Professionalism and Ethics: Who are YOU?

Here we go! It is the first day of the Conference: At 630am, I was downstairs and ready to roll. Breakfast is included in our stay so I ate up. Being I am a silent, not good morning person, explanations had to be made to the group, but all was well as our drivers showed up on time and we headed to VICA, the school we will be at for two weeks training the teachers (Joo, Kristy and I), administrators (Martha) and librarians (Kathy). The first day's topic was ethics and professionalism (for everyone) which they desperately needed. There is little accountability or self regulation at schools for anyone, teachers, students, principals, directors. Most use punishment of students (expulsion, caning, yelling) as ways to manage the classroom and often it is not student-centered. We kept reminding them all that we are there "for the students," that, "without students we would have no job," and that, "God gave us dominion over creatures so we could glorify him and be stweards of those in our care." In Liberia, some teachers accept bribes for grades and others don't even come to class, and that is just the start. For us, we focused on honesty, both within their professional life and within themselves and other characteristics of professional and ethical judgement. The team (Kathy, myself, Kristy, Martha and Joo) worked with them as they looked at themselves as educators, then their role in the school (sharing out with each other when they felt okay to), and then their role within the community. The big question was, "Who are you in the world and who do you want to be?" Everyone was hungry for thinking and talking and shared with each other and with the group. We ran a powerpoint through a generator and they all watched careful and attempted everything we asked them, regardless of their trouble understandings us (which would get better as they got more used to the accents etc) and their limited literacy skills. Most have writing that looks like a 3rd grader, arduous, slow, and with weird formations in their letters. It could easily be misrepresented as a child's penmanship. The heart is so there though and they try so hard to get it all, to soak it in. I loved watching their hard work and delighted to think about the shifting cultural expectations that were being spoken of. These educators wouldnt be the same at the end of the conference. It seemed clear.