There are a range of values which need to be applied in the teaching profession but I have chosen 5 that that I would regard as the most important to me.

Patience:  Firstly I feel that patience is a crucial element of teaching. Working with children is job commonly stereotyped as being stressful due to having to deal with what seems like menial and irritating issues. However, this is a misconception often made by people with a lack of patience themselves. Children learn best when they are taught effectively and some children are going to both take longer to learn certain aspects of their curriculum but will also often not perform well in certain areas. It is important to remain patient and help children like this just as every other child in the class should be shown how to complete a task regardless of the time it takes them. This insures that the child learns and thus by remaining patient a teacher is able to succeed in completing their job, assisting with and helping the child learn.

Respect:   Respect needs to be present in a variety of areas in the life and work of a professional teacher. It is vital for teachers to respect their pupils and their differences to create a happy learning environment. By exercising high levels of respect the relationship between teacher and pupil can be improved considerably. It is also incredibly important to maintain respect for colleagues, parents and those whom we may work with from time to time for example with social work. We do have to bear in mind that respect is not the same as obedience. A child may obey you due to your temperament. However if they respect you, they will in turn obey you because they know you have their best interests at heart.        

Fairness:   Fairness is not only in the classroom but also in the child’s development and confidence. It’s important that when dealing with situations that the teacher must take all aspects into account and I understand that at times this may be difficult. In regards to work in the classroom all of the children must be given the chance to excel in parts of the curriculum that they show strong ability in. This can be shown by having allocated ability groups in the class. However, not only the strongest group can be focused on. A fair teacher will treat all groups equally. Providing the appropriate assistance to everyone who requires it regardless of how skilled they may already be. This insures fairness in the aspect of learning. Fairness however exceeds being only in the classroom. In regards to more social issues. Disagreements between pupils, for example, are an important area where teachers must be fair. Both sides must be heard with additional information from third parties (eg. Their friends) So to provide a fair and justified response to the issue. This is an effective way of handling situations and by doing this a lesson can also be shown to the children by in turn also teaching them about an aspect of fairness. Thus a fair teacher not only best helps children to learn but also provides knowledge for life.

Compassion:  In my opinion compassion is one of the key qualities a teacher should possess. How is it possible for pupils to enjoy learning and actively engage in various activities when a teacher lacks compassion? If teachers incorporate compassion into their work it will undoubtably result in positive growth  and development within their pupils. Not only is it important for teachers to have a compassionate outlook but schools in general need to adopt this. Working to create a compassionate school will support the needs of pupils and their families which is key to making education successful. Compassion is so important in a child’s education – it is hard to learn unless you are comfortable. It is multiple times better when you feel supported and know that the people teaching you want to teach for your benefit.   

Honesty:    The saying ‘honesty is the best policy’ is very fitting for the teaching profession. I think as teachers we need to accept that nobody is perfect and we all have our flaws. Everyone is susceptible to making mistakes and when these occur we have to be honest with our pupils. Being honest can lead to building strong relationships with pupils furthermore making you an aspiring role model in a child’s life. Furthermore being honest with children in the classroom  will have a knock on affect and allow pupils to realise the importance of this attribute in day to day life.