of outsiders. The administration work teachers must complete is so burdensome many teachers no longer have time to develop themselves professionally, or even to focus on their main duty of educating their students.
Teachers cannot neglect the demands and expectations of the community. The public’s high expectations on the performance of teachers actually show that this profession is still regarded as a dignified and noble profession. As a result, cases of violence committed by teachers hurt the heart of the community, especially parents.
Parents expect that teachers be present for their children as a replacement for themselves when they cannot be together with their children in the education process. Parents still place significant trust in teachers to educate and shape the characters of their children.
Rapid technological advancement demands that teachers are always willing to learn and renew their knowledge and skills so they can follow the rhythms and dynamics of their students’ lives. Students of the millennial generation have, since early childhood, felt that technological devices are an intrinsic part of their lives, no simply communication tools.
Unfortunately, our teachers still tend to glorify what they feel are the good things about the past. Most teachers do not even dare to step out of their comfort zones to find alternative ways of educating so that what is taught in the classroom can be more effective and meaningful for their students.
A noble profession
The dignity of teachers comes from the nobility of their profession. There is no profession, which is so instantly appreciated and respected by the public as teaching. When someone becomes a teacher, he or she has a power and authority that is not distinguished by rank or degree.
A president, a minister, or a five-star general who appreciates the nobility of the teaching profession will come to a school when a teacher calls them, whether it is a novice teacher who graduated yesterday afternoon, or a senior teacher who has taught for decades. In order to meet directly and talk with a minister takes people in other professions years. This does not apply to the teachers. As soon as they assume the position of teacher, he or she has tremendous educational power and authority.
Unfortunately, the nobility of the profession is frequently not comprehended by teachers. The granting of such dignity must always be followed by a desire to improve and gain new knowledge and skills. Only then can the magnitude that the community has attached to the profession be truly possessed by a teacher as an individual.
Steps to restore the dignity
Restoring the dignity of teachers cannot be done by one party alone, whether it be the teachers themselves or the community or the state. It requires the collaboration and cooperation of schools, families and the community. Therefore, there are several things that need to be taken into consideration by each party so that the teaching profession can rediscover its nobility.
First, from the teacher\'s side itself, he or she needs to be open in terms of both insight and thought so that they can grasp that the essence of their profession is a process of striving to live up to the nobility of their profession over the course of their lives.
Every teacher needs to have the attitude to always dare to improve and to evaluate their shortcomings and weaknesses and seek to address them through development activities, training and individual enrichment through reading and routine reflection. The power and authority possessed by teachers does not come from the individuals themselves, but from their professional status as teachers. Therefore, teachers need to continuously live up to their professional status through self-formation.
Secondly, in terms of policy and regulation, the government needs to fix the various regulations and bureaucracies that restrict the creativity and innovation of teacher by making policies that are more dynamic, friendly and actually assist the professional development of teachers. Complex rules, such as accreditation, certification, teacher competency tests and teacher administrative work needs to be reviewed and reorganized. Therefore, only fundamental rules that assist in the formation of a teacher\'s professionalism and nobility should be demanded from the government on teachers.
Third, we cannot fight against the times. Teachers must integrate the progress of the times into their professional creativity and innovation as educators so that they are not left behind by their students. Teachers must respond to advancements in information and communication technology as a challenge that it is their professional duty to meet. In an era as embedded in technology as today, the nobility of the teaching profession becomes even stronger and more vital as teaching is the only profession dedicated to formation of a person’s character through unique, specific and inspiring encounters that cannot be replicated by technological means.
Restoring the nobility of teachers is the first step to nurturing the self-confidence of the nation\'s educators so that they may actualize the hopes of the community for their children in the future. The problem is, can teachers begin, by themselves, to restore the dignity of their profession?
DONI KOESOEMA A
Education Observer and Lecturer of Multimedia Nusantara University
