I got the inspiration to write this post while I was walking to the train station from the secondary school I’m currently working at. I began thinking about just how important it is for teachers to be constantly aware of whom they are and how they behave outside of the classroom and outside of the school. Not only this but how this would be perceived and interpreted by students and their parents. Now, I know that this is something we as teachers are reminded of time and again, not only through our teacher training but once we begin employment as well. There are many stories that are trickled through the press about teachers being sacked for indecent photos being found on Facebook and I know many fellow teachers who changed their whole names on the social networking site just to make sure that students would not be able to search and find them regardless of the content of their profiles. It’s a fact that remains with us throughout our entire careers: as teachers our jobs follow us wherever we go. Our profession is not like a lot of others who leave their job title behind when they leave the office at the end of the day. We are teachers during the school hours yes, but we are also teachers when we walk out of the school, when we’re at home, when we’re shopping for groceries, and so much more. If somebody recognizes us out in public they remember how they know us and immediately (whether they want to or not) will make judgments on our suitability to manage and teach children based on how we carry ourselves outside of working hours.
I’m not saying that we need to be paranoid that there will constantly be a set of eyes watching us at all times, but I think it is always important to make sound judgments when it comes to activities outside of school. In a bigger city like London it is easy to get lost in the crowd of people and you may never bump into people you know from work (teachers, students, or parents) because you may not live very near to the school. When you look at a lot of cities and towns however as the populations become smaller it becomes more and more common that people will recognize you wherever you go.
I know this all sounds a bit preachy but let me enlighten how this came to enter my head. I had just finished the last class of the day which was a Year 7 Life lesson. We were covering road safety in this particular class and spent time reviewing different road signs and how to recognize them, as well as discussing safe practices for walking, cycling, driving, and taking the bus to and from school. I spent the class leading the discussion and contributing extra information for my students about why certain choices make for safer journeys than others. Once I was leaving the school I was in a bit of a hurry (to make sure I caught the previously mentioned train) and when crossing a main four lane roadway near the school I saw an opening in the traffic and bolted across the road without pressing the crossing signal and waiting for the lights to change. When I got to the other side I quickly realized the hypocrisy in my ways. I had literally just lectured my students about safely crossing the roadways (including using the crossing signals) and here I was having directly contradicted that. There weren’t any students around at this point but if one of the kids from that class had seen me I’m sure they would have giving me quite the talking to about it later in the week (in a “caught ya!” type of way).
Although this is a very mild example it still got me thinking a lot about the implications of practicing what we teach in the schools. As a teacher I’m committed to making sure I project the same image and compose myself the same way in and out of the classroom. Although I obviously can’t tell anybody else how to behave (we are adults after all) I would still highly encourage everyone to do the same.
Cheers!
Erik
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